Attorney General of Virginia
Attorney General of Virginia | |
---|---|
![]() Seal of the Attorney General of Virginia | |
Style | The Honorable |
Type | Elected constitutional position |
Term length | Four years |
Formation | 1776 |
First holder | Edmund Randolph |
Website | www |
The Attorney General of Virginia is an elected constitutional position that holds an executive office in the government of Virginia. Attorneys general are elected for a four-year term in the year following a presidential election. There are no term limits restricting the number of terms someone can serve as attorney general.[1]
Qualifications[]
The position of attorney general is established by Article V, Section 15 of the Constitution of Virginia, and they are elected for four years and serve concurrently with the governor. All candidates for attorney general must be at least thirty years old, a citizen of the United States, and have the same qualifications required of a Virginia Circuit Court judge.[2]
Responsibilities[]
The Attorney General heads the Office of the Attorney General, also known as the Department of Law. The Attorney General and their Office have several duties and powers granted by state law. These include:
- Providing legal advice and representation in court for the Governor and the state government in general
- Providing legal advice, official opinions, to members of the Virginia General Assembly and local government officials
- Defending the state in cases of criminal appeals and suits against the state
- Defending the constitutionality of state laws
- Collecting money owed to various state institutions
In order to fulfill these responsibilities, the attorney general oversees one of the largest law firms in Virginia. The full-time staff includes a chief deputy attorney general, five deputy attorneys general and about 150 assistant attorneys general, 40 additional full-time lawyers appointed as special counsel to particular agencies, and 140 legal assistants, legal secretaries and other professional support staff. The Office of the Attorney General is structured very much like a private law firm, with sections devoted to legal specialties.
The Attorney General is second in the line of gubernatorial succession. Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Governor of Virginia, the governor is replaced by the Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. However, if there is also a vacancy in the Office of Lieutenant Governor, then the attorney general becomes the governor.[2]
List of attorneys general[]
Attorneys general of colonial Virginia[]
Records of this period are sparse. The attorney general was appointed by the King, a combination of the governor and council, or the governor or acting governor. There was no term of office, and the office may have been vacant for extended periods.[3]
Name | Term | Notes |
---|---|---|
Richard Lee | October 12, 1643 – ? | Appointed by Governor William Berkeley and Council |
(Office not in use?) | 1652–1660 | Office apparently vacant during the Interregnum |
Before June 25, 1670 – c. October 12, 1670 | Reappointed by Charles II of England on September 15, 1670 | |
October 12, 1670 – at least October 3, 1672 | Appointed by Governor William Berkeley and Council | |
March 10, 1676 (appointed)[4] | Appointed by Governor William Berkeley and Council | |
Acting on May 20, 1677 | ||
Early March 1677 – at least until November 25, 1678 | ||
Edmund Jenings | 1680 – before November 16, 1686 | |
Before November 16, 1686 – before May 1, 1688 | Acting | |
Edmund Jenings | c. May 1, 1688 – June 10, 1691 | |
[5] | October 20, 1691 (sworn) – April 1694 | Appointed by Governor Francis Nicholson. Resigned. |
William Randolph | April 1694 (sworn) – October 29, 1698 | Appointed by Governor Francis Nicholson. Resigned. |
October 29, 1698 – September 4, 1700 | Appointed by Governor Francis Nicholson. Resigned. | |
Benjamin Harrison III | October 17, 1700 – c. 1702 | Appointed by Governor Francis Nicholson and Council. |
March 2, 1704 (sworn) – February 1714 | Privy Council approved appointment July 30, 1703. Died in office. | |
1714 – November 18, 1737 | Appointed by Lieutenant Governor Alexander Spotswood, given leave to England[6] | |
John Randolph | April 22, 1726 – late 1727 or early 1728 | Appointed acting by Lieutenant Governor William Gooch in Clayton's absence |
John Clayton | late 1727 or early 1728 – November 18, 1737 | Reappointed by royal warrant after February 29, 1728. Died in office |
Edward Barradall | Acting between November 17 and 25, 1737 – June 19, 1743 | Appointed acting by Lieutenant Governor William Gooch, followed by warrant March 7, 1738, died in office |
Between June 19 and 27, 1743 – summer 1744 | Appointed acting by Lieutenant Governor William Gooch | |
Peyton Randolph | May 7, 1744 (warrant) – sometime before January 29, 1754 | Office declared forfeit on June 20, 1754 |
Peyton Randolph | May 13, 1755 (warrant) – sometime soon after November 22, 1766 | Resigned |
George Wythe | c. January 29, 1754 – between January 20 and February 10, 1755 | Appointed acting by Lieutenant Governor Robert Dinwiddie |
George Wythe | c. after November 22, 1766 – between June 4 and 11, 1767 | Appointed acting by Lieutenant Governor Francis Fauquier |
John Randolph | Between June 4 and 11, 1767 – early September 1775 (fled) | Fled Virginia in September 1775 |
Attorneys general (1776–1857)[]
From 1776 to 1851, the attorney general was elected by the General Assembly, or, in case of vacancy, appointed by the governor for an undefined term. The Virginia Constitution of 1851 introduced popular election and four-year terms. After the 1851 constitution, vacancies would be filled by the General Assembly, if they were in session, or by the governor.
