Aaron Ford (Nevada politician)

Aaron Darnell Ford (born May 24, 1972) is an American lawyer and politician currently serving as the 34th attorney general of Nevada since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the Nevada Senate representing the 11th district from 2013 to 2018.^[1] He served as Nevada Senate majority and minority leader.^[2]

Ford defeated Republican nominee Wesley Duncan in the 2018 Nevada attorney general election, winning by just 0.4% of the vote in a close race.^[3] He was reelected in 2022, winning reelection by the largest victory margin for a statewide Democratic incumbent in Nevada history against Republican nominee Sigal Chattah.^[4]

Ford is a candidate for governor of Nevada in the 2026 Nevada gubernatorial election, challenging Republican incumbent Joe Lombardo.^[5][6]

Ford was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. He earned a scholarship and received his undergraduate degree from Texas A&M University in 1994.^[7] He was the first in his family to graduate from college. He earned a master's degree in international education from George Washington University. He also has an M.A., J.D., and Ph.D. from Ohio State University.^[8]

During his college years between 1991 and 1994, Ford was arrested four times on misdemeanor charges, though these arrests did not result in convictions.^[9] The specific citations included public intoxication, failure to appear for a traffic violation, and a theft-related offense; the latter was dismissed after he paid restitution.^[10] Ford has publicly addressed this history, characterizing the incidents as "youthful mistakes" that provided learning experiences. He stated that he did not wish to be judged solely "on the first 20 years" of his life.^[11]

Ford has worked as a public school teacher.^[12] He clerked for federal judges Denise Page Hood and Johnnie B. Rawlinson on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.^[13]

After completing his clerkships, he practiced law at firms in Texas and Nevada. Ford moved back to Texas to work at Bracewell LLP as an associate. Later, he became an associate at Weil Gotshal & Manges. Upon moving back to Las Vegas, Ford joined Snell & Wilmer and was promoted to partner a few years later. He has also worked at Eglet Prince.^[14]

Ford ran for Nevada Senate in District 12 in 2010 but lost to the Republican incumbent, Joe Hardy, by around 20 points.^[15]

After relocating in 2011, Ford ran for the Senate again in District 11 in the 2012 election, defeating Republican incumbent, John Drake, by 24.6%.^[15]

In 2013, Ford served as the Assistant Majority Whip and in 2015 became the Minority Leader of the Senate.^[15] In 2017, Ford became the Majority Leader after the Democratic Party regained control of the Nevada Assembly.^[7]

In 2017 Nevada legislative session, Ford led the efforts requiring law enforcement agencies to turn over rape kits for testing within 30 days and require labs to test them within 120 days. The bill mandated the creation of a Nevada-wide sexual assault kit tracking program, which would allow victims to follow the status of their rape kits as they go through the criminal justice system.^[16]

During the same session, Ford helped pass a stricter drug pricing transparency law.^[17] He also authored legislation requiring financial advisors to be held accountable to a fiduciary standard, a higher threshold than the previous suitability standard.^[18] Ford stated that the fiduciary law was motivated by his experience representing an elderly client who had been "ripped off" by an insurance salesman.^[19]

During his time in the Senate, Ford served as the chair of the Committee on Natural Resources, vice chair of the Committee on Education, and was a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.^[15]

In 2018, Ford ran for and was elected as Nevada's 34th attorney general, becoming the first African American to hold a statewide constitutional office in the state. He assumed office on January 7, 2019, and was re-elected in 2022, defeating Republican nominee Sigal Chattah with 52.3% of the vote (511,263 votes) compared to her 44.4% (434,084 votes).^[4]

Ford secured more than $1.1 billion in settlements for Nevada to combat and treat the opioid epidemic as part of a series of lawsuits he filed against opioid manufacturers and distributors for their role in overdose deaths and healthcare system costs paid by taxpayers. In January 2022, he announced the state would receive over $285 million from a collection of settlements with major distributors AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health, and McKesson, as well as manufacturer Johnson & Johnson.^[20] In 2023, Ford announced the state's settlement agreement of $285 million with Walgreens for its role in contributing to the opioid crisis by distributing the drug. The payments to the state are to take place over the course of 15 years beginning in 2023.^[21]

During his tenure as Senate majority leader and later as attorney general, Ford accepted sponsored travel funded by outside organizations, primarily the Attorney General Alliance. Financial disclosures indicate that between 2017 and 2025, Ford accepted trips to destinations including Israel, Ghana, Qatar, Spain, South Africa, Poland, and South Korea, with a total reported value exceeding $140,000.^[22][23] The AGA is funded largely by corporate sponsorships, including from companies subject to state regulations and litigation, drawing criticism regarding potential conflicts of interest.^[22][24] Ford spent one-third of 2024 out of state.^[23]

In February 2026, an ethics complaint against Ford over sponsored trips and official social media posts advanced past the initial review stage. Opened in September 2025 by Ross Armstrong, executive director of the state ethics commission, a review panel unanimously concluded on February 11 that enough evidence existed to bring the complaint to the full commission. The complaint raised two specific concerns: the use of official Attorney General social media accounts to amplify private campaign accounts and the acceptance of international trips valued over $35,000 in 2023-2024 from the Attorney General Alliance.^[25]

In December 2024, Ford confirmed his candidacy for governor of Nevada in the 2026 election, challenging Republican incumbent Joe Lombardo.^[26] Ford, who is term-limited from seeking re-election as attorney general, officially launched his campaign in July 2025; his entry into the race followed months of speculation regarding a potential rematch between Lombardo and former governor Steve Sisolak.^[27]

Ford is married to Berna Rhodes, an attorney. They have three sons, and are also raising their nephew.^[7]

On July 21, 2018, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that Ford "has a history of failing to fully pay his taxes."^[28] According to Clark County records, the IRS filed three tax liens against Ford totaling more than $185,000 in unpaid taxes, interest, and penalties for the years 2010 through 2013. The liens were cleared in 2016.^[28] Ford's campaign manager, Peggy Yang, stated that Ford had "faced some financial difficulties" resulting from the recession, which were further complicated by the tax implications of his promotion to partner at his law firm.^[29] The Review-Journal noted that Ford purchased a new home for $468,138 in 2013, one of the years he failed to fully pay his income taxes. Ford responded that he had "short-sold a house during that time period."^[30]

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