Attorney General of Mississippi

The Attorney General of Mississippi is the chief legal officer of the state and serves as the state's lawyer. Only the Attorney General can bring or defend a lawsuit on behalf of the state.

Attorney General of Mississippi
Seal of the Attorney General
Incumbent
Lynn Fitch
since January 14, 2020
Term length4 years
First holderLyman Harding
Salary$108,960

The Attorney General is elected statewide for a four-year term with no term limits. The qualification for office is that one must be qualified elector, at least 26 years of ages, a practicing attorney for 5 years, and a citizen of the state for 5 years before the date of election.

All Attorneys General from 1878 to 2020 were Democrats.

The attorney general's salary is $108,960 per year, but is set to increase to $150,000 annually in 2024.[1]

Powers and responsibilities

The attorney general is the chief legal officer of the state and serves as the state's lawyer; only they can bring or defend a lawsuit on behalf of the state.[2] They are empowered by law to issue advisory opinions on questions of law to some officials and state agencies.[3]

List of attorneys general
NameTermParty
Lyman Harding1818–1820Democrat-Republican
Edward Turner1820–1821Democrat-Republican
Thomas Buck Reed1821–1825Democrat-Republican
Richard Stockton1825–1828Jacksonian
George Adams1828–1829Jacksonian
Robert H. Buckner1829–1830Democrat
R. M. Gaines1830–1834Democrat
M. D. Patton1834–1837Democrat
T. F. Collins1837–1841Democrat
John D. Freeman1841–1850Democrat
David C. Glenn[4]1850–1857Democrat
T. J. Wharton1857–1865Democrat
Charles E. Hooker1865–1868Democrat
Jasper Myers1868–1870Democrat
Joshua S. Morris1870–1874Democrat
George E. Harris1874–1878Republican
Thomas C. Catchings1878–1885Democrat
Thomas S. Ford1885–1886Democrat
T. Marshall Miller1886–1893Democrat
Frank Johnston (politician)1893–1896Democrat
Wiley N. Nash1896–1900Democrat
Monroe McClurg1900–1903Democrat
William Williams1903–1907Democrat
Robert Virgil Fletcher1907–1908Democrat
J. Bowman Sterling1908–1910Democrat
Shepherd Spencer Hudson[5]1910–1912Democrat
Ross A. Collins1912–1920Democrat
Frank Roberson1920–1923Democrat
Clayton D. Potter1923–1924Democrat
Rush Hightower Knox[6]1924–1928Democrat
George T. Mitchell1928–1932Democrat
Greek Lent Rice[7]1932–1950Democrat
James P. Coleman1950–1956Democrat
Joseph Turner Patterson1956–1969Democrat
A. F. Summer1969–1980Democrat
William Allain1980–1984Democrat
Edwin L. Pittman1984–1988Democrat
Mike Moore1988–2004Democrat
Jim Hood2004–2020Democrat
Lynn Fitch2020–presentRepublican

References
  1. Pender, Geoff (April 7, 2022). "Amid vetoes, Gov. Reeves lets pay raises for elected officials pass". Mississippi Today. Nonprofit Mississippi News. Retrieved October 10, 2022.
  2. "Divisions". Attorney General of Mississippi. Retrieved February 15, 2023.
  3. Winkle 2014, p. 30.
  4. http://search.ancestry.com/Browse/view.aspx?dbid=1125&path=1850.Hinds.ALL.15&sid=&gskw=
  5. The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi. Department of Archives and History. 1912.
  6. The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi. Department of Archives and History. 1917.
  7. The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi. Department of Archives and History. 1923.

Works cited
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