Illinois Attorney General
The Illinois Attorney General is the highest legal officer of the state of Illinois in the United States. Originally an appointed office, it is now an office filled by election through universal suffrage. Based in Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, the Attorney General is responsible for providing legal counsel for the various state agencies including the Governor of Illinois and Illinois General Assembly, and conducting all legal affairs pertaining to the state.
Attorney General of Illinois | |
---|---|
Seal of the Attorney General | |
Term length | 4 years |
Inaugural holder | Daniel Pope Cook |
Formation | December 3, 1818 |
Succession | Second |
Website | http://www.ag.state.il.us/ |
The office of the Illinois Attorney General was established on December 3, 1818 based on guidelines adopted by a state constitutional convention. The Attorney General is second (behind the Lieutenant Governor) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Illinois.[1][2] The first person to fulfill the duties of the office was Daniel Pope Cook who only served eleven days, and was later elected to the United States Congress. Cook County was named in his honor.
The current holder of the office is Kwame Raoul.
List of Attorneys General
- Parties
Democratic (21) Republican (17) Democratic-Republican (4)
# | Name | Political Party | Term |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Daniel Pope Cook | Democratic-Republican | 1819 |
2 | William Mears | Democratic-Republican | 1819–1821 |
3 | Samuel D. Lockwood | Democratic-Republican | 1821–1822 |
4 | James Turney | Democratic-Republican | 1822–1829 |
5 | George Forquer | Democratic | 1829–1832 |
6 | James Semple | Democratic | 1832–1834 |
7 | Ninian Wirt Edwards | Democratic | 1834–1835 |
8 | Jesse B. Thomas, Jr. | Democratic | 1835–1836 |
9 | Walter B. Scates | Democratic | 1836–1837 |
10 | Usher F. Linder | Democratic | 1837–1838 |
11 | George W. Olney | Democratic | 1838–1839 |
12 | Wickliffe Kitchell | Democratic | 1839–1840 |
13 | Josiah Lamborn | Democratic | 1840–1843 |
14 | James A. McDougall | Democratic | 1843–1846 |
15 | David B. Campbell | Democratic | 1846–1848 |
Office abolished 1848–1867 | |||
16 | Robert G. Ingersoll | Republican | 1867–1869 |
17 | Washington Bushnell | Republican | 1869–1873 |
18 | James K. Edsall | Republican | 1873–1881 |
19 | James McCartney | Republican | 1881–1885 |
20 | George Hunt | Republican | 1885–1893 |
21 | Maurice T. Moloney | Democratic | 1893–1897 |
22 | Edward C. Akin | Republican | 1897–1901 |
23 | Howland J. Hamlin | Republican | 1901–1905 |
24 | William H. Stead | Republican | 1905–1913 |
25 | Patrick J. Lucey | Democratic | 1913–1917 |
26 | Edward J. Brundage | Republican | 1917–1925 |
27 | Oscar E. Carlstrom | Republican | 1925–1933 |
28 | Otto Kerner, Sr. | Democratic | 1932–1938 |
29 | John Edward Cassidy | Democratic | 1938–1941 |
30 | George F. Barrett | Republican | 1941–1949 |
31 | Ivan A. Elliott | Democratic | 1949–1953 |
32 | Latham Castle | Republican | 1953–1959 |
33 | Grenville Beardsley | Republican | 1959–1960 |
34 | William L. Guild | Republican | 1960–1961 |
35 | William G. Clark | Democratic | 1961–1969 |
36 | William J. Scott | Republican | 1969–1980 |
37 | Tyrone C. Fahner | Republican | 1980–1983 |
38 | Neil F. Hartigan | Democratic | 1983–1991 |
39 | Roland W. Burris | Democratic | 1991–1995 |
40 | Jim Ryan | Republican | 1995–2003 |
41 | Lisa Madigan | Democratic | 2003–2019 |
42 | Kwame Raoul | Democratic | 2019–present |
References
- "Constitution of the State of Illinois". Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
- "Illinois Compiled Statutes 15 ILCS 5 — Governor Succession Act". Illinois General Assembly. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
- http://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/about/history.html
- Illinois Blue Book. Springfield: Secretary of State. 1908. p. 159. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
External links
- Illinois Attorney General official website
- Illinois Attorney General articles at Legal Newsline Legal Journal
- Illinois Attorney General articles at ABA Journal
- News and Commentary at FindLaw
- Illinois Compiled Statutes at Law.Justia.com
- U.S. Supreme Court Opinions - "Cases with title containing: State of Illinois" at FindLaw
- Illinois State Bar Association
- Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan profile at National Association of Attorneys General
- Press releases at Illinois Attorney General