- North Carolina Secretary of State
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The North Carolina Secretary of State is an elected official in the U.S. state of North Carolina, heading the Department of the Secretary of State, which oversees many of the economic and business-related operations of the state government. Unlike in many states, the Secretary of State does not oversee state elections.
The position of Secretary of State is, behind only the position of Governor, the oldest government office in the state of North Carolina, dating back to 1665 as the record keeper for the Province of Carolina. The position of North Carolina Secretary of State has, since American independence in 1776, historically had a very low rate of turnover. Only 8 individuals held the office during the first hundred years of statehood; William Hill served as secretary for 46 years continuously, from 1811 until his death in 1857. Remarkably, in the 20th century, Thad A. Eure broke even this record, holding the post for 53 consecutive years, from 1936 to 1989.
From 1776 to 1868, the Secretary of State was elected by the state legislature. Under the North Carolina Constitutions of 1868 and 1971, the Secretary of State is elected every four years by a plurality of the popular vote.
List of Secretaries of State
- James Glasgow, 1777-1798
- William White, 1798-1811
- William Hill, 1811-1857
- Rufus H. Page, 1857-1862
- John P.H. Russ, 1864-1865
- Charles R. Thomas, 1864-1865
- Robert W. Best, 1865-1868
- Henry J. Menninger, 1868-1873
- William H. Howerton, 1873-1877
- Joseph A. Engelhard, 1877-1879
- William L. Saunders, 1879-1891
- Octavius Coke, 1891-1895
- Charles M. Cooke, 1895-1897
- Cyrus Thompson, 1897-1901
- John Bryan Grimes, 1901-1923
- William N. Everett, 1923-1928
- James A. Hartness, 1928-1933
- Stacey W. Wade, 1933-1936
- Charles G. Powell, 1936
- Thad A. Eure, 1936-1989
- Rufus L. Edmisten, 1989-1996
- Janice I. Faulkner, 1996
- Elaine F. Marshall, 1997-present
External links
- Official Site
- Biennial reports of the NC Secretary of State, 1867-1948
- Partial History of NC Secretary of State Races at OurCampaigns.com
North Carolina Council of State State secretaries of state in the United States AL: Beth Chapman (R)
AK: No such office
AR: Mark Martin (R)
AZ: Ken Bennett (R)
CA: Debra Bowen (D)
CO: Scott Gessler (R)
CT: Denise Merrill (D)
DE: Harriet Smith Windsor (D)
FL: Kurt S. Browning (R)
GA: Brian Kemp (R)HI: No such office
ID: Ben Ysursa (R)
IL: Jesse White (D)
IN: Charlie White (R)
IA: Matt Schultz (R)
KS: Kris Kobach (R)
KY: Elaine Walker (D)
LA: Tom Schedler (R)
MD: John P. McDonough (D)
MA: Bill Galvin (D)ME: Charlie Summers (R)
MI: Ruth Johnson (R)
MN: Mark Ritchie (D)
MS: Delbert Hosemann (R)
MO: Robin Carnahan (D)
MT: Linda McCulloch (D)
NE: John Gale (R)
NV: Ross Miller (D)
NH: Bill Gardner (I)
NJ: Kim Guadagno (R)NM: Dianna Duran (R)
NY: Cesar A. Perales (D)
NC: Elaine Marshall (D)
ND: Al Jaeger (R)
OH: Jon Husted (R)
OK: Glenn Coffee (R)
OR: Kate Brown (D)
PA: Carol Aichele (R)
RI: Ralph Mollis (D)
SC: Mark Hammond (R)SD: Jason Gant (R)
TN: Tre Hargett (R)
TX: Esperanza Andrade (R)
UT: No such office
VT: Jim Condos (D)
VA: Janet Polarek (R)
WA: Sam Reed (R)
WV: Natalie Tennant (D)
WI: Doug La Follette (D)
WY: Max Maxfield (R)
AS: Lt. Gov. Ipulasi A. Sunia (D)
DC: Cynthia Brock-Smith (D)
GU: Lt. Gov. Ray Tenorio (R)
PR: Kenneth McClintock (D-NPP)
VI: No such officeIn Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia, the office is called the Secretary of the Commonwealth.
In states without the office, the lieutenant governor may perform some of the typical duties of a Secretary of State.Categories:- Secretaries of State of North Carolina
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