Former Democratic Secretary of State Ross Miller, who lost a high-profile bid for attorney general in 2014, is making a political comeback in a campaign for Clark County Commission.

Miller confirmed to The Nevada Independent on Tuesday that he will run for termed-out Commissioner Larry Brown’s District C seat. Other candidates seeking the seat include Democrat Hunter Cain, a former staffer for Rep. Dina Titus who was the first to announce his run for District C, followed by termed-out Las Vegas City Councilman and former Metro Police Captain Stavros Anthony and Fayyaz Raja, who is a member of the Clark County Asian-American Pacific Islanders Community Commission.

District C includes Sun City Summerlin to Cold Creek, Kyle Canyon, Mount Charleston, Calico Basin, Indian Springs and Creech Air Force Base.

Elected as secretary of state in 2006, Miller ran unsuccessfully against Republican Adam Laxalt for attorney general at the end his two-term limit in 2014. Prior to being elected secretary of state, Miller was a deputy district attorney for Clark County. He is the son of former Gov. Bob Miller.

Miller is seeking one of four available seats on the Democrat-controlled Clark County Commission in the 2020 election cycle.

Commissioners Brown and Lawrence Weekly (District D) are barred by term limits from running again. Terms on the commission are four years, and commissioners can serve up to 12 years.

Chairwoman Marilyn Kirkpatrick and Commissioner Michael Naft confirmed with The Nevada Independent that they will defend their seats. On Monday, Naft announced a staff of high-profile campaign operatives including John Anzalone, who had a hand in Gov. Steve Sisolak’s victory in the 2018 election and has done polling for the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.

Naft’s announcement underscores how sought-after seats are on the commission, which has jurisdiction over the Las Vegas Strip. Kirkpatrick and Commissioner Tick Segerblom both left seats in the Legislature to serve on the powerful board, and Sisolak — who served on the commission from 2009 to 2019 — used it as a springboard to his current office. 

After serving as district director for Titus, Naft was appointed to District A in 2019 to serve the remainder of former Commissioner Sisolak’s term after he was elected governor. Kirkpatrick, who presides over District B, was elected to the commission in 2016 and elected chairwoman in 2019.

Competition is underway for Weekly’s District D seat, with four contenders known to The Nevada Independent. Assemblyman William McCurdy II announced a bid for the seat in August, followed by Clark County public information administrator Tanya Flanagan, state Sen. Mo Denis, who will run for the commission seat in the middle of his Senate term, and business owner Dillard A. Scott.

District D, where 57 percent of voters are registered Democrats, includes areas of Sunrise Manor, downtown Las Vegas and the North Las Vegas airport.

All candidates must file their intent to run with the Clark County Elections Department in the first two weeks of March. Primary elections will be held in June, followed by the general election in November 2020.