List of African-American statewide elected officials

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States where African-Americans have served as statewide executive officials:
  Reconstruction Era African-American statewide officeholders (all Republican) 1868–1887
  States which have only elected/appointed African-American Democrats as statewide officeholders (1963–present)
  States which have only elected/appointed African-American Republicans as statewide officeholders (1963–present)
  States which have elected/appointed African-Americans from both parties (1963–present)

This is a list of African Americans who have served in statewide elected executive offices in the United States, whether they were elected, succeeded or appointed to such elected office. These state constitutional officers have their duties and qualifications mandated in state constitutions. This list includes those directly elected to state constitutional boards and commissions, whether statewide or by district. This list does not include those elected to serve in non-executive branches of government, such as justices of the state supreme courts or at-large members of the state legislatures. This list also excludes federal legislators, such as the two members of the United States Senate elected from each state or at-large members of the United States House of Representatives.

Summary[edit]

State Number of statewide executive officials U.S. Senators U.S. at-large Representatives Total Notes
Arizona 1 1
Arkansas 1 1
California 5 1 5 Kamala Harris held office as Attorney General and later as U.S. Senator
Colorado 3 3
Connecticut 5 5
Delaware 2 1 3
Florida 4 1 5 Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs held office as Secretary of State and State Superintendent.
Georgia 3 1 4
Illinois 4 3 6 Roland Burris held office as Comptroller, Attorney General and U.S. Senator
Indiana 4 4
Kansas 1 1
Kentucky 2 2
Louisiana 5 5
Maryland 4 4
Massachusetts 3 2 4 Edward Brooke held office as Attorney General and U.S. Senator
Michigan 3 3
Minnesota 1 1
Mississippi 7 2 9 All of Mississippi's African American statewide officials and Senators took office during Reconstruction, as of 2022.
Nevada 1 1
New Jersey 8 8
New Mexico 1 1
New York 9 9
North Carolina 3 3
Ohio 3 3
Oklahoma 1 1
Oregon 1 1
Pennsylvania 1 1
South Carolina 5 1 1 7 Francis Lewis Cardozo held office as Secretary of State and State Treasurer.
Texas 2 2
Vermont 1 1
Virginia 3 3
Wisconsin 3 3

Governors[edit]

  Denotes incumbent governor
  • Italics denotes acting governor
Portrait Name Party State Term start Term end Notes
Oscar Dunn
(1826–1871) 		Republican Louisiana June 27, 1868 November 22, 1871 Elevated from lieutenant governor.
Died in office.
P. B. S. Pinchback
(1837–1921) 		Republican Louisiana December 9, 1872 January 13, 1873 Elevated from lieutenant governor.
Term ended.
Douglas Wilder[1]
(born 1931) 		Democratic Virginia January 13, 1990 January 15, 1994 Term-limited.
Deval Patrick
(born 1956) 		Democratic Massachusetts January 4, 2007 January 8, 2015 Retired
David Paterson
(born 1954) 		Democratic New York March 17, 2008 December 31, 2010 Elevated to office from lieutenant governor.
Retired.
Wes Moore
(born 1978) 		Democrat Maryland January 18, 2023 present

Territorial governors[edit]

  Denotes incumbent governor
  • Italics denotes acting governor
Portrait Name Party Territory Term start Term end Notes
Walter Washington
(1915–2003) 		Democratic District of Columbia November 7, 1967 January 2, 1979 Appointed as Mayor-Commissioner before being elected in his own right
Lost renomination
Marion Barry
(1936–2014) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 1979 January 2, 1991 Retired
January 2, 1995 January 2, 1999 Retired
Sharon Pratt
(born 1944) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 1991 January 2, 1995 Lost renomination
Anthony A. Williams
(born 1951) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 1999 January 2, 2007 Retired
Adrian Fenty
(born 1970) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 2007 January 2, 2011 Lost renomination
Vincent C. Gray
(born 1942) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 2011 January 2, 2015 Lost renomination
Muriel Bowser
(born 1972) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 2015 present

Lieutenant governors[edit]

