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The attorney general is the only top-level state executive office besides the governor that exists in all 50 states. As the state's chief legal officer, the attorney general is responsible for enforcing state law and advising the state government on legal matters. In many states, attorneys general play a large role in the law enforcement process. Out of the 43 states in which the attorney general is directly elected, 30 states have attorney general elections in 2022.
There are 16 Democratic-held attorney general offices and 14 Republican-held attorney general offices on the ballot in 2022.
On this page, you will find:
Click here for more on the Republican attorney general primaries in 2022.
Click here for more on the general elections for attorney general in 2022.
The following table details 2022 attorney general filing deadlines and primary dates in each state. The signature filing deadline was the date by which candidates had to file nominating signatures with election officials in order to have their name placed on the ballot.
2022 Election Dates | ||||||
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State | Filing deadline | Primary election | ||||
Alabama | January 28 | May 24 | ||||
Arizona | April 4 | August 2 | ||||
Arkansas | March 1 | May 24 | ||||
California | March 11 | June 7 | ||||
Colorado | March 15 | June 28 | ||||
Connecticut | June 7 | August 9 | ||||
Delaware | July 12 | September 13 | ||||
Florida | June 17 | August 23 | ||||
Georgia | March 11 | May 24 | ||||
Idaho | March 11 | May 17 | ||||
Illinois | March 14 | June 28 | ||||
Iowa | March 18 | June 7 | ||||
Kansas | June 1 | August 2 | ||||
Maryland | April 15 | July 19 | ||||
Massachusetts | June 7 | September 6 | ||||
Michigan | - | Convention[1] | ||||
Minnesota | May 31 | August 9 | ||||
Nebraska | February 15 (incumbent) March 1 (non-incumbent) |
May 10 | ||||
Nevada | March 18 | June 14 | ||||
New Mexico | March 24 | June 7 | ||||
New York | April 7 | June 28 | ||||
North Dakota | April 11 | June 14 | ||||
Ohio | February 2 | May 3 | ||||
Oklahoma | April 15 | June 28 | ||||
Rhode Island | July 15 | September 13 | ||||
South Carolina | March 30 | June 14 | ||||
South Dakota | March 29 | June 7 | ||||
Texas | December 13 | March 1 | ||||
Vermont | May 26 | August 9 | ||||
Wisconsin | June 1 | August 9 |
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In Michigan, political parties nominate candidates for some offices at their conventions instead of holding a primary. Candidates for lieutenant governor, secretary of state, attorney general, Supreme Court, and the boards of Michigan State University, Wayne State University, the University of Michigan, and the state Board of Education are nominated at conventions.[2]
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There are 16 Democratic-held attorney general offices and 14 Republican-held attorney general offices on the ballot in 2022. The table below shows which states are holding attorney general elections in 2022.
Attorney General elections, 2022 | |||||||
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State | Incumbent | Incumbent running? | Last time office flipped | 2020 presidential result | 2018 attorney general result[3] | ||
Alabama | Steve Marshall | Yes | 1994 | R+25.4 | R+17.7 | ||
Arizona | Mark Brnovich | No | 2010 | D+0.3 | R+3.4 | ||
Arkansas | Leslie Rutledge | No | 2014 | R+27.6 | R+26.4 | ||
California | Rob Bonta | Yes | 1998 | D+29.2 | D+27.2 | ||
Colorado | Phil Weiser | Yes | 2018 | D+13.5 | D+6.5 | ||
Connecticut | William Tong | Yes | 1958 | D+20.1 | D+6.0 | ||
Delaware | Kathy Jennings | Yes | 2005 | D+18.9 | D+22.6 | ||
Florida | Ashley B. Moody | Yes | 2002 | R+3.3 | R+6.0 | ||
Georgia | Chris Carr | Yes | 2010 | D+0.2 | R+2.6 | ||
Idaho | Lawrence Wasden | Yes | 1994 | R+30.7 | R+30.8 | ||
Illinois | Kwame Raoul | Yes | 2002 | D+17.0 | D+12.0 | ||
Iowa | Tom Miller | Yes | 1978 | R+8.2 | D+53.7 | ||
Kansas | Derek Schmidt | No | 2010 | R+14.6 | R+18.0 | ||
Maryland | Brian Frosh | No | 1954 | D+33.2 | D+29.7 | ||
Massachusetts | Maura Healey | No | 1968 | D+33.5 | D+38.9 | ||
Michigan | Dana Nessel | Yes | 2018 | D+2.8 | D+17.1 | ||
Minnesota | Keith Ellison | Yes | 1970 | D+7.1 | D+3.9 | ||
Nebraska | Doug Peterson | No | 1951 | R+19.1 | R+100.0 | ||
Nevada | Aaron Ford | Yes | 2018 | D+2.4 | D+0.4 | ||
New Mexico | Hector Balderas | No | 1990 | D+10.8 | D+28.4 | ||
New York | Letitia James | Yes | 1998 | D+23.2 | D+27.2 | ||
North Dakota | Drew Wrigley | Yes | 2000 | R+33.3 | R+35.4 | ||
Ohio | Dave Yost | Yes | 2010 | R+8.1 | R+4.4 | ||
Oklahoma | John O’Connor | Yes | 2010 | R+33.1 | R+28.0 | ||
Rhode Island | Peter Neronha | Yes | 1998 | D+20.8 | D+60.7 | ||
South Carolina | Alan Wilson | Yes | 1994 | R+11.7 | R+10.2 | ||
South Dakota | Jason Ravnsborg | No | 1974 | R+26.2 | R+10.4 | ||
Texas | Ken Paxton | Yes | 1998 | R+5.6 | R+3.6 | ||
Vermont | T.J. Donovan | No | 1996 | D+35.1 | D+40.2 | ||
Wisconsin | Josh Kaul | Yes | 2018 | D+0.7 | D+0.6 |
The following are reprinted from Ballotpedia's The Heart of the Primaries newsletter, which captures stories related to conflicts within each major party.
