Aaron Darnell Ford (born May 24, 1972) is an American lawyer and politician currently serving as the 34th

Attorney General of Nevada The Nevada Attorney General is the chief legal officer for the U.S. state of Nevada. The functions of the office are set forth in Nevada Revised Statutes, Chapter 228. The Attorney General represents the people of Nevada in civil and criminal mat ...

since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the

Nevada Senate The Nevada Senate is the upper house of the Nevada Legislature, the state legislature of U.S. state of Nevada, the lower house being the Nevada Assembly. It currently (2012–2021) consists of 21 members from single-member districts. In the pr ...

representing the 11th district from 2013 to 2018. He served as Nevada Senate

majority A majority is more than half of a total; however, the term is commonly used with other meanings, as explained in the "#Related terms, Related terms" section below. It is a subset of a Set (mathematics), set consisting of more than half of the se ...

and minority leader. Ford defeated Republican nominee

Wesley Duncan Wesley Karl Duncan (born December 26, 1980) is a Nevada attorney, member of the Air Force reserve, and prosecutor. He served as First Assistant Attorney General of Nevada from 2014 to September 2017 and as a Republican member of the Nevada Ass ...

in the

2018 Nevada Attorney General election The 2018 Nevada Attorney General election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the attorney general of Nevada. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Adam Laxalt did not run for re-election to a second term and instead ran unsuccessfully ...

, winning by just 0.4% of the vote in a close race. He was reelected in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

, winning reelection by the largest victory margin for a statewide Democratic

incumbent The incumbent is the current holder of an office or position. In an election, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the position that is up for election, regardless of whether they are seeking re-election. There may or may not be ...

in Nevada history against Republican nominee

Sigal Chattah Sigal Chattah (born April 24, 1975) is an Israeli-born American attorney and politician currently serving as the interim United States Attorney for the District of Nevada since 2025. She was the Republican nominee in the 2022 Nevada Attorney Gen ...

. Ford is a candidate for

governor of Nevada A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the type of political region or polity, a ''governor'' ma ...

in the 2026 Nevada gubernatorial election, challenging Republican incumbent

Joe Lombardo Joseph Michael Lombardo ( ; born November 8, 1962) is an American politician and former law enforcement officer serving as the 31st governor of Nevada since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 17th sheriff of Clark County from 20 ...

Early life and education

Ford was born and raised in

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

. He earned a scholarship and received his undergraduate degree from

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

in 1994. He was the first in his family to graduate from college. He earned a master's degree in international education from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

. He also has an M.A., J.D., and Ph.D. from

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

Legal issues

During his college years between 1991 and 1994, Ford was arrested—but not convicted—four times on misdemeanor charges. That included charges of public intoxication, failing to appear for a traffic ticket, and a theft-related charge that was later dismissed after he paid restitution. Ford acknowledged his past and called the incidents youthful mistakes adding that he learned from them, noting he did not want to be judged solely “on the first 20 years” of his life.

Teaching and legal career

Ford has worked as a public school teacher. He clerked for federal judges Denise Page Hood and Johnnie B. Rawlinson on the

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts for the following federal judicial districts: * Distric ...

. After completing his clerk ships, he practiced law at firms in Texas and Nevada. Ford moved back to Texas to work at

Bracewell LLP Bracewell LLP is an international law firm based in Houston, Texas, that began in 1945. The firm has approximately 350 lawyers and has United States offices in New York City, Washington, D.C., San Antonio, Seattle, Dallas, and Austin, as well as o ...

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.

Political career

Nevada Senate

Ford ran for

in District 12 in 2010 but lost to the Republican incumbent, Joe Hardy, by around 20 points. 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%. In 2013, Ford served as the Assistant Majority

Whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

and in 2015 became the Minority Leader of the Senate. In 2017, Ford became the Majority Leader after the Democratic Party regained control of the

Nevada Assembly The Nevada Assembly is the lower house of the Nevada Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Nevada, the upper house being the Nevada Senate. The body consists of 42 members, elected to two-year terms from single-member distri ...

