Democrat Aaron Ford, Nevada governor-elect, won the race, unseating Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo. The Associated Press called the race early Wednesday for Ford, who will become the state’s first Black governor.
Ford had 51.5% of the vote to Lombardo’s 44.3% with 85% counted. The win flips the governor’s office after four years of Republican control.
Aaron Ford Nevada governor victory
Ford served two terms as Nevada’s attorney general, a post he has held since 2019. Lombardo sought a second term after winning the office in 2022, when he defeated Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak.
Ford campaigned on affordability, housing, education, health care and protecting access to abortion. He also promised to tackle student loan debt and crack down on the development of artificial intelligence data centers.
Ford said at a Democratic watch party Tuesday that the election was about whether working people in Nevada have a government that works for them. Nevada was long viewed as a swing state, and Trump won it in 2024 with 50.6% of the vote.
What is confirmed: Ford won the race, called by the Associated Press. Ford takes office in January 2027, and Lombardo remains governor until then. Final margins will not be known for a while, as Nevada counts mail ballots postmarked by Election Day that arrive over the next several days.
