Brian Edward Sandoval Bio
Brian Edward Sandoval (born August 5, 1963) is an American politician, academic administrator, former federal judge, and lawyer who served as the 29th Governor of Nevada from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, he previously served as Nevada Attorney General and as a judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada. Since October 2020, he has served as the 17th president of the University of Nevada, Reno, and he is the first Hispanic and first alumnus to hold that position.
Widely regarded as a moderate Republican, Sandoval has focused on education funding, criminal justice reform, and economic development. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Nevada, Reno in 1986 and a Juris Doctor from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law in 1989. He has also chaired the Nevada Gaming Commission and held executive roles in the gaming industry.
Early Life and Background
Brian Edward Sandoval was born in Redding, California, to Ron Sandoval, an FAA maintenance supervisor, and Gloria (Gallegos) Sandoval, a legal secretary. He is of Hispanic ancestry and is a long-time resident of Reno, Nevada. Sandoval attended Reno’s Little Flower School before graduating from Bishop Manogue High School in 1981.
At the University of Nevada, Reno, Sandoval joined Sigma Alpha Epsilon and earned a Bachelor of Arts in English and economics in 1986. He then attended The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, where he completed his Juris Doctor in 1989. After passing the Nevada and California bar exams, he entered private practice with several Reno law firms before opening his own firm in 1999.
Path to US Politics
Sandoval’s political career began in 1994, when he ran for the Reno-based 25th District of the Nevada Assembly after incumbent Republican Jim Gibbons vacated the seat to run for governor. Sandoval won the open seat, served on the Judiciary, Taxation, and Natural Resources Committees, and won re-election in 1996, sponsoring 14 bills that became law.
He resigned from the Assembly in 1998 and was appointed to the Gaming Commission of Nevada, becoming the youngest person ever to chair the commission at age 35. In that role, he fought national efforts to legalize gambling on college sports, supported neighborhood gaming limits, and pushed regulations prohibiting slot machines designed to appeal to children.
Brian Edward Sandoval Career
Early Career (1994–2002)
Sandoval’s early career combined legislative service, private legal practice, and gaming regulation. As a state assemblyman from 1994 to 1998, he built a record of bipartisan reform legislation, including measures addressing boating under the influence and indigent defendants’ access to community service.
After leaving the Assembly, he chaired the Nevada Gaming Commission from 1999 to 2001 and ran his own Reno law firm. On October 11, 2001, he announced a bid for Nevada Attorney General to succeed term-limited Democrat Frankie Sue Del Papa.
Breakthrough (2002–2010)
Sandoval won the 2002 Attorney General race by defeating Democratic attorney John Hunt 58.32% to 33.63% and took office on January 6, 2003. As Attorney General, he led Nevada’s legal fight against the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, created the state’s first Public Integrity Unit, and sponsored laws strengthening protections against domestic violence, drug abuse, and human trafficking.
In December 2004, Senator Harry Reid recommended Sandoval to President George W. Bush for a federal judgeship. Bush formally nominated him on March 1, 2005, and the United States Senate unanimously confirmed him on October 24, 2005, by an 89–0 vote. Sandoval served on the United States District Court for the District of Nevada until resigning on September 15, 2009, the same day he announced his campaign for governor.
Republican Era (2011–2019)
Sandoval defeated incumbent Governor Jim Gibbons in the 2010 Republican primary and won the general election 53% to 41% against Democrat Rory Reid, carrying every county in Nevada. He proposed a $5.8 billion 2011 budget without new taxes, declined a pay raise, and took a 5% salary cut in solidarity with state workers.
During his two terms, Sandoval signed a $1.3 billion tax-incentive package in 2014 to attract Tesla’s Gigafactory 1 near Reno and, in 2016, signed a $750 million funding bill for Allegiant Stadium to relocate the Oakland Raiders. He won re-election in 2014 with over 70% of the vote against Democrat Bob Goodman and was barred by term limits from seeking a third term in 2018. He was succeeded by Democrat Steve Sisolak.
Notable Events and Milestones
Sandoval signed a 2015 education-reform package that increased school funding and expanded preschool and full-day kindergarten. In 2016, he launched the Statewide Juvenile Justice Improvement Task Force, and in 2017 he signed Senate Bill 201 banning conversion therapy on minors. He also confronted controversy in 2015 over the state’s net-metering cap for rooftop solar, drawing legal challenges from a Nevada solar company.
Brian Edward Sandoval Career Wins
Sandoval’s electoral record includes a 1994 win for the Nevada Assembly, a 1996 re-election, the 2002 Attorney General race, the 2010 gubernatorial victory, and a commanding 2014 re-election as governor. His two gubernatorial wins and earlier legislative and statewide victories established him as one of Nevada’s most successful Republican candidates.
Statewide and Legislative Highlights
Sandoval won his 1994 Assembly race by claiming an open Republican seat and secured re-election in 1996. In 2002, he captured the Attorney General’s office with a decisive margin, and in 2010 he carried every Nevada county for governor. His 2014 re-election with more than 70% of the vote against Democrat Bob Goodman remains one of the strongest gubernatorial performances in modern Nevada history.
Other Wins and Achievements
Beyond electoral success, Sandoval received the 1996 Broche de Oro Award from Hispanics in Politics, the 2003 Torch of Liberty Award from the Anti-Defamation League, the 2004 Access to Justice Public Lawyer Award from the Nevada State Bar, The Latino Coalition’s 2004 Most Influential Hispanic in the U.S. Award, and the 2004 University of Nevada Alumnus of the Year Award.
Brian Edward Sandoval Family
Family Background and Public Service Lineage
Sandoval was raised in Reno by Ron Sandoval, an FAA maintenance supervisor, and Gloria (Gallegos) Sandoval, a legal secretary. His Hispanic heritage and working-class upbringing shaped his early interest in law, public policy, and community service in northern Nevada.
Personal Life
Sandoval married Kathleen Teipner in 1990, and together they have three children. Teipner later served as program director for the Children’s Cabinet in Reno. The couple announced their separation in 2017 and finalized their divorce in 2018, citing the demands of public life. Sandoval married Lauralyn McCarthy, a Las Vegas gaming executive, on August 11, 2018.