Attorneys general are the top legal officers of their state or territory. They advise and represent their legislature and state agencies and act as the “People’s Lawyer” for the citizens. Most are elected, though a few are appointed by the governor. Select your state to connect to your state attorney general's website.
29 rows · The attorney general is directly elected in 43 states. The attorney general is appointed ...
9 hours ago · May 16, 2022, 1:35 AM PDT. By Adam Edelman. The Supreme Court appears poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, a decision that would end legal abortion in nearly two dozen states and hand more power to ...
Oct 13, 2021 · Virginia has the only state attorney general election in 2021.
Barbara Underwood (Acting) | 2018 |
---|---|
Eric Schneiderman | 2011 – 2018 |
Andrew M. Cuomo | 2007 – 2010 |
Eliot Spitzer | 1999 – 2006 |
Dennis Vacco | 1995 – 1998 |
No. | Name | Term of service |
---|---|---|
47 | Dan Morales | 1991–1999 |
48 | John Cornyn | 1999–2002 |
49 | Greg Abbott | 2002–2015 |
50 | Ken Paxton | 2015–present |
District Attorney of Los Angeles County | |
---|---|
Incumbent George Gascón since December 7, 2020 | |
Seat | Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center 210 West Temple Street Los Angeles, California, United States |
Appointer | Popular vote |
Term length | Four years |
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.
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)
In 1977, the Democratic Party held a total of 27 elected attorney general offices to the Republican Party 's 16. The Democratic lead in attorney general offices would be maintained through the 1990s, as opposed to the other three top executive offices, which became majority-Republican following the 1994 midterm elections. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican Party gained a lead in elected attorney general offices, with 22 elected attorneys general to the Democrats' 21. The Democratic victory in the 2013 Virginia election for attorney general caused the party to briefly regain a 22-21 majority of elected attorney general offices. This lead was lost in the 2014 midterm elections. After that point, the Republican Party continued to grow its majority control of elected attorney general offices.
Although Ballotpedia covers the five U.S. territories#N#The five U.S. territories are American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the United States Virgin Islands.#N#and their officeholders, territory officeholders are not included in the following figures.
Thirty attorney general elections were held on November 2, 2010. Of the 30 seats that were up for election, 20 were held by a Democrat and 10 by a Republican. Of those 30 races, 16 were won by Republicans and 14 by Democrats- a net gain of six by Republicans over their pre-election total.
According to compensation figures for 2017 compiled by the Council of State Governments in the Book of the States, the highest salary for an attorney general is $182,688 in Tennessee, while the lowest is $80,000 in Colorado. To view the compensation of a particular attorney general, hover your mouse over the state.
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.
Independent incumbent No election. The 2022 United States Attorney General elections will be held on November 8, 2022 to elect the attorneys general in thirty states, three territories, and one federal district. The previous elections for this group of states took place in 2018. The attorney general of Vermont serves two-year terms ...
The attorney general of Vermont serves two-year terms and was last elected in 2020. These elections will take place concurrently with several other federal, state, and local elections .
Overall, there could be as many as seven attorney general seats open this upcoming 2022 election due to incumbents seeking higher office. This situation creates the potential for new policies, changing administrative procedures, and differing approaches to addressing hot button topics, even if the seat remains on the same side of the political aisle.
Attorney general elections are critical for several reasons, including that new attorneys general typically focus on their campaign priorities. Additionally, incumbent attorneys general who are approaching the end of their terms often want to leave office with no unfinished business. Given the political affiliation of each state's attorney general position has not changed since before the pandemic, the upcoming election cycle is likely to create waves in state politics. Here are some races to watch as we near the 2022 state attorney general election cycle.
Virginia has the only state attorney general election in 2021. Democrat Mark Herring – who could be the first attorney general in the commonwealth to secure a third term in office – has built a reputation and is campaigning on combatting the opioid epidemic and fighting for Virginia taxpayers, seniors, veterans and families during his time in office. Jason Miyares — a former prosecutor and current member of the Virginia House of Delegates — presents a profile that has traditionally served candidates well in state attorneys general elections.
Derek Schmidt (R), Kansas' three-term attorney general, is currently campaigning for governor. Two Republican candidates have since announced their candidacy for his position, and former prosecutor, Chris Mann is seeking the Democratic nomination.
Westlaw Today is owned by Thomson Reuters and operates independently of Reuters News.
Incumbent Chris Carr and Charlie Bailey are running in the general election for Attorney General of Georgia on November 8, 2022. Incumbents are bolded and underlined .
Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who: Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline. Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies.
Georgia is holding an election for attorney general on November 8, 2022. Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated.
The most prevalent method of selecting a state's attorney general is by popular election. 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 attorney general in …
State attorneys general enforce both state and federal laws. Because they are sworn to uphold the United States' constitution and laws as well as the state's, they often decline to defend the state in federal lawsuits.
• State constitutional officer (United States)
• National Association of Attorneys General
• List of U.S. statewide elected officials
• Listing of official State Attorney General websites
The 2022 United States Attorney General elections will be held on November 8, 2022, to elect the attorneys general in thirty states, three territories, and one federal district. The previous elections for this group of states took place in 2018. The attorney general of Vermont serves two-year terms and was last elected in 2020.
Going into the election, there are 23 Republican attorneys general and 20 Democratic attorneys general. This class of attorneys general is made of 16 Democrats and 14 Republicans.
Republicans will be defending two states won by Joe Biden in 2020, while Democrats are defending one state won by Donald Trump. Additionally, Democrats hold attorney general offices in four states with Republican governors. By contrast, Republicans hold attorney general offices in one …
Several sites and individuals published predictions of competitive seats. These predictions looked at factors such as the strength of the incumbent (if the incumbent is running for re-election), the strength of the candidates, and the partisan leanings of the state (reflected in part by the state's Cook Partisan Voting Index rating). The predictions assigned ratings to each seat, with the rating indicating the predicted advantage that a party has in winning that seat.
Incumbent Republican Steve Marshall is running for re-election. Attorney Harry Still III is primary-challenging Marshall. Democrat Tarrant police chief Wendell Major is also running.
The 2022 Arizona Attorney General election will take place on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of Arizona. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Mark Brnovich is term-limited, cannot seek re-election to a third term in office and instead is running for the U.S. Senate.
Republican candidates include former assistant U.S. attorney Lacy Cooper, former Tucson city councilman Rodney Glassman, former Arizona Supreme Court justice Andrew Gould, chair of the A…
The 2022 Arkansas Attorney General election will be held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of Arkansas. Incumbent Republican Attorney General Leslie Rutledge won re-election on November 6, 2018, to a second term. She is term-limited and had announced a campaign for Governor of Arkansas in 2022 but later switched to run for Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas.
The 2022 California Attorney General election will be held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of California. Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta was appointed to the office on April 23, 2021, following the resignation of Xavier Becerra to become the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. He running for election to a full term.
Republican candidates include attorney and business owner Eric Early and former assistant attor…
Incumbent Democrat Attorney General Phil Weiser is running for re-election. Republican John Kellner, district attorney for the 18th district court of Colorado, is running against Weiser. Robert Barbrady is running as the candidate of the American Constitution Party.