California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, and South Dakota held primaries on Tuesday.
U.S. Senate election in Iowa: Michael Franken defeated Abby Finkenauer and Glenn Hurst. As of Wednesday morning, Franken led Finkenauer, 55% to 40%.
Franken is a retired U.S. Navy admiral whose policy priorities include lowering the eligibility age for Medicare to 50. Franken says he appeals to "that middle segment who want logical, pragmatic, smart, dedicated, national servants to work for them." Franken unsuccessfully sought the state’s Democratic Senate nomination in 2020.
Finkenauer, who served in the U.S. House from 2019 to 2021, campaigned on her support for term limits in Congress and what she called a record of bipartisanship.
Franken will face Sen. Chuck Grassley (R). Three forecasters rate the general election Safe or Solid Republican.
Mayoral election in Los Angeles: Karen Bass and Rick Caruso advanced to a runoff as no candidate received more than 50% of the vote. As of Wednesday morning, Caruso had 42% to Bass' 37%.
Though the election was officially nonpartisan, both candidates are registered Democrats. Caruso, a real estate developer and former president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, said he changed his party registration from no party preference to Democrat in January 2022. Bass has held elected office as a Democrat since 2005 and has served in the U.S. House since 2011.
The New York Times' Jennifer Medina wrote that the race is "poised to become a test of whether voters this year favor an experienced politician who has spent nearly two decades in government or an outsider running on his business credentials."
California's 27th: Incumbent Mike Garcia (R) and Christy Smith (D) advanced from a seven-candidate, top-two primary. Garcia had 50% of the vote and Smith had 35% as of Wednesday morning.
In 2020, Garcia defeated Smith in the general election by 333 votes, making it the third-closest U.S. House race that year. Brianna Lee of LAist said the 2022 race should be more competitive because redistricting "jettisoned the district’s most conservative outpost in Simi Valley, giving Democratic voters even more of an edge."
California Attorney General: Incumbent Rob Bonta (D) is likely to advance from the top-two primary. Who will join him in the general is TBD. Bonta had 55% of the vote as of Wednesday morning. Republicans Nathan Hochman and Eric Early had 19% and 17%, respectively, and independent Anne Marie Schubert had 8%.
