Aaron Ford announces bid for Nevada attorney general

Nevada state Senate Democratic leader Aaron Ford announced on Tuesday that he is running for attorney general next year.

Ford, in a statement posted on his campaign website, threw a thinly veiled barb at current Attorney General Adam Laxalt, who has served in the seat since 2014 but is expected to vacate the seat and run for governor in 2018.

“In the last few years, the attorney general’s office in Nevada has become too focused on partisan politics and advancing an extreme, ideologically driven agenda that is far outside the mainstream,” Ford said. “Nevadans deserve better from their top law enforcement officer.”

Ford, D-Las Vegas, said in his statement that he will “work to keep Nevadans safe, strengthen the middle class and protect our families.”

“I’ll take on scammers who rip off seniors, insurance companies that deny care and abuse the system, polluters who poison our air and water, and criminals and drug dealers who prey on our communities,” he continued.

Ford was first elected to the Senate in 2012 and served as the leader of the state Senate Democrats in the 2015 and 2017 Legislative sessions. Ford’s seat isn’t up for re-election until 2020.

Republican Wes Duncan, who up until last week had served as the first assistant attorney general under Laxalt, is also expected to enter the race after Laxalt announces his gubernatorial campaign.

Contact Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Follow @ColtonLochhead on Twitter.