As in legislative sessions past, The Nevada Independent is publishing a series of profiles featuring the new lawmakers in the state. This is the first installment. Check back in coming days for additional stories on new legislators' backgrounds, interests and policy positions.

Assemblyman Jovan Jackson

• The freshman Las Vegas Democrat succeeds Assemblywoman Shondra Summers-Armstrong (D-Las Vegas), who did not seek re-election and instead ran a successful campaign for Las Vegas City Council.
• He represents a district north of downtown Las Vegas that also includes parts of North Las Vegas.
• District 6 is heavily Democratic (43 percent Democrat, 10 percent Republican and 47 percent registered as nonpartisan or to other political parties as of December 2024).
• Jackson defeated Republican Nephi Oliva in the general election, carrying 70 percent of the vote.
• He will sit on the government affairs, heath and human services and natural resources committees.

Profile

Jackson describes his life as a roller coaster.

In the early 2010s, Jackson was riding high. The Nevada native, who was born in 1992 and attended Desert Pines High School, owned a home and a Mercedes while running the mental health business he founded. He said he had come a long way from his childhood in North Las Vegas, where gang violence forced his family to move to the east side.

But he then got naive, he recalled. He fell into substance abuse and was in and out of the hospital for suicide ideation and schizophrenia. 

It came to a head in 2016 when Jackson pleaded guilty for conspiracy to commit robbery. He said he ultimately did not go through with the crime, but was still charged for his participation.

“I really lost who I was,” he said. “I wasn’t me anymore.”

He was released from prison in 2018, and started working with progressive activist organizations, including the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada and the Mass Liberation Project (where he now serves as a senior board member). The onetime UNLV dropout then went back to school to earn his associate’s degree and started an organization to house people who are homeless or suffering from mental illness.

In 2019, Jackson also pushed for the passage of AB431, which automatically restores a person’s right to vote after their release from prison, and was the first formerly incarcerated person to fill out a voter registration form when the bill went into effect that July.

In 2022, he ran for North Las Vegas City Council, losing to incumbent Councilman Scott Black by more than 25 percentage points. 

“I learned you don’t run against an incumbent,” he said.

After that, he said, his life began to “fall apart.”

He was diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer, and lost a key investment for a new business he wanted to start. 

That’s when he met Sen. Pat Spearman (D-North Las Vegas), who took Jackson under her wing. He learned more about what it means to be a legislator, and when he got the all clear from his doctor, he decided to run for Assembly District 6 last year.

With his victory in November, Jackson is believed to be the first formerly incarcerated person to be a Nevada legislator. He wants to prioritize increasing access to affordable housing and reforming the criminal justice system, including ending cash bail and making it easier for people released from prison to have their criminal histories sealed.

As Jackson looks back at his time in Nevada’s criminal justice system, he said his time behind bars made him more disciplined, but he still sees himself as similar to the person before incarceration.

“I made a mistake, but I’m still the same Jovan,” he said.

On the issues

Education

Jackson said students currently receiving Opportunity Scholarships — the school choice program that provides needs-based scholarships to private schools — should be allowed to keep them. But he expressed caution about expanding the program’s funding, and instead wants to prioritize strengthening the public school system.

He also said he supports universal free meals for K-12 students, a proposal that Gov. Joe Lombardo, a Republican, vetoed last year, but one that Democrats are planning to bring back this year. 

Health care

Asked about what the Legislature should do to reduce the uninsured rate, Jackson did not provide a specific proposal but said the Legislature needs to better understand the causes of Nevada’s high uninsured rate.

Housing

Jackson supports ending the summary eviction process, which he said would ensure that “every tenant has access to representation and a fair process.” The process requires tenants to make the first filing in an eviction case, rather than the landlord.

Elections

Asked about his stance on a slew of proposed election changes, such as shortening the time frame during which mail ballots can be received and increasing election worker capacity, Jackson did not answer specifically but said “I support ensuring that every eligible vote is counted, regardless of the speed of the process.”

Gun reform

Asked whether he would support a ban on certain semi-automatic rifles and shotguns sales to people younger than 21, Jackson did not provide a specific answer but said he would support regulating semi-automatic rifles.

Film tax credit

Jackson said he backs the expansion of the film industry in Nevada — which is seeking to establish a base in Las Vegas with Legislature-approved tax credits — but he said any arrangement should prioritize local hiring of Nevada youth and partnerships with local magnet programs.

Line-item vetoes

A proposal from Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama (R-Las Vegas) would allow governors to issue line-item vetoes of budget items, rather than having to approve or reject a few large bills in their entirety. Jackson said he did not support the idea, although he did not elaborate.

Environment

Jackson said he supports efforts to lower carbon emissions, but that any legislation should not place unfair burdens on working families. He also said lawmakers should do more to encourage the use of renewable energy sources.