Picture this: A wide-eyed toddler born in Mumbai, India, arrives in America with his family in 1987. His mother is undocumented, his father on temporary protected status. Deportation looms. One phone call from a U.S. senator changes everything. That little boy? Today he’s Nevada Assemblyman Reuben D’Silva—decorated combat veteran, award-winning high school teacher, proud son of Las Vegas, and the first Indian-American ever elected to public office in the history of Nevada.
It’s the kind of American story that feels almost too cinematic to be real. But for the thousands of families in Assembly District 28, it’s the inspiring true story of the man now fighting for them in Carson City.
Born in 1985 in Mumbai, D’Silva grew up in North Las Vegas after his family settled in the Valley when he was six. He walked the halls of Rancho High School as Senior Class President, Homecoming King, and captain for the varsity soccer team graduating in 2003. Even then, leadership came naturally. But real-world tests were coming fast.
Right after high school, D’Silva enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada and enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. While studying at UNLV, he was deployed to Iraq in 2007. He served as a truck driver and turret gunner. While on a mission in the deadly streets of Fallujah, his convoy came under enemy sniper fire on June 6. A bullet ripped through his forearm. Most people would have ducked for cover. Reuben returned fire, suppressing the sniper long enough for his fellow Marines to escape to safety.
For that heroism, he earned the Purple Heart, the Navy Achievement Medal, and the Combat Action Ribbon. After a year of recovery at Naval Medical Center San Diego, he was medically retired. A formerly undocumented immigrant child from Mumbai had become a battle-tested American war hero.
After returning home to Las Vegas Reuben went back to UNLV and graduated in 2010 with a degree in American and European history. He wanted to become a teacher. By 2010 the Great Recession made teaching jobs scarce. So D’Silva did what dreamers do: he leveled up. He earned a Masters degree in Globalization Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and another in Comparative Religion and Politics from Yale University—specializing in how faith shapes diplomacy on the world stage. Ivy League teaching opportunities and positions in corporate America came pouring in. He turned them all down.
What did he do instead? He decided to remain true to his original intentions and became a school teacher at Rancho High School.
“I felt it was the right thing to do,” he says of returning to his alma mater. “Public school teaching is one of the most direct ways to give back and strengthen the community.”
Today, Reuben D’Silva is exactly where he belongs—teaching history at Rancho High School, coaching, advising student clubs, and organizing for the Clark County Education Association. He’s the teacher kids remember, the one who pushes them toward college, careers, and civic life because he’s lived every chapter.
His community service started long before politics. In 2013, U.S. Senator Harry Reid appointed him to Nevada’s Military Academy Selection Committee. That same year, he was named a Trustee for the North Las Vegas Library District. He serves on boards focused on boosting graduation rates, resettling refugees, and supporting veterans and military families. He is a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Disabled American Vets, and the Military Order of the Purple Heart, he’s also president of the South Asian Young Professionals Alliance and a 4th degree Knight of Columbus at St. James Church.
Then came the call to higher public service…
D’Silva set his sights on the Nevada State Assembly in 2022. He won the very competitive four-way Democratic primary and cruised to victory in the general election with nearly 68% of the vote—making history as the first Indian-American to be elected to public office in Nevada history. Voters in District 28 sent him back to Carson City in 2024. Now, as he gears up for another campaign in 2026, the message is clear: the fight for Nevada’s working families, strong public schools, and the neighborhoods he grew up in is far from over.
In the Legislature, D’Silva has made education his North Star—serving as Vice Chair of the Assembly Education Committee while also tackling government affairs and revenue issues. From strengthening teacher support to expanding opportunity for every kid in North and East Las Vegas, his work is personal. He knows what it means to overcome odds. He knows what it means to serve.
D’Silva is a proud union leader and fraternity man (Phi Beta Sigma), a member of the NAACP, a practicing person of faith, and a career educator, Reuben D’Silva doesn’t just talk about Nevada values—he lives them.
As he prepares to ask District 28 voters for another term, one thing is certain: this isn’t just another politician seeking re-election. This is a Marine who took a bullet for his country. A teacher who came home when it would have been easier to find fortune elsewhere . An immigrant kid who turned every setback into fuel.
Reuben D’Silva’s story isn’t finished. And if the voters who know him best have anything to say about it, the best chapters—fighting for better schools, stronger communities, and a brighter Nevada—are still ahead.
Are you ready to stand with a true public servant? The 2026 campaign is underway. When Reuben D’Silva says he’s fighting for you, he means it—he always has.
