Meet William McCurdy

Born and raised in the Historic Westside of Las Vegas, William McCurdy II began his political career well before he was first elected to the Nevada State Legislature in 2016.

His first elected office was that of Student Body President at the College of Southern Nevada (CSN), a fact that is and of itself is remarkable given his story. As he himself says, “I was on my way to becoming just another statistic. High school dropout, teenage parent working to get by, trying support my sons. Things could have been very different for me had I not changed the choices I was making—and if I didn’t have the support of our community.”

But his story did change, William went back and got his high school diploma and then went on to become CSN’s Student Body President in 2014 where he was recognized by the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Committee with the President’s Award. As Student Body President, he fought against tuition increases, supported legislation for the state’s first need-based aid program, bused students to Carson City to lobby before the Legislature, developed the “Be Heard” campaign to promote student resources and connect student leaders with their classmates, and oversaw the distribution of dozens of college scholarships.

After earning an Associate of Arts degree at CSN, and eager to work hard and join the fight for equality, William worked in the construction industry and became one of the youngest supervisors on the Encore and City Center job sites. He then joined SEIU Local 1107 and became an organizer for our health care professionals, nurses, and home care workers. He went on to be the Political Director for SEIU Local 1107, working with elected officials daily for the second largest union for workers in Nevada.

Elected to the Nevada State Legislature for two consecutive terms to represent Assembly District 6, William McCurdy II served in the in the state’s 79th and 80th legislative sessions where he introduced legislation impacting education, public safety, healthcare and economic development. During his last legislative session, he served on the Commerce and Labor, Legislative Operations, and Elections Committees. He was also the Vice Chairman of the Government Affairs Committee and served on the Homeland Security Commission.

In March 2017, William McCurdy II was elected the Nevada State Democratic Party’s first African American Chair. He was the youngest Chair in modern Democratic party history at 28 years old. This position also served as the Western Region Vice-President of the Association of State Democratic Committees where William represented 13 states nationally, including Alaska and Hawaii.