Courts & Law Tracker
How Each State Chooses Its Attorney General (2026)
State attorneys general bring the lawsuits, run the investigations and decide which federal rules to fight. Who they answer to depends entirely on how they got the job. Below is a sourced guide for all 50 states — which elect their attorney general, which appoint one and by whom, how long the term runs, and who holds the office now.
Updated
The four methods
Officeholders are drawn from the National Association of Attorneys General & Ballotpedia, the standard references for this office.
- Elected by voters. The attorney general is chosen directly by the state's voters in a partisan or nonpartisan election, and answers to the electorate rather than to the governor.
- Appointed by the governor. The governor appoints the attorney general. In New Hampshire the appointment must also be approved by the executive council.
- Chosen by the legislature. Maine is the only state whose legislature selects the attorney general, by joint ballot of both chambers.
- Appointed by the state supreme court. Tennessee is the only state where the justices of the state supreme court appoint the attorney general, and the only one with an eight-year term.
The 50-state table
| State | How chosen | Term | Attorney general | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Elected by voters | 4 years | Steve Marshall | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Alaska | Appointed by the governor | 4 years | Cori Mills (acting) | Appointed by the governor; serving in an acting capacity. |
| Arizona | Elected by voters | 4 years | Kris Mayes | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Arkansas | Elected by voters | 4 years | Tim Griffin | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| California | Elected by voters | 4 years | Rob Bonta | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Colorado | Elected by voters | 4 years | Phil Weiser | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Connecticut | Elected by voters | 4 years | William Tong | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Delaware | Elected by voters | 4 years | Kathy Jennings | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Florida | Elected by voters | 4 years | James Uthmeier | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Georgia | Elected by voters | 4 years | Chris Carr | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Hawaii | Appointed by the governor | 4 years | Anne E. Lopez | Appointed by the governor rather than elected. |
| Idaho | Elected by voters | 4 years | Raúl Labrador | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Illinois | Elected by voters | 4 years | Kwame Raoul | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Indiana | Elected by voters | 4 years | Todd Rokita | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Iowa | Elected by voters | 4 years | Brenna Bird | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Kansas | Elected by voters | 4 years | Kris Kobach | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Kentucky | Elected by voters | 4 years | Russell Coleman | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Louisiana | Elected by voters | 4 years | Liz Murrill | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Maine | Chosen by the legislature | 2 years | Aaron Frey | Chosen by the legislature by joint ballot to a two-year term — the only state that selects its attorney general this way. |
| Maryland | Elected by voters | 4 years | Anthony G. Brown | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Massachusetts | Elected by voters | 4 years | Andrea Campbell | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Michigan | Elected by voters | 4 years | Dana Nessel | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Minnesota | Elected by voters | 4 years | Keith Ellison | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Mississippi | Elected by voters | 4 years | Lynn Fitch | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Missouri | Elected by voters | 4 years | Catherine Hanaway | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Montana | Elected by voters | 4 years | Austin Knudsen | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Nebraska | Elected by voters | 4 years | Mike Hilgers | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Nevada | Elected by voters | 4 years | Aaron D. Ford | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| New Hampshire | Appointed by the governor | 4 years | John Formella | Appointed by the governor with the approval of the executive council. |
| New Jersey | Appointed by the governor | 4 years | Jennifer Davenport | Appointed by the governor under the state constitution, serving a term concurrent with the governor's. |
| New Mexico | Elected by voters | 4 years | Raúl Torrez | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| New York | Elected by voters | 4 years | Letitia A. James | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| North Carolina | Elected by voters | 4 years | Jeff Jackson | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| North Dakota | Elected by voters | 4 years | Drew Wrigley | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Ohio | Elected by voters | 4 years | Andy Wilson | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Oklahoma | Elected by voters | 4 years | Gentner Drummond | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Oregon | Elected by voters | 4 years | Dan Rayfield | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Pennsylvania | Elected by voters | 4 years | Dave Sunday | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Rhode Island | Elected by voters | 4 years | Peter F. Neronha | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| South Carolina | Elected by voters | 4 years | Alan Wilson | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| South Dakota | Elected by voters | 4 years | Marty Jackley | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Tennessee | Appointed by the state supreme court | 8 years | Jonathan Skrmetti | Appointed by the justices of the state supreme court to an eight-year term — the only state that selects its attorney general this way, and the longest term in the country. Voters were asked to switch to popular election in 2022 and declined. |
| Texas | Elected by voters | 4 years | Ken Paxton | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Utah | Elected by voters | 4 years | Derek Brown | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Vermont | Elected by voters | 2 years | Charity R. Clark | Elected statewide to a two-year term, alongside Vermont's other statewide officers — one of the shortest terms in the country. |
| Virginia | Elected by voters | 4 years | Jay Jones | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Washington | Elected by voters | 4 years | Nick Brown | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| West Virginia | Elected by voters | 4 years | John B. McCuskey | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Wisconsin | Elected by voters | 4 years | Josh Kaul | Elected statewide to a four-year term. |
| Wyoming | Appointed by the governor | 4 years | Keith Kautz | Appointed by the governor rather than elected. |
No states in this category.
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"How Each State Chooses Its Attorney General (2026): A 50-State Guide," The Liberty Tribune, https://thelibertytribune.com/trackers/attorney-general-by-state/ Methodology & sources
Current officeholders follow the National Association of Attorneys General & Ballotpedia (as of August 2026). Selection method and term length are cross-checked against Ballotpedia's attorney general office comparison. 43 states elect the office directly. In five — Alaska, Hawaii, New Hampshire, New Jersey and Wyoming — the governor appoints, which means the state's chief legal officer answers to the executive rather than to voters.
Two states are unique. Maine is the only state whose legislature picks the attorney general, by joint ballot of both chambers, for a two-year term. Tennessee is the only state where the justices of the state supreme court make the appointment, and its eight-year term is the longest in the country; Tennessee voters were asked to switch to popular election in 2022 and declined. Vermont holds the shortest election cycle, choosing its attorney general every two years alongside its other statewide officers.
Sources: National Association of Attorneys General & Ballotpedia. Compiled by The Liberty Tribune. Last verified August 28, 2026. The District of Columbia elects an attorney general but is not a state and is not classified here. Officeholders change — verify a name with an official source before relying on it. Selection method and term length change far more rarely.