. In 2017 Nevada legislative session, Ford led the efforts requiring law enforcement agencies to turn over

rape kits A rape kit or rape test kit is a package of items used by medical, police or other personnel for gathering and preserving physical evidence following an instance or allegation of sexual assault. The evidence collected from the victim can aid the ...

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. Also in 2017, Ford helped pass a stricter

drug pricing Medication costs, also known as drug costs are a common health care cost for many people and health care systems. Prescription costs are the costs to the end consumer. Medication costs are influenced by multiple factors such as patents, stakeholde ...

transparency law. Ford passed a "fiduciary duty" bill which removed exemptions for broker-dealers and financial advisors from rules that applied to financial planners and held them accountable for meeting a fiduciary duty to their clients. Ford said he proposed the rule because of concerns that President Trump was "trying to do everything to stop” the implementation of the fiduciary rule." During his time in the Senate, Ford as chair of the Committee on Natural Resources, vice chair of the Committee on Education, and was a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Nevada Attorney General

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). Ford secured more than $1 billion in settlements for Nevada to combat and treat the

opioid epidemic The opioid epidemic, also referred to as the opioid crisis, is the rapid increase in the overuse, misuse or abuse, and overdose deaths attributed either in part or in whole to the class of drugs called opiates or opioids since the 1990s. It inc ...

as part of a series of lawsuits he filed against

opioid Opioids are a class of Drug, drugs that derive from, or mimic, natural substances found in the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy plant. Opioids work on opioid receptors in the brain and other organs to produce a variety of morphine-like effects, ...

manufacturers Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...

and

distributors A distributor is an electric and mechanical device used in the ignition system of older spark-ignition engines. The distributor's main function is to route electricity from the ignition coil to each spark plug at the correct time. Design A ...

for their role in overdose deaths and healthcare system costs paid by taxpayers. Part of the total, in 2022, he secured $285 million from a collection of settlements, including an agreement with

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company (informally McKinsey or McK) is an American multinational strategy and management consulting firm that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. Founded in 1926 by James O. McKinse ...

for their role in marketing

Oxycontin Oxycodone, sold under the brand name Roxicodone and OxyContin (which is the extended-release form) among others, is a semi-synthetic opioid used medically for the treatment of moderate to severe pain. It is highly addictive and is a commonly ...

and other opioid drugs. In 2023, Ford announced the state's most recent settlement agreement of $285 million with

Walgreens Walgreens is an American pharmacy store chain. It is the second largest in the United States, behind CVS Pharmacy. As of March 2025, the company operated more than 8,700 stores in the U.S. Walgreens has been the subject of a number of lawsuit ...

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 from 2023.

Personal life

Ford is married to Berna Rhodes, an attorney. They have three sons, and are also raising their nephew. On July 21, 2018, the ''

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal' ...

'' reported that Aaron Ford "has a history of failing to fully pay his taxes." The IRS filed three tax liens against Ford for what amounted to more than $185,000 in unpaid taxes, interest and penalties from 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013, according to Clark County records. Those liens were cleared in 2016. Ford's campaign manager, Peggy Yang, told the newspaper that Ford had "faced some financial difficulties" as a result of the recession and that those "difficulties" were further complicated upon being promoted to partner at his law firm. Ford purchased a new home for $468,138 in 2013, in the same year that he neglected to fully pay his income taxes. Ford said he had "short-sold a house during that time period."

References

External links

Government website

Campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Aaron 1972 births 21st-century members of the Nevada Legislature African-American state legislators in Nevada George Washington University Graduate School of Education and Human Development alumni Living people Nevada attorneys general Democratic Party Nevada state senators Ohio State University Moritz College of Law alumni Lawyers from Dallas Politicians from Dallas Politicians from Carson City, Nevada Politicians from Las Vegas Texas A&M University alumni