  Denotes incumbent lieutenant governor
  • Italics denotes acting lieutenant governor
Portrait Name Party State Term start Term end Notes
Oscar Dunn
(1826–1871) 		Republican Louisiana June 27, 1868 November 22, 1871 Died
Alonzo J. Ransier[2]
(1834–1882) 		Republican South Carolina December 3, 1870 December 7, 1872 Retired to run successfully for South Carolina's 2nd congressional district
Alexander K. Davis[3] Republican Mississippi November 30, 1871 March 29, 1876 Retired
P. B. S. Pinchback
(1837–1921) 		Republican Louisiana December 6, 1871 December 9, 1872 Elevated to governor
Richard Howell Gleaves
(1819–1907) 		Republican South Carolina December 7, 1872 December 14, 1876 Lost reelection
Caesar Antoine
(1836–1921) 		Republican Louisiana May 22, 1873 April 24, 1877 Lost reelection
Mervyn Dymally[4]
(1926–2012) 		Democratic California January 6, 1975 January 8, 1979 Lost reelection
George L. Brown
(1926–2006) 		Democratic Colorado January 14, 1975 January 10, 1979 Retired
Douglas Wilder
(born 1931) 		Democratic Virginia January 18, 1986 January 12, 1990 Retired to run successfully for governor
Joe Rogers
(1964–2013) 		Republican Colorado January 12, 1999 January 14, 2003 Retired
Jennette Bradley
(born 1952) 		Republican Ohio January 13, 2003 January 5, 2005 Resigned to become Ohio Treasurer
Michael Steele[5]
(born 1958) 		Republican Maryland January 15, 2003 January 17, 2007 Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senator of Maryland
David Paterson
(born 1954) 		Democratic New York January 1, 2007 March 17, 2008 Elevated to governor
Anthony Brown
(born 1961) 		Democratic Maryland January 17, 2007 January 21, 2015 Retired to run unsuccessfully for governor
Malcolm Smith
(born 1956) 		Democratic New York January 7, 2009 June 8, 2009 Resigned
Jennifer Carroll
(born 1959) 		Republican Florida January 4, 2011 March 12, 2013 Resigned
Boyd Rutherford
(born 1957) 		Republican Maryland January 21, 2015 January 18, 2023 Retired
Jenean Hampton
(born 1958) 		Republican Kentucky December 8, 2015 December 9, 2019 Retired
Justin Fairfax
(born 1979) 		Democratic Virginia January 13, 2018 January 15, 2022 Retired to run unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for governor
Sheila Oliver
(1952-2023) 		Democratic New Jersey January 16, 2018 August 1, 2023 Died
Garlin Gilchrist
(born 1982) 		Democratic Michigan January 1, 2019 present
Mandela Barnes
(born 1986) 		Democratic Wisconsin January 7, 2019 January 3, 2023 Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. senator
Juliana Stratton
(born 1965) 		Democratic Illinois January 14, 2019 present
Mark Robinson
(born 1968) 		Republican North Carolina January 9, 2021 present
Andrea Stewart-Cousins
(born 1950) 		Democratic New York August 24, 2021 September 9, 2021 New Lieutenant Governor appointed
April 12, 2022 May 25, 2022 New Lieutenant Governor appointed
Brian Benjamin
(born 1976) 		Democratic New York September 9, 2021 April 12, 2022 Resigned
Winsome Sears
(born 1964)

Republican

Virginia January 15, 2022 present
Antonio Delgado
(born 1977) 		Democratic New York May 25, 2022 present
Austin Davis
(born 1989) 		Democratic Pennsylvania January 17, 2023 present
Tahesha Way
(born 1971) 		Democratic New Jersey September 8, 2023 present

Attorneys general[edit]

