Jan Laverty Jones

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Jan Laverty Jones (born March 16, 1949) is an American businesswoman who was a two-term mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada from 1991 to 1999. She was the first woman to serve as mayor of Las Vegas.

Born in Los Angeles, California, she graduated from Stanford University in 1971. She became a well-known figure in Las Vegas in the 1980s, appearing as a spokeswoman in television commercials for a supermarket chain, and later a car dealership owned by her then-husband, Fletcher Jones Jr. In 1991 she ran for an open seat for mayor, and served two terms. Jones ran for Nevada governor twice, losing significantly in the Democratic primary to then incumbent Bob Miller in 1994, and losing the general election in 1998 to Kenny Guinn. In 1999, she chose not to run for re-election as mayor. The same year, she was voted the Least Effective Public Official in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's annual Reader's Poll.[1]

She is currently Senior Vice President of Communications and Government Affairs^[1] with Las Vegas-based Harrah's Entertainment and sits on the Board of Directors of the US Chamber of Commerce. She has endorsed Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) for the president of the United States and supports her campaign for the White House. Jones will co-chair the Clinton campaign's National Women's Business Council.[[2]]