Politico's Ally Mutnick and Jeremy White wrote about how the issue of crime played out in several California races:
“ |
San Francisco voters ousted incumbent District Attorney Chesa Boudin before he completed a full term — a ringing repudiation of a broader criminal justice reform movement. … Meanwhile, the fact that Los Angeles’ mayoral contest is as competitive as it is testifies to a fraught public mood — as well as the power of a well-funded campaign. Democratic Rep. Karen Bass and ex-Republican magnate Rick Caruso are neck and neck in the vote count so far, with Caruso making his mark on the race by spending millions of dollars to amplify his message of tackling crime and homelessness. Polls have shown Angelenos feel markedly more pessimistic about the status quo on both issues. And statewide, California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s bid for a full term will also test whether anxiety about public safety has voters ready to reevaluate their embrace of criminal justice reform. Bonta has been a champion in that movement, backing policies like lesser sentencing and bans on cash bail and for-profit prisons. But polls show Californians are feeling markedly more concerned about crime — a dynamic Bonta’s opponents are trying to exploit. The outcome will also show whether an unaffiliated candidate can break through. Sacramento District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert, a Republican-turned-independent, could be Bonta’s toughest opponent in November but early returns had Schubert far behind Republicans Nathan Hochman and Eric Early.[4] |
” |
The Associated Press' Thomas Beaumont wrote that Franken's defeat of Finkenauer in Iowa was a surprise:
“ |
Franken’s primary win is something of a surprise, given Finkenauer was better known throughout the state after her 2018 victory over a Republican congressman that made her the second-youngest woman elected to Congress. Finkenauer lost in a reelection bid in 2020 but was a frequent presence on cable television and raised millions of dollars toward her Senate run. But Franken campaigned in more than 50 of Iowa’s 99 counties, touting his upbringing in rural, northwest Iowa where Democrats have all but vanished from public office. And yet Franken beat Finkenauer soundly in the state’s most populous areas including the Des Moines metro area, as well as in the liberal bastion of Iowa City, next door to Finkenauer’s eastern Iowa base. … Franken will nonetheless face stiff headwinds going into the general election against Grassley, who has served seven terms. A state that Democrat Barack Obama won in two presidential elections has steadily shifted to the right in recent years, part of a broader transformation that has spread through the Northern Plains that has made it increasingly difficult for Democrats to compete statewide. … … Finkenauer’s campaign faced an unexpected stumble in April when she nearly didn’t make the primary ballot. Republican activists claimed she hadn’t gathered enough signatures from enough counties. A district judge ruled Finkenauer hadn’t qualified for the ballot, a ruling she called "deeply partisan." The Iowa Supreme Court overruled that decision and allowed her to run. Still, the episode turned off a number of veteran state Democratic activists, former candidates and officeholders, prompting some to give Franken a second look. He posted stronger first-quarter fundraising figures than Finkenauer and earned endorsements from some well-known former Finkenauer supporters bothered by her declining to accept responsibility for the filing mistakes.[4] |
” |
At the June 4 Massachusetts Democratic Party convention, delegates chose primary candidates and party endorsees. Attorney General Maura Healey advanced to the gubernatorial primary with 71% of the delegate vote. Because she received more than 50% of the vote, Healey also won the party’s endorsement. State Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz received 29% of the vote, surpassing the 15% threshold to advance to the Sept. 6 primary.
Boston NAACP President Tanisha Sullivan won the party’s endorsement for secretary of state over seven-term incumbent William Galvin, 62% to 38%. Galvin didn't receive the party's endorsement during his last re-election bid in 2018. He won that primary with 68%.
In the lieutenant gubernatorial race, three candidates qualified for the primary: Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll with 41% of the vote, state Rep. Tami Gouveia with 23%, and state Sen. Eric Lesser with 21%.
Politico’s Lisa Kashinsky wrote, "Lesser and Galvin’s flush coffers will help them get on the airwaves and reach more voters as their primaries move beyond party activists. But they could lose that edge if their rivals are able to build more financial support following the convention."
For attorney general, former state Assistant Attorney General Quentin Palfrey won the party’s endorsement and will face former Boston City Councilwoman Andrea Campbell and labor attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan in September.
Former Assistant Secretary of Transportation Chris Dempsey won the endorsement for state auditor with 53% of the vote, setting up a two-way primary with state Sen. Diana DiZoglio, who received 47%.
Political consultant Anthony Cignoli told MassLive’s Jim Kinney, "Convention delegates are a specific universe of activists who don’t always represent the voters who ultimately decide the actual September primary. A larger group of Democrats with broader views and issues important to them will be the decision-makers then, not to mention the unenrolled and independent voters who get to weigh in."
Massachusetts holds semi-closed primaries, meaning voters who are unaffiliated can vote in the primary of their choice.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) faces Republican and independent challengers in the state's top-two primary. Politico's Jeremy B. White said the attorney general race "could be the most consequential contest in the deep-blue state — a bellwether of Democratic voters’ commitment to criminal justice reform."
White wrote that two of Bonta's primary opponents, Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert (independent) and former U.S. Attorney Nathan Hochman (R), have sought to connect Bonta to two California district attorneys facing recall efforts this year: Los Angeles County D.A. George Gascón and San Francisco D. A. Chesa Boudin.
White said, "District attorneys wield far greater influence than the attorney general over whom to prosecute and what sentences to seek. But Schubert and Hochman argue Bonta should have used the power of his office to rein in progressive prosecutors."
The Boudin recall is on the June 7 ballot, and signature gathering is underway in the Gascón recall effort. Organizers of the recall campaigns allege that each D.A.'s policies led to an increase in crime. Bonta endorsed Gascón's D.A. bid and worked with Boudin's office on legislation when Bonta was in the General Assembly.
Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) appointed Bonta in 2021 after Attorney General Xavier Becerra (D) became U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services. Bonta served in the General Assembly from 2012 to 2021, where his record included co-writing bills to end cash bail and requiring the attorney general to investigate fatal police shootings of unarmed people.
