Secretary of State
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Within the line of succession to succeed the Governor of a state, should the opportunity arise, the Secretary of State, in most cases, is second behind only Lieutenant Governor. However, in states such as Arizona that are without said office, the Secretary of State would then come first in the line of succession should the governor's seat find itself vacant.
With the exception of Wisconsin and Hawaii, all of the Secretaries of State, or those, like lieutenant governors, acting in such capacity, belong to the National Association of Secretaries of State.
Typical responsibilities
The specific duties pertaining to the office of Secretary of State vary from state to state. The role they play in the operation of state governments depends largely on the responsibilities delegated to them by each of the individual states' constitutions, or, to a lesser extent, statutes or executive orders.
Areas each Secretary of State typically has jurisdiction in include:
- Elections and voting
- State business services
- Administration (in a majority, but not all, states) of the Uniform Commercial Code, legislation that provides consistent application of business contracts and practices across the United States.
- State trademark registration and for chartering businesses
- Records of business activities within each given state
- Archiving government documents, including, though certainly not limited to, official copies of state documents such as:
- The actual official copy of the state constitution
- Formal copies of legislative acts enacted into law
- Executive orders issued by the governor
- Regulations and interpretations of statutes issued by state regulatory agencies
- Authority extends to civil acts, such as marriages, birth certificates, and adoption and divorce decrees in half of the states
- Administration of notaries public
- Keeper of the Great Seal
Party composition
Elected or Appointed
The current party breakdown of the Secretaries of State based on whether they are elected (either by the general public or the state legislature) or appointed (by the governor of an individual state) shows that:
- Of the 35 elected to office, 16 are Republican and 19 are Democrat
- Governors in nine of the 47 states appoint their Secretary of State
- Four are Republican. These states are Florida, New Jersey, Texas, and Virginia.
- Five are Democrat. These states are Delaware, Maryland, New York, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania.
- In three of the 47 states with secretaries of state, the officeholder is elected by the state legislature.
- Tennessee is the only one of these three that is a Republican.
- The two states with the Democrats are Maine and New Hampshire.
Chief Election Officials
The current party breakdown of the Secretaries of States who are chief election officials in each of their respective states shows that:
- Of the 37 chief election officials, 17 are Republican and 20 are Democrat
- Governors appoint four of them:
- Three are Republican. These states are Florida, New Jersey, and Texas.
- The other, from Pennsylvania, is a Democrat.
- The state legislature of each state elects two:
- Both are Democrats. These states are Maine and New Hampshire.
List
List of secretaries of state in U.S. states:
| Current Attorney General | State | Assumed office | Term expires | Chief Election Official |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beth Chapman | Alabama | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| No Office | Alaska | |||
| Ken Bennett | Arizona | 2009 (Appointed by Governor) | 2010 | Yes |
| Charlie Daniels | Arkansas | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Debra Bowen | California | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| Bernie Buescher | Colorado | 2009 (Appointed by Governor) | 2010 | Yes |
| Susan Bysiewicz | Connecticut | 1998 | 2010 | Yes |
| Jeffrey W. Bullock | Delaware | 2009 | Appointed by Governor | No |
| Kurt S. Browning | Florida | 2006 | Appointed by Governor | Yes |
| Brian Kemp | Georgia | 2010 (Appointed by Governor) | 2010 | Yes |
| No Office | Hawaii | |||
| Ben Ysursa | Idaho | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Jesse White | Illinois | 1998 | 2010 | No |
| Todd Rokita | Indiana | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Michael Mauro | Iowa | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| Ron Thornburgh | Kansas | 1994 | 2010 | Yes |
| Trey Grayson | Kentucky | 2004 | 2011 | Yes |
| Jay Dardenne | Louisiana | 2006 | 2011 | Yes |
| Matthew Dunlap | Maine | 2005 | Elected by the Legislature | Yes |
| John P. McDonough | Maryland | 2007 | Appointed by Governor | No |
| Bill Galvin | Massachusetts | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Terri Lynn Land | Michigan | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Mark Ritchie | Minnesota | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| Delbert Hosemann | Mississippi | 2007 | 2011 | Yes |
| Robin Carnahan | Missouri | 2005 | 2012 | Yes |
| Linda McCulloch | Montana | 2008 | 2012 | Yes |
| John A. Gale | Nebraska | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Ross Miller | Nevada | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| William Gardner | New Hampshire | 1976 | Elected by Legislature | Yes |
| Kim Guadagno | New Jersey | 2009 | Appointed by Governor | Yes |
| Mary Herrera | New Mexico | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez | New York | 2007 | Appointed by Governor | No |
| Elaine Marshall | North Carolina | 1996 | 2012 | No |
| Al Jaeger | North Dakota | 1992 | 2010 | Yes |
| Jennifer Brunner | Ohio | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| M. Susan Savage | Oklahoma | 2003 | Appointed by Governor | No |
| Kate Brown | Oregon | 2008 | 2012 | Yes |
| Pedro A. Cortés | Pennsylvania | 2003 | Appointed by Governor | Yes |
| Ralph Mollis | Rhode Island | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
| Mark Hammond | South Carolina | 2002 | 2010 | No |
| Chris Nelson | South Dakota | 2002 | 2010 | Yes |
| Tre Hargett | Tennessee | 2009 | Elected by Legislature | No |
| Hope Andrade | Texas | 2004 | Appointed by Governor | Yes |
| No Office | Utah | |||
| Deborah L. Markowitz | Vermont | 1998 | 2010 | Yes |
| Janet Polarek | Virginia | 2010 | Appointed by Governor | No |
| Sam Reed | Washington | 2004 | 2012 | Yes |
| Natalie Tennant | West Virginia | 2008 | 2012 | Yes |
| Douglas La Follette | Wisconsin | 1983 | 2010 | No |
| Max Maxfield | Wyoming | 2006 | 2010 | Yes |
See also
External links
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