43 states have an elected attorney general. Elected attorneys general serve a four-year term, except in Vermont, where the term is two years. Seven states do not elect an attorney general.
The following is a list of female attorneys general of states in the United States. Since 1959, there have been 34 states which have appointed or elected women as attorneys-general.
One possible explanation for state attorneys general becoming more restless and political-minded is the office's rising media profile, which is a function of the rising capacity of the internet and mainstream press to produce and distribute content on controversial cases involving the AGs.
1, Mississippi, sets the limit at 26. 43 states have a formal provision stating an attorney general must be a state resident, while 7 do not have a formal provision. Of the 43 states, 24 specify the number of years and 19 do not. States that specify number of years as a state resident:
OfficeholdersNo.NameTerm of service47Dan Morales1991–199948John Cornyn1999–200249Greg Abbott2002–201550Ken Paxton2015–present46 more rows
The United States attorney general (AG) leads the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief lawyer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all legal matters.
Merrick GarlandUnited States / Attorney generalMerrick Brian Garland is an American lawyer and jurist serving as the 86th United States attorney general since March 2021. He served as a circuit judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit from 1997 to 2021. Wikipedia
United States Attorneys are appointed by the President of the United States, with the advice and consent of the United States Senate, and serve at the direction of the Attorney General.
the PresidentHe can be removed by the President at any time. He can quit by submitting his resignation only to the President. Since he is appointed by the President on the advice of the Council of Ministers, conventionally he is removed when the council is dissolved or replaced.
The Honourable David Lametti was first elected in 2015 as the Member of Parliament for LaSalle—Émard—Verdun. He has served as Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada since 2019. A proud resident of Montréal for over 30 years, Minister Lametti was born and raised in Port Colborne, Ontario.
43 states have an elected attorney general. Elected attorneys general serve a four-year term, except in Vermont, where the term is two years. Seven states do not popularly elect an attorney general. In Alaska, Hawaii, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Wyoming, the attorney general is a gubernatorial appointee.
The Rt Hon Suella Braverman QC MP Suella Braverman was appointed Attorney General on 13 February 2020. She was previously Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Exiting the European Union from January to November 2018. Suella was elected as the Conservative MP for Fareham in May 2015.
93 United States AttorneysA U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE: BASIC FACTS There are currently 93 United States Attorneys: one for each of the 94 federal judicial districts, except for Guam and the Northern Marianas, where a single U.S. Attorney serves both districts.
In practice, district attorneys, who prosecute the bulk of criminal cases in the United States, answer to no one. The state attorney general is the highest law enforcement officer in state government and often has the power to review complaints about unethical and illegal conduct on the part of district attorneys.
The principal duties of the Attorney General are to: Represent the United States in legal matters. Supervise and direct the administration and operation of the offices, boards, divisions, and bureaus that comprise the Department.
Ashley Moody (Republican Party)Florida / Attorney generalAshley Brooke Moody is an American attorney and politician serving as the Florida attorney general since January 2019. Wikipedia
The attorney general is directly elected in 43 states and Washington, D.C. The attorney general is appointed by the state Legislature in Maine, by the state Supreme Court in Tennessee, and by the governor in the remaining five states. Compensation of state attorneys general (2017)
Three states held elections for attorney general in 2015: Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi. In Kentucky, Andy Beshear (D) won election to the attorney general seat. Democrat Jim Hood was re-elected in Mississippi, while Republican Jeff Landry defeated incumbent Buddy Caldwell, also a Republican, in a runoff in Louisiana.
Comparison across states. Although Ballotpedia covers the five U.S. territories. The five U.S. territories are American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands. and their officeholders, territory officeholders are not included in the following figures.
The attorney general is an executive office in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., that serves as the chief legal advisor and chief law enforcement officer for the state government and is empowered to prosecute violations of state law, represent the state in legal disputes and issue legal advice to state agencies and the legislature.
Attorneys general: Power to represent state in criminal appeals. The attorney general has the power to represent the state in criminal appeals in 46 states, although this power is restricted in five of those states. Attorney general term limits. Attorney general term limits.