Bonta says he "holds those who break the law – especially those in positions of power – accountable" and that in his first 100 days as attorney general, he won a settlement for families harmed by opioids, defended an assault weapons ban, and prosecuted major polluters.
Hochman says he will "protect our neighborhoods, get fentanyl off our streets, get tough on crime, and find compassionate solutions to homelessness."
Schubert's campaign slogan is "Stop the chaos." She says she'll "step in and take over cases from district attorneys when those district attorneys are not protecting Californians."
Republican Eric Early is also running. He says, "It is time for someone new, an outsider who supports law enforcement and wants a California with low crime, good schools, thriving businesses, secure borders, fair elections, a strong Second Amendment, and government overregulation out of our lives."
California has had Democratic attorneys general since 1999.
Texas held the nation's first midterm primaries on Tuesday. Races in which no candidate received a majority of the vote are headed to May 24 runoffs. Here's a roundup of results from marquee Democratic primaries, current as of Thursday morning.
Texas' 28th Congressional District: Incumbent Rep. Henry Cuellar and Jessica Cisneros are headed to a runoff. They received 48.4% and 46.9%, respectively. Tannya Benavides received 4.7%.
Cuellar, who first joined Congress in 2005, is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition and was the only House Democrat to vote against federal legislation to legalize abortion in September. Cuellar says he brought funding to the district for public education, healthcare services, small businesses, veteran's programs, and immigration services. Cisneros, an immigration attorney, supports Medicare for All and has criticized Cuellar's positions on abortion, immigration, and pandemic response.
In the 2020 Democratic primary, Cuellar defeated Cisneros 51.8% to 48.2%.
U.S. House
State executive
The Texas Tribune's Joshua Fechter said the following about primary results in terms of incumbents and challengers:
“ |
Texas’ top Republicans mostly fended off challengers in the GOP primary Tuesday. Meanwhile, a slate of progressives made inroads in Democratic primaries for Congress — but fell short of their goal of an immediate sweep that would reshape the Texas’ U.S. House delegation. … Meanwhile, the status quo was largely preserved in the Texas Legislature. No state Senate incumbents lost their seats Tuesday night. In the House, one sitting Democrat lost and no incumbent Republicans were knocked out, though a few were forced into runoffs. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan both saw the vast majority of their favored candidates win primaries in the chambers they preside over.[4] |
” |
The New York Times' Reid J. Epstein said the following of progressives' performance in House primaries:
“ |
Progressives frustrated by Mr. Biden’s stalled social policy agenda were looking for a boost in Texas and got one — possibly three. Greg Casar, a former Austin city councilman, won easily Tuesday night and appears poised to come to Washington next year from his safely Democratic district. Another progressive contender, Jessica Cisneros, forced a runoff with Representative Henry Cuellar, a moderate who narrowly defeated her in the 2020 primary but is now under investigation by the F.B.I. Jasmine Crockett, a state lawmaker who was among the ringleaders of Texas Democrats’ flight to Washington to delay new Republican voting laws last summer, has a large lead but appears bound for a runoff in a Dallas-area district. … Together, Mr. Casar, Ms. Cisneros and Ms. Crockett would bring new energy to the liberal wing of the House and to "the Squad" of progressive Democrats. Last month, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York came to Texas to campaign for Mr. Casar and Ms. Cisneros.[4] |
” |
Two candidacy announcements within the past week affect primaries for all three of Massachusetts' triplex offices—governor, attorney general, and secretary of the commonwealth (also known as secretary of state in many other states). On Jan. 20, Attorney General Maura Healey announced she's running in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, leaving the attorney general race open. And on Jan. 23, Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin (D) announced he's running for re-election.
Politico Massachusetts Playbook's Lisa Kashinsky said of the governor's race, "In a race where other candidates are running more to their party’s flanks — GOP former state Rep. Geoff Diehl is a former President Donald Trump-backed conservative; state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz and Harvard political theorist Danielle Allen are progressives — Healey is striking a more moderate tone. She’s focusing less on her liberal-prosecutor past and more on pocketbook issues like the high cost of living."
Gov. Charlie Baker (R) is not seeking re-election. The state currently has divided triplex control with a Republican governor and Democrats holding the attorney general and secretary offices.
Quentin Palfrey and Shannon Liss-Riordan had already announced Democratic primary bids for attorney general before Healey's announcement. State House News Service's Katie Lannan named former Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell, who ran for mayor of Boston last year, and Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan as potential candidates. Lannan said, "State election records show the last time more than two AG candidates made it to the ballot for either party primary was in 1974" and that Democrats have held the office since 1969.
Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin was first elected in 1994 and faces a primary challenge from NAACP Boston President Tanisha Sullivan. Galvin referred to his experience as equipping him to serve best. Sullivan said she'd expand voting rights and improve public records transparency.
Primaries are scheduled for Sept. 20.
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