  Denotes incumbent attorney general
  • Italics denotes acting attorney general
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes Ref
Edward Brooke
(1919–2015) 		Republican Massachusetts January 3, 1963 January 3, 1967 Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate from Massachusetts [6]
Roland Burris
(1937–present) 		Democratic Illinois January 14, 1991 January 9, 1995 Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Illinois [7]
Pamela Carter
(1949–present) 		Democratic Indiana January 13, 1993 January 16, 1997 Retired [8][9]
Thurbert Baker
(1952–present) 		Democratic Georgia June 1, 1997 January 10, 2011 Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Georgia [10]
Karen Freeman-Wilson
(1960–present) 		Democratic Indiana June 8, 2000 January 14, 2001 Lost reelection [11]
Peter C. Harvey
(1952–present) 		Democratic New Jersey June 16, 2003 January 30, 2006 Retired. [12]
Kamala Harris
(1964–present) 		Democratic California January 3, 2011 January 3, 2017 Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate from California [13]
Curtis Hill
(1960–present) 		Republican Indiana January 9, 2017 January 11, 2021 Lost renomination [14]
Letitia James
(1958–present) 		Democratic New York January 1, 2019 present [15]
Kwame Raoul
(1964–present) 		Democratic Illinois January 14, 2019 present [16]
Aaron D. Ford
(1972–present) 		Democratic Nevada January 7, 2019 present [17]
Keith Ellison
(1963–present) 		Democratic Minnesota January 7, 2019 present [18]
Daniel Cameron
(1985–present) 		Republican Kentucky December 17, 2019 present Elected as Attorney General, but appointed early as acting Attorney by Governor Andy Beshear, the preceding state Attorney General who himself was elected Governor, and took office early.
Anthony Brown
(1961–present) 		Democrat Maryland January 3, 2023 present Elected as Attorney General on November 8, 2022. Brown is the first black Attorney General of Maryland.
Andrea Campbell
(1982–present) 		Democrat Massachusetts January 18, 2023 present

Territorial attorneys general[edit]

  Denotes incumbent attorney general
  • Italics denotes acting attorney general
Picture Name Party Territory Term start Term end Notes Ref
Karl Racine
(1963–present) 		Democratic District of Columbia January 2, 2015 January 2, 2023

Secretaries of state[edit]

  Denotes incumbent secretary of state
  • Italics denotes acting secretary of state
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes Ref
Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs
(1821–1874) 		Republican Florida 1868 1872 Appointed Superintendent of Public Instruction
Pierre G. Deslonde Republican Louisiana 1872 1876 Retired
James D. Lynch
(1839–1872) 		Republican Mississippi 1869 1872 Retired
Hiram Rhodes Revels
(1827–1901) 		Republican Mississippi 1872 1873 Retired
Hannibal C. Carter Republican Mississippi 1873 1873 Retired
M. M. McLeod Republican Mississippi 1873 1873 Retired
James Hill Republican Mississippi 1874 1878 Retired
Francis Lewis Cardozo
(1836–1903) 		Republican South Carolina 1868 1872 Elected State Treasurer
Henry Hayne
(1840–???) 		Republican South Carolina 1872 1877 Resigned
Richard Austin
(1913–2001) 		Democratic Michigan January 1, 1971 January 1, 1995 Lost re-election [19]
Basil Paterson
(1926–2014) 		Democratic New York January 1, 1979 January 1, 1983 Retired [20]
Jesse McCrary
(1937–2007) 		Democratic Florida July 19, 1978 January 2, 1979 Retired
Vel Phillips
(1923–2018) 		Democratic Wisconsin January 3, 1979 January 3, 1983 Lost re-nomination [21]
Myra McDaniel
(1932–2010) 		Democratic Texas August 6, 1984 January 26, 1987 Retired [22]
Hannah Atkins
(1923–2010) 		Democratic Oklahoma 1987 1991 Retired
Vikki Buckley
(1948–1999) 		Republican Colorado 1994 1999 Died [23]
Lonna Hooks
(?–) 		Republican New Jersey 1994 1998 Retired
DeForest Soaries
(born 1951) 		Republican New Jersey January 1, 1999 January 1, 2002 Retired
Ken Blackwell
(born 1948) 		Republican Ohio January 8, 1999 January 8, 2007 Retired to run unsuccessfully for governor
Jesse White
(born 1934) 		Democratic Illinois January 11, 1999 January 9, 2023 Retired
Randy Daniels
(born 1950) 		Democratic New York 2001 2005 Retired
Regena Thomas
(1957–) 		Democratic New Jersey 2002 2006 Retired
Nina Mitchell Wells
(born 1950) 		Democratic New Jersey January 19, 2006 January 19, 2010 Retired
Robyn Crittenden
(?–?) 		Republican Georgia November 8, 2018 January 14, 2019 Appointed by governor to fill predecessor's remaining term, retired
Tahesha Way
(born 1971) 		Democratic New Jersey January 16, 2018 present
Shirley Weber
(born 1948) 		Democratic California January 21, 2021 present
Stephanie Thomas
(born 1969) 		Democratic Connecticut January 4, 2023 present