2012. Ten states held attorney general elections in the 2012 electoral cycle: Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Washington and West Virginia . Heading into the November election, the Democrats held six of the seats and the Republicans held four seats.
Gov. John Kitzhaber appointed Ellen Rosenblum, who was running for 2012 election to the attorney general post at the time, to serve as interim attorney general for the remainder of his unexpired term. Rosenblum was elected to a full term in the general election on November 6, 2012.
All 50 states have an attorney general who serves as the state's chief legal officer. The attorney general is responsible for enforcing state law and advising the state government on legal matters. In many states, attorneys general play a large role in the law enforcement process.
Ballotpedia is highlighting news and conflicts in battleground primary elections for attorney general and other offices in The Heart of the Primaries newsletter. Click the image to subscribe to the newsletter.
The table below lists important dates throughout the 2022 election cycle, including filing deadlines and primary dates.
The following table details 2022 attorney general filing deadlines and primary dates in each state. The signature filing deadline is the date by which candidates must file nominating signatures with election officials in order to have their name placed on the ballot.
Note: Prior to filing deadlines, the following lists of potential and declared candidates are unofficial. They will be updated after each candidate filing deadline has passed and the official list of candidates becomes available.
The following are reprinted from Ballotpedia's The Heart of the Primaries newsletter, which captures stories related to conflicts within each major party.
Forty-three states publicly elect their attorneys general, reinforcing the office's relationship with, and direct accountability to, the people, in contrast with the Kings Attorneys of the past, whose singular service to their version of governors must have left those being governed wanting.
1, Oklahoma, sets the limit at 31. 1, Colorado, sets the limit at 27. 1, Mississippi, sets the limit at 26. State Citizen. 43 states have a formal provision stating an attorney general must be a state resident, while 7 do not have a formal provision. Of the 43 states, 24 specify the number of years and 19 do not.
Among the chief criticisms of the office is that state attorneys general have strayed from their traditional defense-based lawyer role to assume a more proactive and political posture, often in ways that overstep the legal authority of the office and/or what would be historically recognized as the limits of institutional etiquette. In some cases, attorneys general look inward to test the bounds of their authority through involvement in state legislative matters, or by refusing to uphold state laws which they find to be in violation of an alternate, overarching ideological code, such as Pennsylvania AG Kathleen Kane 's stated refusal to enforce Pennsylvania's ban on same-sex marriage. Other times, AGs turn outward to reinterpret their function: In recent years, a number of cases have arisen where state attorneys general mounted coordinated efforts to challenge laws passed by the United States Congress or to exert influence over the outcome of pending federal legislation. The most prominent of these cases is the State Attorneys General Against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, which saw 26 Republican AGs team up to instigate a lawsuit against the federal government following Congress' passage of President Obama's health care reform bill.
Considering the myriad legal responsibilities carried by state attorneys general, it may surprise you to discover that a whopping 19 states have no set statutory or constitutional provisions requiring an individual to hold a law degree, or have a valid license to practice law, in order to serve in the office of attorney general.
Attorneys general are chosen in four different ways; they are either popularly elected or appointed by the governor, the state legislature, or the state supreme court. The office is elective in 43 states and chosen by a state government organ in seven.
The primary job of a state attorney general is to serve as chief legal adviser to the agencies and legislative organs that make up his or her state's government, in addition to the citizens residing within the state. It is this last common aspect of the role, ...
Qualified Voter. Thirty states have a formal provision stating an attorney general must be a qualified voter, while 20 do not have a formal provision. Of the 30 states, only 1, Oklahoma, specifies the number of years and 29 do not. Juris Doctor.
As of January 2021, there are 23 states with Democratic governors and 27 states with Republican governors. Additionally, three U.S. territories ( American Samoa, Guam and the United States Virgin Islands) have Democratic governors, while one (the Northern Mariana Islands) has a Republican governor.
states and territories . In the United States, a governor is the chief executive officer of a state or a territory. The partisan affiliations of American governors are close to being even among the fifty states.
The notation " ( term limits )" after the year indicates that the current governor is ineligible to seek re-election in that year; the notation " (retiring)" indicates that the current governor has announced his or her intention not to seek re-election at the end of the term nor to run for another office.