Nevada Gov. Candidate Danielle Ford Makes Final Table at Vegas Charity Poker Event

Danielle Ford is hoping for a much bigger win on Nov. 3 than the one she posted on Oct. 3. Making the final table and taking fifth place in a Las Vegas charity poker tournament is a solid run, but in the Nevada governor’s race, anything short of first place is a bust.

Ford spent last Saturday, Oct. 3, reaching the final table at the “Every Hand Makes a Difference” tournament. Hosted by the Charity Series of Poker (CSOP) in Las Vegas, the event benefited the Junior League of Las Vegas. It drew a mix of poker pros, local personalities, and invited bounty players to the Via Brasil Steakhouse in Summerlin.

Party Pooper

Ford, currently a member of the Nevada State Board of Education, is running with no political party against Democratic candidate Aaron Ford (no relation) and incumbent Republican Governor Joe Lombardo.

Her campaign website states that she is running as a “Nevada-first nonpartisan” hoping to “bring practical systems repair to the public systems Nevada families rely on every day.”

Right now, her odds are so long that prediction markets haven’t even listed her. Instead, Polymarket shows a tight two-way race between Democrat Aaron Ford (around 55.5%) and incumbent Republican Joe Lombardo (around 43.5%). Polls put Danielle Ford in single digits, between 2% and 7%.

Blind Escape

When she isn’t campaigning or drafting school policy, Ford, who earned her spot on the ballot by gathering signatures, told PokerNews she hits the felt “so that I can mentally step away from the stresses of work and life.”

“It’s one of the only things with enough aspects to keep me locked in,” the Las Vegas native said. “It’s almost meditative for me.”

Other guest bounties in Saturday’s CSOP event included MGM Resorts International poker executive Sean McCormack and 2013 WSOP Main Event winner Ryan Riess, both of whom also reached the final table.

The trophy and top prize of $2,000 went to Tamar Berkowitz of Volunteers of Las Vegas, who bested Riess in heads-up action. Riess took $1,500 for second.

Ford’s fifth-place finish afforded her two Vegas Golden Knights hockey tickets, which she called “great extra bonuses.”

Whether or not her underdog campaign beats the odds on Election Day, Ford proved last Saturday that she knows how to hold her own when the chips are down.