Nevada

Nevada Attorney General announces challenge to popular Republican governor

Published

1 year ago

December 13, 2024

Nevada Attorney General announces challenge to popular Republican governor

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford confirmed he plans to challenge Gov. Joe Lombardo (R-NV) in the state’s 2026 gubernatorial race.

This week’s announcement made him the first Nevada Democrat to publicly state his intentions and the highest-profile member of his party to consider a bid to oust Lombardo.

“I do intend to seek higher office, and I have been having informal conversations with people across the state to better understand what they believe Nevada needs in its next governor,” Ford said in a statement to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, confirming months of speculation about his candidacy. “These discussions are an important part of determining how I can best serve our state.”

Ford was first elected as Nevada’s attorney general in 2018 and decisively won a second term four years later.

He previously represented Nevada’s 11th district in the state senate, subsequently rising to top leadership positions in the chamber.

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford speaks at the Biden-Harris for Nevada team first-in-the-West celebration, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Lombardo has already declared his intention to run for a second term next election cycle “because it’s a huge challenge, and I thrive off the challenge.”

“And there’s a lot of broken pieces that need to get fixed,” he told the Nevada Independent in April.

Ford will face a likely grueling battle in a bid to defeat Lombardo.

The incumbent Republican has built a “getting s**t done” brand that has propelled his rise to become one of the most popular governors in the country.

I caught up with Gov. Lombardo as he left the Legislative Building after his first State of the State Address. I asked him what he is most looking forward to:
“Getting s*** done.” pic.twitter.com/KpSPgH0SON
— David Charns (@davidcharns) January 24, 2023

Since he assumed office in 2022, with a victory that made him the only Republican in the country that year to flip a Democratic gubernatorial seat, Lombardo has signed more executive orders than any other Nevada governor. His hardball approach seems to have garnered favor with voters, who handed him a 58% approval rating, per January polling from Morning Consult.

Often the lone GOP voice in a state where Democrats hold majorities in both legislative chambers, Lombardo helped lead Republicans to key victories in Nevada this election cycle. After Nov. 5, Democrats lost their supermajority in the assembly and failed to gain a supermajority in the state senate. The election results scored a tactical victory for Lombardo, as without coveted two-thirds supermajorities in both legislative chambers, Democrats can’t override his vetoes.

As Ford prepares for his campaign against Lombardo, he attracted attention this week for breathing life into controversial charges against six Nevada Republicans labeled as “fake electors.” While the GOP efforts to name President-elect Donald Trump as the winner in the state during the 2020 presidential election were prosecuted, a state judge dismissed the case earlier this year.

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In a new complaint in a Carson City court filed Thursday, Ford asserted that “the actions the fake electors undertook in 2020 violated Nevada criminal law and were direct attempts to both sow doubt in our democracy and undermine the results of a free and fair election.”

“Justice requires that these actions not go unpunished,” the attorney general said.

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Nevada

Nevada Family Law Group’s Caston addresses separation risks after deadly Smith’s dispute

Published

3 hours ago

May 16, 2026

Press Room

Nevada Family Law Group’s Caston addresses separation risks after deadly Smith’s dispute

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — A domestic dispute led to a deadly shooting at a Smith’s in the valley this past Tuesday, and the man accused of the killings is now facing multiple felony charges.

Alejandro Estrada, who is charged with the two deaths at the store, is being held without bail. He faces 11 felony charges, including two counts of murder.

Court records show one of the victims, Amanda Frias Rosas, was involved in an ongoing child support case with Estrada.

Marilyn Caston, a junior partner at Nevada Family Law Group, discussed challenges that can arise for separated couples.

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Nevada

Vegas casino pulls plug on prediction market conference amid Nevada crackdown

Published

15 hours ago

May 15, 2026

Press Room

Vegas casino pulls plug on prediction market conference amid Nevada crackdown

A Las Vegas casino abruptly pulled the plug on a prediction market conference over fears the event could draw scrutiny from Nevada gambling regulators, according to a report.

Predict 2026 had been slated for the Aria on the Strip before the MGM-operated resort canceled the booking just days after signing the agreement.

‘The [Aria] is issuing this notice in light of Nevada’s current regulatory and enforcement position regarding prediction markets,’ a lawyer for the resort wrote in a termination letter cited by Barron’s.

The dispute highlights escalating tensions between state gambling regulators and prediction market firms such as Kalshi and Polymarket, which let people bet on the outcomes of all kinds of events.

Nevada regulators have taken an especially aggressive stance toward the fast-growing sector, arguing that some sports-event contracts resemble unlicensed wagering that bypasses state gaming rules and taxes.

Last October, the Nevada Gaming Control Board warned casino license holders that maintaining ties to prediction market operators could factor into whether they remain eligible for gaming licenses.

“If a Nevada licensee chooses to offer Sports and Other Event Contracts in Nevada or decides to partner with other entities offering Sports and Other Event Contracts in the state, the Board will consider these developments as it evaluates the suitability of the entity to maintain a Nevada gaming license,” regulators said in the guidance cited by Barron’s.

While Predict 2026 was not sponsored by any prediction market company, Aria’s legal notice indicated that regulators had become increasingly sensitive even to indirect promotion of the industry.

The Aria, which opened in 2009 and is operated by MGM Resorts after being sold to Blackstone in 2021, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The showdown highlights the widening divide between traditional casino operators and the new entrants into the prediction market space.

Legacy gaming giants such as MGM Resorts and Caesars Entertainment have largely stayed away from prediction markets even as companies including DraftKings have launched competing platforms to challenge businesses like Kalshi.

Prediction market operators insist that their event contracts are federally regulated financial instruments overseen by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, allowing them to operate nationwide for users over 18.

Some state gaming regulators, however, have argued that sports-related contracts closely resemble sports betting and should fall under state gambling laws.

Nevada officials have already taken direct legal action against Kalshi.

The Nevada Gaming Commission sued the company over its sports event contracts, and the platform was briefly barred from operating in the state earlier this year, according to Barron’s.

The Post has sought comment from Polymarket, Aria and the Nevada Gaming Control Board.

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