About Erich Obermayr

My 75 years have given me a deep understanding and appreciation for the challenges and triumphs of everyday life: putting food on the table, making the rent or house payment, and guiding the children to a bright, successful future. 

In my time, I have been a dishwasher, factory laborer, janitor, and construction worker, to name a few. I found a trade at age 16 as a field archaeologist, which led to a career in cultural resource management, studying and writing about Nevada history and archaeology. I ran a small business producing interpretive signs, books, and pamphlets which shared the results of these studies with the public. 

I know what it is like to work for minimum wage, I know what it's like to earn a comfortable professional living, and everything in between. I’ve also experienced the satisfaction of having my own business and being my own boss. 

That is why I’ll always take the side of those Nevadans—the small business owners, the workers, the public servants—who show up every day and make things work. 

My wife Meg and I are 30-year residents of Silver City, on the Comstock in Lyon County. We built a house here, raised our daughter, and continue to be proud, contributing members of our community.​

​Family

Speaking as the luckiest man in the world, I find myself part of an amazing family: my wife and companion of 46 years, my daughters, my grandchildren, and their life partners. They are a wonderous group who remind me every day that I would repeat a thousand times over any of life’s wrong turns and misfortunes, because they all led me here, with them, now.​

Why I’m running:

I am running because District 39 needs an Assemblyman who understands that the purpose of governing is to advance economic opportunity, health, education, and public safety for all Nevadans, as well as protecting our democratic republic and the rights and freedoms we enjoy because of it. I am running because, in this time of extremism, legislation making Nevadans’ day to day life better still requires bipartisanship, compromise, and respect for the ideas of others—none of which I am afraid of. 

​Why me and why now?
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We are in a critical moment in our nation’s history. Our democratic republic is threatened by those who would replace it with authoritarian, strong man rule. It is a historic time, and you better believe our children and grandchildren, not to mention historians, will ultimately call us to account. They will ask, “What did you do?” when our system of government and way of life hung in the balance. 

Running for Assembly District 39 is part of my answer, 

Like many Americans, the elections of 2016 and the Trump Presidency jolted me into action. I began taking an active role in our local Democratic Party. I joined the Comstock Democratic Club, participated in the County Central Committee, wrote articles and letters, and helped with the Party’s many public events. I also worked with several local campaigns, making phone calls, going door to door, and helping develop issues and messaging. As 2024 approached, I realized it was time to take the fight for the causes and principles I believed in to the next level.
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In other words, ​“Put your money where your mouth is.”​​

My Opinion

In 2019 I began writing a regular opinion column for the Mason Valley News, the local newspaper for Lyon County. Unfortunately, the Mason Valley News is no longer with us, and in 2020 I switched to the Sierra Nevada Ally, a regional online news service.  You can access my writing at You searched for Erich Obermayr – Sierra Nevada Ally.
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Some examples include:
Targeting the School Board: Is Democracy Working? – Sierra Nevada Ally
Extremism and Covid: Trickle down Extremism: Part 3 – Sierra Nevada Ally
Going Home: What happened to Idaho? – Sierra Nevada Ally