David Flippo’s Bizarre Endorser, Elizabeth Helgelien, a scandal ridden political hack.
A blast from the past repeats the debunked allegations against Settelmeyer. You won't believe her story. You can't make this stuff up. I reveal who she is.
Jun 06, 2026
Elizabeth Helgelien posted this op ed on RGJ. The story sounded interesting. I wondered about her, so I looked her up. Elizabeth was the youngest woman ever elected to the Nevada Legislature, so far so good, but it goes south after that.
I’m not sure that this endorsement helps Flippo. Possibly, it exposes who he associates with, which is a cast of characters from the Republican fringe.
Click the image to read the article on the RGJ. It’s more of the same debunked allegations that I wrote about before.
The Settelmeyer Attack List: Real Votes, Campaign Shorthand, and a Lot of Spin
I explain Filippo's attack claims against Settelmeyer in this article. They are exaggerated and misleading, but are being repeated on social media by Filippo’s supporters.
The Early Life of Elizabeth
Elizabeth Nicole Schworak was born in Oregon in 1983, where she and her four siblings were raised by her single mother, Candy. She graduated from North Salem High School in Salem, Oregon, in 2001.
Then she married Daniel Halseth.
In 2006, after her husband lost his job and her income from her work at a tow truck company was insufficient, they filed for personal bankruptcy and moved to Nevada.
A Political Career Starting with a Scandal
She began her political career in 2010, running for Assembly District 13 in the Nevada Assembly, then withdrew from the race before the filing deadline to run for the Nevada Senate’s 9th district. This more prestigious seat gave her higher visibility.
During the primary campaign, Halseth released a telephone recording of her opponent, long-term Republican Dennis Nolan, pressuring the ex-wife of his friend, Gordon Lawes, who had been sentenced to ten years in prison for raping her 16-year-old sister, to “tell the truth” about the rape and that it would be “very financially beneficial” if she did, ruining the chances for Nolan.
Link: Woman criticizes lawmaker over phone call
After defeating Nolan in the primary, she went on to defeat millionaire jeweler Benny Yerushalmi, who was heavily supported by the Democratic establishment, in the general election, becoming the youngest woman in the Nevada Senate.
A Resignation Under Strange Circumstances
She announced her resignation from office on February 17, 2012, citing difficulties balancing her senatorial duties with her role as a single mother following her divorce from Daniel.
Her resignation followed criticism that she was missing meetings and failing to return telephone calls.
Link: Following questions regarding her whereabouts, Las Vegas Sen. Elizabeth Halseth resigns.
Her ex-husband, Daniel Halseth, was indicted on two felony counts: one of coercion and one of battery; he was also indicted on one misdemeanor count of open and gross lewdness.
During this time, she married Tiger Helglien, with whom she was having an affair while still married to Daniel Halseth, according to her mother-in-law.
Link: Sex, Lies, and Murder: GOP Candidate’s Former In-Law Goes Scorched Earth on Her.
Tiger and Elizabeth both like to post in favor of Flippo on Facebook.
Link: Facebook for Elizabeth. Link: Facebook for Tiger.
An Attempt to Cash in on her Notoriety
In May 2012, after her February resignation from the Senate, she appeared in Maxim’s “Hot 100” photo contest, appearing in a bikini.
However, she did not win the “Hot 100” contest, but was later profiled by Maxim in October 2012 in an additional photoshoot featuring her in a bikini.
Link: Political Eye: Ex-lawmaker goes from Senate to sexy.
She then moved to Alaska and worked in real estate before returning to Nevada.
In 2018, she announced that she would run for a vacant seat in the Nevada Senate’s 8th district, after the incumbent, Independent Patricia Farley, announced she would retire; she was defeated in the Republican primary by Valerie Weber.
A Family Scandal and a Murder
In April 2021, her then 16-year-old daughter, Sierra, and Sierra’s boyfriend, Aaron Guerrero, were arrested in Salt Lake City for the murder of Helgelien’s ex-husband, Daniel Halseth, in Las Vegas.
Halseth was stabbed, dismembered, and then burned to cover up the killing. On October 20, 2022, both were sentenced to 22 years to life in prison with the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to all counts on May 25, 2022.
In a response to requests for comment, Helgelien stated, “I will always love my daughter. It horrifies me that our system didn’t take the abuse she was receiving seriously before it came to this.
My daughter was abused by her father,” she alleged. “That doesn’t excuse her actions. At the time, she was a minor and had taken responsibility like an adult. She is now facing the consequences like an adult.”
Link: Teen girl, boyfriend sentenced for killing girl’s father
So, apparently, Elizabeth believed that the system failed her daughter, but where was Elizabeth while this alleged abuse was happening? According to her mother-in-law, she was out having affairs and other such things.
Back to Politics Again
In March 2023, Helgelien announced that she would run for Congress to represent Nevada’s 3rd congressional district, challenging Democratic incumbent Susie Lee. Helgelien placed third in the seven-person Republican primary.
In an article, her ex-mother-in-law Halseth stated Helgelien’s past was “more scandal-plagued and disturbing than any ad could ever convey: a past filled with infidelity, lies, abandoning constituents, and raising a teenage daughter who committed a brutal murder”.
In a sympathetic article by Megan Barth in the Nevada Globe, she quoted Helgelien as saying, “I never had a taste for politics. I have a taste to represent the people of Nevada.”
Link: Elizabeth Helgelien Announces Candidacy For CD-3
Barth, further quoted Helgelien as saying, “Nevadans want someone who is bold and stands on principles. I won as a conservative republican in a democratic district before by standing on principles and following through… As a freshman congresswoman, I am going to DC to shake things up and look out for the people of Nevada. I have a history of winning and beating incumbents, and I will do it again.”
She got 20% of the vote, and that was it for her political career until she got connected with David Flippo and is possibly seeking a role on his team, who knows.
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