Outgoing Nevada AG will become higher ed official

LAS VEGAS — Nevada’s outgoing attorney general will become a top official in the Nevada System of Higher Education starting next year.

The system announced Tuesday that Catherine Cortez Masto will take the Las Vegas-based executive vice chancellor job beginning Jan. 1.

Officials say she will serve as the system’s chief operating officer, and her duties will include establishing governmental and external relations strategies. She will also continue advocating for the prevention of violence against women and children, as she has in her role as Nevada’s top prosecutor.

Cortez Masto is a Democrat and has been attorney general since 2007. She could not run again due to term limits.

Republican Adam Laxalt will take her seat after winning a close race against outgoing Secretary of State Ross Miller.