Name | Term | Party | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Edmund Randolph | early July 1776 – November 30, 1786 | Elected by convention | |
James Innes | November 30, 1786 – November 13, 1796 | Resigned | |
John Marshall | mid-October 1794 – late March 1795 | Acting | |
Robert Brooke | mid-November 1796 – February 27, 1800 | Democratic-Republican | Died in office |
Philip Norborne Nicholas | March 15, 1800 – January 7, 1819 | Democratic-Republican | Appointed by Governor James Monroe, elected by General Assembly, resigned |
John Robertson | January 21, 1819 – mid-October 1834 | Democratic | Resigned |
December 11, 1834 – January 1, 1852 | Democratic | ||
Willis Perry Bocock | January 1, 1852 – May 15, 1857 | Democratic | Resigned |
Attorneys general during the Civil War and Reconstruction[]
Tucker served as the attorney general of Confederate Virginia throughout the Civil War. Wheat and Bowden served as the attorneys general for Restored Government of Virginia. From 1865 to 1870, the commanding general of the military district of Virginia appointed the office.
Name | Term | Party | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
John Randolph Tucker | June 13, 1857 – May 9, 1865 | Democratic | Confederate Attorney General throughout war. Left office when government abandoned Richmond. |
James S. Wheat | June 21, 1861 – December 7, 1863 | Republican | Elected at the Wheeling Convention and then in a May 1862 election for the Restored Government of Virginia in Wheeling. |
Thomas Russell Bowden | December 7, 1863 – August 1, 1869 | Unionist/Republican | Attorney general for the Restored Government of Virginia in Wheeling, then Alexandria, after West Virginia separated, and in post-war Reconstruction Virginia. |
Charles Whittlesey | September 10, 1869 – January 19, 1870 | Republican | Appointed and removed by Brigadier General Edward Richard Sprigg Canby |
James Craig Taylor | January 19, 1870 – January 1, 1874 | Conservative Party of Virginia | Appointed by Brigadier General Canby after winning election (moving forward swearing-in date) |
Attorneys general (1874–present)[]
Name | Term | Party | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
[7] | January 1, 1874 – August 16, 1877 | Conservative Party of Virginia | Died in office |
James Gavin Field | August 29, 1877 – January 1, 1882 | Conservative Party of Virginia | Appointed and then elected |
January 1, 1882 – January 1, 1886 | Readjuster Party[8] | ||
Rufus A. Ayers | January 1, 1886 – January 1, 1890 | Democratic | |
R. Taylor Scott | January 1, 1890 – August 5, 1897 | Democratic | Died in office |
August 11, 1897 – January 1, 1898 | Democratic | appointed by Governor Charles T. O'Ferrall | |
Andrew Jackson Montague | January 1, 1898 – January 1, 1902 | Democratic | Became governor January 1, 1902 |
William Alexander Anderson | January 1, 1902 – February 1, 1910 | Democratic | |
February 1, 1910 – February 2, 1914 | Democratic | ||
John Garland Pollard | February 2, 1914 – January 5, 1918 | Democratic | Resigned. |
Josiah D. Hank Jr. | January 5, 1918 - February 1, 1918 | Democratic | Appointed by Governor Henry C. Stuart |
John R. Saunders | February 1, 1918 – March 17, 1934 | Democratic | Died in office |
Abram Penn Staples | March 22, 1934 – October 6, 1947 | Democratic | Resigned to become judge of the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals |
