Attorney General of Florida | |
---|---|
since January 8, 2019 | |
Department of Legal Affairs | |
Style | The Honorable |
Type | Chief legal officer |
Member of | Florida Executive Branch Florida Cabinet |
Seat | Tallahassee, Florida |
Appointer | Popular vote |
Term length | Four years, renewable once |
Constituting instrument | Constitution of Florida |
Inaugural holder | Joseph Branch |
Formation | 1845 |
Website | http://myfloridalegal.com/ |
The Florida attorney general is an elected cabinet official in the U.S. state of Florida. The attorney general serves as the chief legal officer of the state, and is head of the Florida Department of Legal Affairs.
The office is one of Florida's three elected state cabinet posts, along with the chief financial officer and agriculture commissioner. The current attorney general is Republican Ashley Moody, who took office on January 8, 2019.
As with other elected statewide offices in Florida, the attorney general is limited to serving two consecutive four-year terms.[1]
The attorney general is second (behind the lieutenant governor) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Florida.[2][3]
The Florida attorney general can be impeached for committing a "misdemeanor in office" by the State House of Representatives, and then convicted and thereby removed from office by a two-thirds vote of the State Senate.[4]
The Florida solicitor general is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the attorney general. The current solicitor is Henry C. Whitaker.[5]
Party | Attorneys general | |
---|---|---|
Democratic | 27 | |
Republican | 10 | |
Whig | 1 |
# | Image | Name | Term of service | Political party |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Joseph Branch | 1845–1846 | Democratic | |
2 | Augustus Maxwell | 1846–1848 | Democratic | |
3 | James T. Archer | 1848 | Democratic | |
4 | David P. Hogue | 1848–1853 | Whig | |
5 | Mariano D. Papy | 1853–1861 | Democratic | |
6 | John B. Galbraith | 1861–1868 | Democratic | |
7 | James Westcott III | 1868 | Democratic | |
8 | A. R. Meek | 1868–1870 | Republican | |
9 | Sherman Conant | 1870–1871 | Republican | |
10 | J. B. C. Drew | 1871–1872 | Republican | |
11 | Horatio Bisbee Jr. | 1872 | Republican | |
12 | J. P. C. Emmons | 1872–1873 | Republican | |
13 | William A. Cocke | 1873–1877 | Democratic | |
14 | George P. Raney | 1877–1885 | Democratic | |
15 | Charles Merian Cooper | 1885–1889 | Democratic | |
16 | William Bailey Lamar | 1889–1903 | Democratic | |
17 | James B. Whitfield | 1903–1904 | Democratic | |
18 | W. H. Ellis | 1904–1909 | Democratic | |
19 | Park Trammell | 1909–1913 | Democratic | |
20 | Thomas F. West | 1913–1917 | Democratic | |
21 | Van C. Swearingen | 1917–1921 | Democratic | |
22 | Rivers Buford | 1921–1925 | Democratic | |
23 | J. B. Johnson | 1925–1927 | Democratic | |
24 | Fred Henry Davis | 1927–1931 | Democratic | |
25 | Cary D. Landis | 1931–1938 | Democratic | |
26 | George Couper Gibbs | 1938–1941 | Democratic | |
27 | J. Thomas Watson | 1941–1949 | Democratic | |
28 | Richard Ervin | 1949–1964 | Democratic | |
29 | James W. Kynes | 1964–1965 | Democratic | |
30 | Earl Faircloth | 1965–1971 | Democratic | |
31 | Robert L. Shevin | 1971–1979 | Democratic | |
32 | James C. Smith | 1979–1987 | Democratic | |
33 | Bob Butterworth | 1987–2002 | Democratic | |
34 | Richard E. Doran | 2002–2003 | Republican | |
35 | Charlie Crist | 2003–2007 | Republican | |
36 | Bill McCollum | 2007–2011 | Republican | |
37 | Pam Bondi | 2011–2019 | Republican | |
38 | Ashley Moody | 2019–present | Republican |