List of female state attorneys general in the United States

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The following is a list of female attorneys general of states in the United States. Since 1959, there have been 34 states which have appointed or elected women as attorneys-general. Puerto Rico has had a record four women hold office as attorney general, the most of any U.S. state or territory. Anne X. Alpern of Pennsylvania is the first woman to hold office as the attorney-general of a state.[1] Fourteen U.S. states have had at least two women serve as attorneys-general, with both Hawaii and Pennsylvania having the most at three each.

List of female attorneys general of states

Christine Gregoire
Attorney General of Washington (1993–2005)
Kelly Ayotte
Attorney General of New Hampshire (2004–2009)
Kamala Harris
Attorney General of California (2011–2017)
Maura Healey
Attorney General of Massachusetts (2015–2023)
Ashley Moody
Attorney General of Florida (2019–present)
Officeholder State Party Assumed office Term expires Law school
Anne X. Alpern Pennsylvania Democratic January 20, 1959 August 28, 1961 University of Pittsburgh
Arlene Violet Rhode Island Republican 1985 1987 Boston College
Corinne Watanabe Hawaii Democratic 1985 1986 Baylor University
Grace Berg Schaible Alaska Democratic 1987 1989 Yale University
Mary Sue Terry Virginia Democratic January 11, 1986 January 28, 1993 University of Virginia
Clarine Nardi Riddle Connecticut Democratic January 3, 1989 January 9, 1991 Indiana University
Mary Stallcup Arkansas Democratic 1990 1991
Gale Norton Colorado Republican January 8, 1991 January 12, 1999 University of Denver
Frankie Sue Del Papa Nevada Democratic January 7, 1991 January 6, 2003 George Washington University
Bonnie Campbell Iowa Democratic January 11, 1991 January 6, 1995 Drake University
Susan B. Loving Oklahoma Democratic June 22, 1991 January 9, 1995 University of Oklahoma
Heidi Heitkamp North Dakota Democratic-NPL December 15, 1992 December 15, 2000 Lewis & Clark College
Jan Graham Utah Democratic January 1993 January 2001 University of Utah
Pamela Carter Indiana Democratic January 13, 1993 January 16, 1997 Indiana University
Christine Gregoire Washington Democratic January 13, 1993 January 12, 2005 Gonzaga University
Margery Bronster Hawaii Democratic 1995 1999 Columbia University
Carla Stovall Kansas Republican 1995 2003 University of Kansas
Deborah Poritz New Jersey Democratic January 18, 1994 July 10, 1996 Harvard University
M. Jane Brady Delaware Republican January 3, 1995 December 7, 2005 Villanova University
Betty Montgomery Ohio Republican January 6, 1995 January 5, 2003 University of Toledo
Gay Woodhouse Wyoming Republican 1999 2001 University of Wyoming
Jennifer Granholm Michigan Democratic January 1, 1999 January 1, 2003 Harvard University
Patricia A. Madrid New Mexico Democratic January 1, 1999 January 1, 2007 University of New Mexico
Janet Napolitano Arizona Democratic January 4, 1999 January 6, 2003 University of Virginia
Peg Lautenschlager Wisconsin Democratic January 3, 2003 January 3, 2007 University of Wisconsin
Lisa Madigan Illinois Democratic January 13, 2003 January 14, 2019 Loyola University Chicago
Kelly Ayotte New Hampshire Republican June 15, 2004 July 17, 2009 Villanova University
Judith Jagdmann Virginia Republican January 1, 2005 January 14, 2006 University of Richmond
Catherine Cortez Masto Nevada Democratic January 1, 2007 January 5, 2015 Gonzaga University
Lori Swanson Minnesota Democratic (DFL) January 2, 2007 January 2, 2019 William Mitchell College
Martha Coakley Massachusetts Democratic January 17, 2007 January 21, 2015 Boston University
Nancy H. Rogers Ohio Democratic May 28, 2008 January 8, 2009 Yale University
Paula Dow New Jersey Democratic January 18, 2010 January 10, 2012 University of Pennsylvania
Kamala Harris California Democratic January 3, 2011 January 3, 2017 University of California, Hastings
Pam Bondi Florida Republican January 4, 2011 January 9, 2019 Stetson University
Janet Mills Maine Democratic January 6, 2009
January 7, 2013
January 6, 2011
January 2, 2019[a]
University of Maine, Portland
Linda L. Kelly Pennsylvania Republican May 27, 2011 January 15, 2013 Duquesne University
Ellen Rosenblum Oregon Democratic June 29, 2012 2025 University of Oregon
Kathleen Kane Pennsylvania Democratic January 15, 2013 August 17, 2016 Temple University
Cynthia Coffman Colorado Republican January 11, 2015 January 8, 2019 Georgia State University
Leslie Rutledge Arkansas Republican January 13, 2015 January 10, 2023 University of Arkansas, Little Rock
Maura Healey Massachusetts Democratic January 21, 2015 January 5, 2023 Northeastern University
Jahna Lindemuth Alaska Independent August 8, 2016 December 5, 2018 University of California, Berkeley
Barbara Underwood New York Democratic May 22, 2018 December 31, 2018 Georgetown University
Letitia James New York Democratic January 1, 2019 2027 Howard University
Dana Nessel Michigan Democratic January 1, 2019 2027 Wayne State University
Kathy Jennings Delaware Democratic January 2, 2019 2027 Villanova University
Clare E. Connors Hawaii Democratic January 3, 2019 December 10, 2021 Harvard University
Ashley Moody Florida Republican January 9, 2019 2027 University of Florida
Bridget Hill Wyoming Republican March 15, 2019 Appointed University of Wyoming
Lynn Fitch Mississippi Republican January 14, 2020 2024 University of Mississippi
Kris Mayes Arizona Democratic January 2, 2023 2027 Arizona State University
Michelle Henry Pennsylvania Democratic January 17, 2023 Appointed Widener Law Commonwealth
Andrea Campbell Massachusetts Democratic January 18, 2023 2027 University of California, Los Angeles
Angela Colmenero Texas Republican July 10, 2023 September 16, 2023 Notre Dame Law School
Liz Murrill Louisiana Republican January 8, 2024 2028 Pepperdine University School of Law