Labor commissioners[edit]

  Denotes incumbent labor commissioner
  • Italics denotes acting labor commissioner
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes Ref
Al Scott
(born 1947) 		Democratic Georgia 1990 1992 Appointed by governor, lost special election primary
Mike Thurmond
(born 1953) 		Democratic Georgia January 11, 1999 January 10, 2011 Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate

Auditors and comptrollers[edit]

  Denotes incumbent auditor or comptroller
  • Italics denotes acting auditor or comptroller
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes
Edward McCabe
(1850–1920) 		Republican Kansas January 8, 1883 January 10, 1887 Lost re-nomination
Roland Burris
(born 1937) 		Democratic Illinois January 8, 1979 January 14, 1991 Retired to run successfully for Attorney General of Illinois
Carl McCall
(born 1935) 		Democratic New York May 7, 1993 December 31, 2002 Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor
Ralph Campbell
(1946–2011) 		Democratic North Carolina January 3, 1993 January 4, 2005 Lost re-election
Randy Brock
(born 1943) 		Republican Vermont January 3, 2005 January 4, 2007 Lost reelection
Dwayne Sawyer
(born 1966) 		Republican Indiana August 19, 2013 December 15, 2013 Resigned
Natalie Braswell Democratic Connecticut December 31, 2021 January 4, 2023 Appointed to office; did not seek election
Timothy DeFoor
(born 1961) 		Republican Pennsylvania January 19, 2022 present
Brian J. Gaines Democratic South Carolina May 12, 2023 present

Superintendents of education[edit]

  Denotes incumbent superintendent
  • Italics denotes acting superintendent
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes Ref
William G. Brown
(1832–1883) 		Republican Louisiana 1872 1876 Lost reelection
Thomas Cardozo
(1838–1881) 		Republican Mississippi 1873 1875 Lost reelection
Joseph Corbin
(1833–1911) 		Republican Arkansas 1873 1875 Lost reelection
Jonathan Clarkson Gibbs
(1821–1874) 		Republican Florida 1872 1874 Died
Wilson Riles
(1917–1999) 		Democratic California 1971 1983 Lost reelection
Doug Jamerson
(1947–2001) 		Democratic Florida 1994 1995 Lost election
Patricia Willoughby
(?–present) 		Democratic North Carolina September 1, 2004 August 23, 2005 Retired
Carolyn Stanford Taylor
(born 1957) 		Democratic Wisconsin January 7, 2019 July 5, 2021 Retired
Tony Thurmond
(born 1968) 		Democratic California January 7, 2019 present

Treasurers[edit]

  Denotes incumbent treasurer
  • Italics denotes acting treasurer
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes Ref
Antoine Dubuclet
(1810–1887) 		Republican Louisiana 1868 1878 Retired
Francis Lewis Cardozo
(1836–1903) 		Republican South Carolina August 1, 1872 May 1, 1877 Retired
Gerald Lamb
(1924–2014) 		Democratic Connecticut 1963 1970 Resigned
Henry E. Parker
(1928–2018) 		Democratic Connecticut 1974 1986 Resigned
Loren E. Monroe
(1932–2019)[24] 		Republican Michigan 1978 1982 Retired
James B. Lewis
(born 1947) 		Democratic New Mexico 1985 1990 Retired
2007 2015 Retired
Francisco Borges
(born 1951) 		Democratic Connecticut January 4, 1987 March 1, 1993 Resigned
Jim Hill
(born 1947) 		Democratic Oregon January 1, 1993 January 1, 2001 Retired
Joseph M. Suggs Jr.
(born 1940) 		Democratic Connecticut March 3, 1993 January 4, 1995 Lost election
Richard Dixon
(1938–2012) 		Democratic Maryland 1996 2002 Retired
Denise Nappier
(born 1951) 		Democratic Connecticut January 3, 1999 January 9, 2019 Retired
Jennette Bradley
(born 1952) 		Republican Ohio January 13, 2005 January 5, 2007 Lost renomination
Michellene Davis
(born 1971) 		Democratic New Jersey September 2007 January 2008 Acting
Velda Jones-Potter
(?–present) 		Democratic Delaware January 1, 2009 January 1, 2011 Lost renomination
Kevin Boyce
(born 1971) 		Democratic Ohio January 7, 2009 January 9, 2011 Lost reelection
Chip Flowers
(born 1974) 		Democratic Delaware January 1, 2011 January 1, 2015 Retired
Shawn Wooden
(born 1970) 		Democratic Connecticut January 3, 2019 January 4, 2023 Retired
Erick Russell
 Democratic Connecticut January 4, 2023 present Incumbent

