# List of African-American statewide elected officials

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

| 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 | 4 | | | 4 | |
| 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

* Italics denotes acting governor
| 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 (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

* Italics denotes acting governor
| 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 |
| Melvin H. Evans (1917–1984) | Republican | United States Virgin Islands | July 1, 1969 | January 6, 1975 | Appointed as civilian governor before being elected in his own right Lost election |
| Marion Barry (1936–2014) | Democratic | District of Columbia | January 2, 1979 | January 2, 1991 | Retired |
| Marion Barry (1936–2014) | Democratic | District of Columbia | 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

* Italics denotes acting lieutenant governor
| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | Notes |
| Oscar Dunn (1826–1871) | Republican | Louisiana | June 27, 1868 | November 22, 1871 | Died |
| Alonzo J. Ransier (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 | 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 (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 (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 | January 1, 2025 | Retired to run unsuccessfully for governor |
| Andrea Stewart-Cousins (born 1950) | Democratic | New York | August 24, 2021 | September 9, 2021 | New Lieutenant Governor appointed |
| Andrea Stewart-Cousins (born 1950) | Democratic | New York | 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

* Italics denotes acting attorney general
| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | Notes |
| Edward Brooke (1919–2015) | Republican | Massachusetts | January 3, 1963 | January 3, 1967 | Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate from Massachusetts |
| Roland Burris (1937–present) | Democratic | Illinois | January 14, 1991 | January 9, 1995 | Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Illinois |
| Pamela Carter (1949–present) | Democratic | Indiana | January 13, 1993 | January 16, 1997 | Retired |
| Thurbert Baker (1952–present) | Democratic | Georgia | June 1, 1997 | January 10, 2011 | Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Georgia |
| Karen Freeman-Wilson (1960–present) | Democratic | Indiana | June 8, 2000 | January 14, 2001 | Lost reelection |
| Peter C. Harvey (1952–present) | Democratic | New Jersey | June 16, 2003 | January 30, 2006 | Retired. |
| Kamala Harris (1964–present) | Democratic | California | January 3, 2011 | January 3, 2017 | Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate from California |
| Curtis Hill (1960–present) | Republican | Indiana | January 9, 2017 | January 11, 2021 | Lost renomination |
| Letitia James (1958–present) | Democratic | New York | January 1, 2019 | present | |
| Kwame Raoul (1964–present) | Democratic | Illinois | January 14, 2019 | present | |
| Aaron D. Ford (1972–present) | Democratic | Nevada | January 7, 2019 | present | |
| Keith Ellison (1963–present) | Democratic | Minnesota | January 7, 2019 | present | |
| 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

* 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

* Italics denotes acting secretary of state
| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | Notes |
| 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 |
| Basil Paterson (1926–2014) | Democratic | New York | January 1, 1979 | January 1, 1983 | Retired |
| 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 |
| Myra McDaniel (1932–2010) | Democratic | Texas | August 6, 1984 | January 26, 1987 | Retired |
| Hannah Atkins (1923–2010) | Democratic | Oklahoma | 1987 | 1991 | Retired |
| Vikki Buckley (1948–1999) | Republican | Colorado | 1994 | 1999 | Died |
| 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

* 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

* Italics denotes acting auditor or comptroller
| 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

* Italics denotes acting superintendent
| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | Notes |
| 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 | |
| Mo Green (born 1966/67) | Democratic | North Carolina | January 1, 2025 | present | |

## Treasurers

* Italics denotes acting treasurer
| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end | Notes |
| 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) | Republican | Michigan | 1978 | 1982 | Retired |
| James B. Lewis (born 1947) | Democratic | New Mexico | 1985 | 1990 | Retired |
| James B. Lewis (born 1947) | Democratic | New Mexico | 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

* Italics denotes acting public utilities or railroad commissioner
| 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 |
| Sandra Kennedy | Democratic | Arizona | January 7, 2019 | January 2, 2023 | Lost re-election |
| Fitz Johnson (born 1963) | Republican | Georgia | 2021 | present | Appointed to office |
| Davante Lewis | Democratic | Louisiana | 2023 | present | |

## Elected State Boards of Education

| Name | Party | State | Term start | Term end |
| 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 |