Attorney General elections, 2024
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There were 10 attorney general seats on the ballot in 2024. These elections were in Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia.
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. Seventeen states impose some form of term limits on attorneys general.
In 2022, voters decided who would control 34 of 50 state attorney general offices. Thirty offices were up for election, and four offices’ appointment authorities were on the ballot. Before the election, the nationwide partisan balance of attorneys general was 22 Democrats and 28 Republicans. In three states—Arizona, Iowa, and Vermont—the office changed party control, resulting in a net gain of one office for Democrats and a net loss of one office for Republicans.
In the 2020 elections, no attorney general offices changed partisan control. Eight incumbents won re-election, one incumbent did not run for re-election, and one incumbent was defeated in a party convention.
A state government triplex describes when one political party holds the following three positions in a state's government: governor, attorney general, and secretary of state.
Election results, 2024
Heading into the 2024 elections, there were 27 Republican, 22 Democratic, and one nonpartisan attorneys general nationwide. Republicans gained control of the attorney general office in Pennsylvania, leading to a 28-21-1 split in partisan control following the elections. This did not change Pennsylvania's divided government triplex status, however, as the governor of Pennsylvania remained a Democrat.
There were 10 attorney general seats on the ballot in 2024. These elections were in Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Utah, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. Democrats and Republicans each held the office in five of these states. Four incumbents ran for re-election, while six did not. All four incumbents, three Republicans and one Democrat, won re-election.
Democrats retained attorney general offices in North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. Republicans gained an attorney general office in Pennsylvania and retained offices in Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Utah, and West Virginia.
Two other states— Maine and New Hampshire—had attorneys general whose appointment was determined by other elections on the ballot. Democrats retained appointing authority over the attorney general in Maine and Republicans retained authority in New Hampshire.
Ballotpedia identified the attorney general elections in North Carolina and Pennsylvania as battlegrounds. Democrats retained the office in North Carolina, while Republicans won the office from Democrats in Pennsylvania.
Results from the 2022 elections
Voters decided who would control 34 of 50 state attorney general offices on November 8. Thirty offices were up for election, and four offices’ appointment authorities were on the ballot. Before the election, the nationwide partisan balance of attorneys general was 22 Democrats and 28 Republicans.
In three states—Arizona, Iowa, and Vermont—the office changed party control, resulting in a net gain of one office for Democrats and a net loss of one office for Republicans. After the elections, the partisan composition of state attorneys general was 27 Republicans and 23 Democrats.
The following offices changed party control:
- Republicans gained the state attorney general's office in Iowa as Brenna Bird (R) defeated incumbent Tom Miller (D).
- Democrats gained the state attorney general's offices in Arizona and Vermont.
- Kris Mayes (D) defeated Abraham Hamadeh (R) in the open-seat race to succeed Mark Brnovich (R) in Arizona.
- Charity Clark (D) defeated Michael Tagliavia (R) to succeed Susanne Young (R) in Vermont. Governor Phil Scott (R) appointed Young to replace former Attorney General T.J. Donovan (D) in 2022.
Triplexes
As of March 30, 2025, there are 25 Republican triplexes, 21 Democratic triplexes, and 5 divided governments where neither party holds triplex control.
Historical control
The attorney general is directly elected in 43 states. 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.
Partisan affiliation
In 47 states—all except Connecticut, North Carolina, and Arkansas—the attorney general has the power to initiate prosecution at the local level, although 28 states place limits on this power.[16]
Supersede local prosecution
In 36 states, the attorney general has the power to take over a case handled by a local prosecutor without instructions from the governor or legislature, although this power is restricted to certain cases in 22 of those states. This differs from general power of oversight over legal matters in a state and the ability of some attorneys general to initiate local prosecution or to step in and provide assistance to a local prosecutor without instructions from the governor or legislature. In Alaska and Delaware, the attorney general's office is responsible for handling all local prosecution by default.[16]
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.[16]
Term limits
A total of 17 states impose some form of term limits on attorneys general.
Election coverage by office
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- Attorney general
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- School boards
- Recalls
Footnotes
- ↑ Anne Lopez is officially nonpartisan. She was appointed by Gov. Joshua Green (D) to replace Holly Shikada (D).
- ↑ 2022 election for Vermont.
- ↑ Stein announced in January 2023 that he was running for governor.
- ↑ Rosenblum] announced in September 2023 that she was not running for re-election.
- ↑ Josh Shapiro (D) was elected attorney general in 2016 and 2020. He was elected governor in 2022 and appointed Henry in January 2023.
- ↑ Henry told KDKA-TV in a February 2023 interview that she would not run for a full term.
- ↑ Axios, "Utah AG won't seek re-election amid controversy tied to anti-sex-trafficking group," December 8, 2023
- ↑ This deadline was for the following offices: U.S. Congress, state attorney, public defender, state supreme court, district appeals court, circuit court. The filing deadline for state senator, state representative, county office, and special districts was 6/14/2024.
- ↑ This deadline was for U.S. Congress and state offices. The filing deadline for county offices was 3/22/2024.
- ↑ This filing deadline is for non-incumbents. Incumbents must file by 2/15/2024.
- ↑ This filing deadline is for non-judicial candidates. The filing deadline for judicial candidates was 1/12/2024.
- ↑ This deadline was for candidates seeking pre-primary designation. The filing deadline for all other candidates was 3/12/2024.
- ↑ In Virginia, the Democratic and Republican parties form committees to decide on the method of nomination used for congressional races. These non-primary methods of nomination may take place on a date other than the statewide primary.
- ↑ The National Association of Attorneys General, "Home," accessed March 26, 2013
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "The Book of States 2012," accessed October 17, 2012
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2017 - Attorneys General: Prosecutorial and Advisory Duties," accessed December 3, 2017
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