Public utilities or railroad commissioners[edit]

  Denotes incumbent statewide public utilities or railroad commissioner
  • Italics denotes acting public utilities or railroad commissioner
Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes
Irma Muse Dixon
(born 1952) 		Democratic Louisiana 1992 2004

David Burgess
(born 1959) 		Democratic Georgia 1998 January 1, 2007 Appointed to office and won subsequent election; lost bid for re-election
Michael L. Williams
(born 1953) 		Republican Texas January 3, 1999 March 31, 2011 Resigned
Lambert Boissiere
(born 1965) 		Democratic Louisiana January 1, 2005 January 1, 2023 Lost re-election
Sandra Kennedy Democratic Arizona January 5, 2009 January 7, 2013 Lost re-election
January 7, 2019 January 2, 2023
Fitz Johnson
(born 1963) 		Republican Georgia 2021 present Appointed to office
Davante Lewis Democratic Louisiana 2023 present

Elected State Boards of Education[edit]

Picture Name Party State Term start Term end Notes
Alma Allen Democratic Texas 1995 2005

Lawrence Allen Jr.

(born 1959)

Democratic Texas 2005 2023
Aicha Davis Democratic Texas 2019 present
Staci Childs Democratic Texas 2023 present
LJ Francis Republican Texas 2023 present


See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Previously served as lieutenant governor.
  2. ^ Later served as U.S. Representative from South Carolina's 2nd congressional district.
  3. ^ "Not Even Past: Social Vulnerability and the Legacy of Redlining".
  4. ^ Later served as U.S. Representative from California's 31st congressional district.
  5. ^ Later served as Chair of the Republican National Committee.
  6. ^ "The Honorable Edward Brooke's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  7. ^ "BURRIS , Roland | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  8. ^ Contemporary Black Biography, Volume 67, p. 12.
  9. ^ Jennifer M. York, Who's Who Among African Americans. Gale, 2003.
  10. ^ "Thurbert Baker's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  11. ^ "Our Campaigns - Candidate - Karen M. Freeman-Wilson".
  12. ^ "The Honorable Peter C. Harvey, '79". www.alumni.morgan.edu. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  13. ^ "13 Trailblazing Facts About Kamala Harris". mentalfloss.com. 2019-01-23. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  14. ^ Walker, Kayla (November 13, 2018). "Curtis Hill Named Vice Chair of GOP Attorneys General Assoc". Nuvo. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  15. ^ Mays, Jeffery C. (December 31, 2018). "N.Y.'s New Attorney General Is Targeting Trump. Will Judges See a 'Political Vendetta?'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-02-03.
  16. ^ "Illinois Attorney General Democratic nominee: Kwame Raoul". Chicago Sun-Times. October 14, 2018. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  17. ^ Lockhead, Colton (November 14, 2018). "Aaron Ford setting priorities for his time as Nevada attorney general". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  18. ^ Montemayor, Stephen (January 7, 2019). "Keith Ellison ushers in new era for Minnesota Attorney General's Office". Star Tribune. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  19. ^ "MSU Libraries: Richard H. Austin".
  20. ^ "Basil Paterson dead, trailblazing NY politician and former Gov. David Paterson's father was 87". Newsday. 2010-11-02. Retrieved 2014-04-17.
  21. ^ "Pioneering civil rights leader Vel Phillips dies". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. April 17, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  22. ^ "Myra McDaniel". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
  23. ^ "Victoria Buckley; Colorado Secretary of State, GOP Star". The Los Angeles Times. July 17, 1999. Retrieved February 8, 2019.
  24. ^ "Loren Monroe, first black State Treasurer of Michigan, dead at 87". June 4, 2019.
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