In 2017, then-state Senate Majority Leader Aaron Ford (D-Las Vegas) co-sponsored a major bill that would have limited state and local authorities in Nevada from cooperating in federal immigration activities.

But the bill died after Ford pulled his support. 

Now, as he kicks off his gubernatorial bid against Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo, Ford’s original backing — as well as his office’s guidelines on what obligations agencies have in immigration enforcement — has become a central attack from conservative opponents. The Republican Governors Association said that Ford “has promised to protect the rights of illegal immigrants,” while a Lombardo-affiliated PAC said on X that Ford’s “radical record shows he still supports sanctuary policies for Nevada.”

No place in Nevada identifies as “a sanctuary jurisdiction” and the state has no prohibitions on cooperating with immigration enforcement. The immigration-focused attacks in the governor’s race highlight the murkiness of the “sanctuary” label and the shifting opinion on state roles in immigration enforcement throughout Ford’s decade-plus in elected office.

Earlier in August, the entire state landed on a federal list of “sanctuary states.” Although no reason was given by the federal government, if Nevada continues to be designated as such, the political consequences could be high: a recent executive order authorized the revocation of federal grants and for executive agencies to “use all necessary legal remedies and enforcement measures to end these violations.”

The designation reignited a back-and-forth between Ford and Lombardo, who suggested on X that Ford was partly responsible for the designation, writing that “despite the Attorney General’s attempts to implement sanctuary policies, Nevada is not a sanctuary state.” 

In a statement to The Indy, Lombardo — a former Clark County sheriff who previously estimated he played a role in 10,000 deportations — said that while he’s in charge, “Nevada will continue to follow federal law and cooperate with federal immigration authorities.” 

Ford refuted the characterization and called Lombardo’s claim “a blatant attempt by a desperate governor to earn praise from Donald Trump in an election year.”

“As I have said time and again, I don’t support policies that provide sanctuary to criminals. If you’re convicted of a violent crime and you’re a threat to our community, you should be held fully accountable – and yes, that can mean deportation,” Ford said in a statement to The Nevada Independent.

Despite his constant denials, Ford’s initial support for the 2017 bill has been a staple attack against him during his two successful runs for attorney general, and in what is almost assuredly going to be a competitive gubernatorial race, the issue could prove decisive. Immigration issues have taken a particularly fraught tone amid President Donald Trump’s mass deportation campaign and after Lombardo said he planned on deploying the state’s National Guard to assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Ford’s past stance on immigration

The 2017 proposal, brought by Sen. Yvanna Cancela (D-Las Vegas), followed a wave of similar legislation brought in California and Oregon during the first Trump administration. The bill, which would have barred local police departments from using resources for immigration enforcement, was sponsored by Democratic leaders such as former state Sen. Tick Segerblom (D-Las Vegas) and Ford.

But it faced staunch opposition from law enforcement agencies, who feared it could jeopardize federal funding. A fiscal note from the Department of Public Safety indicated it could have cost the state $6 million in each future budget cycle if the Trump administration decided to pull federal funding as a result of it passing. One of its subdivisions, the Division of Emergency Management, noted the cost could be $23 million in each future budget cycle because of blocked federal funding. 

Shortly before the bill was scheduled to be heard, Ford — the top-ranking member of the Senate, with heavy influence over what legislation lived and died — canceled a planned hearing, saying the legislation was not ready. An amended version that barred law enforcement from asking about legal status also didn’t advance and the bill was dropped shortly after. Cancela at the time said she was “disappointed” and that she “worked hard to try and find a good compromise.”

Ford added in a statement that he too was “disappointed” but that “we've yet to come up with a solution that accomplishes the goals of providing a greater degree of protection to the immigrant community and protecting local law enforcement's relationship with that community.” 

Ever since, Ford has maintained he doesn’t support sanctuary policies for criminals, but debate reignited this year after his office released a set of legislatively mandated “model immigration policies.” The non-binding policies provide guidelines to state and local agencies on how to respond to immigration enforcement activity in settings ranging from hospitals to federal courthouses.

 State lawmakers passed a bill calling in 2021 calling for such guidelines, and Ford’s office was charged with developing the policies and distributing them to local law enforcement agencies, which could either adopt them or adopt their own policies that they would need to share with the office.

Lombardo’s office and Republican groups were quick to suggest those policies would turn Nevada into a sanctuary state — a claim which Ford rejects.

“AG Ford and the Office of the Attorney General do not support sanctuary for any criminal — period,” Ford told The Indy in February. 

Still, Republican groups say Ford’s outspoken criticism of the Trump administration and his mass deportation agenda demonstrate that he backs sanctuary policies. They have pointed to the attorney general filing multiple lawsuits against the administration, including the proposed ban on birthright citizenship, and that he has hosted several “know your rights” workshops for Nevada’s immigrant community. Those workshops include information on what a law enforcement officer can lawfully ask and a person’s right to remain silent. 

"He has been very clear with trying to create policy and help those who enter our country illegally,” Clark County Republican Party Chair Jill Douglass told The Indy in an interview. 

What could it mean for the upcoming race?

Like Ford, Lombardo has a long record immigration policy dating back more than a decade, including criticism that he has been too soft on people in the country illegally.

In 2017, while Lombardo served as Las Vegas Metropolitan Police sheriff, ICE put Clark County at the top of a list of "non-cooperative jurisdictions” for failing to carry out immigration detainers (requests that jails hold inmates longer so ICE can take them into custody). The move drew backlash from Lombardo, who said ICE had arbitrarily put Clark County on a list of sanctuary jurisdictions and pointed to the county’s then-active agreement with ICE. 

Two years later, Lombardo ended a Metro partnership with ICE after a federal district court ruled that ICE detainers could only be honored in states with laws that specifically address civil immigration arrests (Nevada doesn’t have those). 

The issue would come up during the governor’s 2022 election bid. One of his main opponents in the GOP primary, North Las Vegas Mayor John Lee, launched an ad that said “Lombardo loves sanctuary cities” — a refrain echoed by other Lombardo opponents. 

“If you have a sanctuary city, you have a dangerous community. You practice catch and release, and you have a dangerous community,” former U.S. Sen. Dean Heller (D-NV) said in a pointed comment toward Lombardo during a town hall. 

But Lombardo presented himself as “tough” on immigration. As sheriff, he oversaw Metro’s development of an internal system to identify and report noncitizens, leading him to brag on the 2022 campaign trail about playing a role in deporting more than 10,000 people. The system change came after the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued to prevent police from using an allegedly error-ridden national database.

That stance might not work in Lombardo’s favor. Recent polling from Hart Research, a Democratic polling firm, shows that immigration enforcement is one of the Trump administration’s least popular policies among Nevada voters, with most voters (79 percent) saying that Lombardo hasn’t taken a firm enough stance against the administration’s policies. 

Meanwhile, A July poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research indicated that 43 percent of U.S. adults said they approved of the president’s handling of immigration, down from the 49 percent who supported his approach on the issue in March. 

David Damore, a UNLV political science professor and executive director of the Brookings Mountain West think tank, said that Lombardo is in the difficult position in trying to “not alienate the Trump administration, not getting attacked or getting a primary challenge from someone from the right, and then also trying to be able to sell himself as a more moderate position.” Still, as an incumbent governor, he likely has an advantage in the race over Ford. 

“It is just so fluid as policies stop and start,” Damore said about the role of immigration. “I think the next three to six months will help determine how important it's going to be in the race.”