Harvey Black Apperson | October 7, 1947 – February 2, 1948 | Democratic | Appointed by Governor; Died in office |
J. Lindsay Almond | February 11, 1948 – September 16, 1957 | Democratic | Resigned to run for Governor |
Kenneth Cartwright Patty | September 1957 – January 1958 | Democratic | Appointed by Governor |
Albertis Sydney Harrison | January 1958 – April 1961 | Democratic | Resigned to run for Governor |
Frederick Thomas Gray | May 1961 – January 1962 | Democratic | Appointed by Governor |
Robert Young Button | January 1962 – January 1970 | Democratic | [9] |
Andrew Pickens Miller | January 1970 – January 1977 | Democratic | Resigned to run for Governor |
January 1977 – January 1978 | Democratic | ||
J. Marshall Coleman | January 14, 1978 – January 16, 1982 | Republican | |
Gerald Baliles | January 16, 1982 – June 30, 1985 | Democratic | Resigned to run for Governor |
William Broaddus | July 1, 1985 – January 11, 1986 | Democratic | |
Mary Sue Terry | January 11, 1986 – January 28, 1993 | Democratic | Resigned to run for Governor |
Stephen D. Rosenthal | January 29, 1993 – January 15, 1994 | Democratic | |
Jim Gilmore | January 15, 1994 – June 11, 1997 | Republican | Resigned to run for Governor |
Richard Cullen | June 11, 1997 – January 17, 1998 | Republican | |
Mark Earley | January 17, 1998 – June 4, 2001 | Republican | Resigned to run for Governor |
Randolph A. Beales | July 11, 2001 – January 12, 2002 | Republican | |
Jerry Kilgore | January 12, 2002 – February 1, 2005 | Republican | Resigned to run for Governor |
Judith Jagdmann | February 1, 2005 – January 14, 2006 | Republican | |
Bob McDonnell | January 14, 2006 – February 20, 2009 | Republican | Resigned to run for Governor |
Bill Mims | February 20, 2009 – January 16, 2010 | Republican | |
Ken Cuccinelli | January 16, 2010 – January 11, 2014 | Republican | |
Mark Herring | January 11, 2014 – January 15, 2022 | Democratic | |
Jason Miyares | January 15, 2022 - present | Republican | First Attorney General of Hispanic and Cuban descent. |
References[]
- ^ "Constitutional and Statutory Provisions For Number of Consecutive Terms of Elected State Officials", National Governors Association. Retrieved on 2008-05-21.
- ^ a b "Constitution of Virginia". Virginia's Legislative Information System. Archived from the original on 6 November 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2013.
- ^ "Attorneys General of Virginia". www.encyclopediavirginia.org. Retrieved 2019-08-30.
- ^ Evans, Emory g. "Robert Beverley (bap. 1635–1687)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
- ^ Tate, Thad W. "Edward Chilton (1658–1707)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 6 July 2015.
- ^ Tarter, Brent. "John Clayton (ca. 1666–1737)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
- ^ Tarter, Brent. "Raleigh Travers Daniel (1805–1877)". Encyclopedia Virginia/Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
- ^ Tarter, Brent. "Francis Simpson Blair (1839–1899)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- ^ Bugg, J. L. "Robert Young Button (1899–1977)". Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved 15 July 2015.
External links[]
- Virginia Attorney General official website
- Code of Virginia at Law.Justia.com
- Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring profile at National Association of Attorneys General
- Press releases at Virginia Attorney General
- Virginia Attorneys General