Female territorial attorneys general

Officeholder State Party Assumed office Term expires Law school
Judith W. Rogers District of Columbia Democratic April 12, 1979 1983 Harvard University, University of Virginia
J'Ada Finch-Sheen U.S. Virgin Islands Democratic 1982 1984 Howard University School of Law
Inez Smith Reid District of Columbia Democratic 1983 1986 Yale University, University of Virginia
Elizabeth Barrett-Anderson Guam Republican July 7, 1987 July 4, 1994 Santa Clara University
Vanessa Ruiz District of Columbia Democratic 1994 October 1994 Georgetown University
Anabelle Rodríguez Puerto Rico[2] Popular Democratic January 2, 2001 August 19, 2004 University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras
Ramona Villagomez Manglona Northern Mariana Islands Independent November 2002 May 2003 University of New Mexico
Linda Singer District of Columbia Democratic January 2, 2007 January 5, 2008 Harvard University
Alicia Limtiaco Guam Democratic January 3, 2007 June 21, 2010 University of California, Los Angeles
Elizabeth Barrett-Anderson Guam Republican January 5, 2015 January 7, 2019 Santa Clara University
Wanda Vázquez Garced Puerto Rico[2] New Progressive January 2, 2017 August 7, 2019 Interamerican University of Puerto Rico
Denise George U.S. Virgin Islands Democratic May 14, 2019 January 1, 2023 Howard University School of Law
Dennise Longo Quiñones Puerto Rico[2] New Progressive August 18, 2019 July 7, 2020 George Washington University Law School
Inés Del C. Carrau Martínez Puerto Rico[2] New Progressive July 7, 2020 January 2, 2021 Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico
Carol Thomas-Jacobs U.S. Virgin Islands Democratic January 1, 2023 April 14, 2023 Howard University School of Law
Ariel K. Smith U.S. Virgin Islands Independent April 14, 2023 Appointed Rutgers Law School

References

  1. ^ Mills served one term as Attorney General, from 2009 to 2011, before being replaced by Republican William Schneider as the Maine Republican Party took unified control of the State Legislature and Governorship. Mills returned to the Attorney General position in 2013 after Democrats retook the State Legislature.
  1. ^ Scaglia, Steph; Shaw, Alissa Bombardier (20 September 2022). "Women Saving Democracy: An Attorneys General Explainer - Ms. Magazine". Ms. Magazine. Retrieved 23 January 2023. he first woman attorney general was Arlene Violet (R, 1985-86) in Rhode Island. As of 2022, a total of 41 women have held the elected office of attorney general. Twenty-one states have never had a woman attorney general. Currently, there are only nine women attorneys general in office.
  2. ^ a b c d The title of the head of Puerto Rico's Justice Department is the Secretary of Justice, not Attorney General.