The secretary of state of Alabama is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Alabama. The office predates the statehood of Alabama, dating back to the Alabama Territory. From 1819 to 1901, the secretary of state served a two-year term until the State Constitution was changed to set the term to four years. Up until 1868 the secretary of state was elected by the Alabama Legislature, but is now popularly elected. The terms and over 1,000 duties of the office are defined by Sections 114, 118, 132, and 134 of the Alabama Constitution and throughout the Code of Alabama.Code of Alabama 1975. The Alabama Legislature. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
The secretary of state must be at least 25 years old, a U.S. citizen for at least seven years, an Alabama state resident for at least five years, and a registered voter. The secretary of state and governor are on the same election cycle, and may only serve two consecutive terms; to hold the office for more terms, the office must be vacated for at least one term. The governor may appoint a replacement secretary of state in the case of resignation or death.
History The Alabama Territory maintained an office of territorial secretary beginning in 1818. In 1819, Alabama became a state, and the position of secretary of state became a legislatively-appointed office with the incumbent subject to a term of two years. In 1868, the office became popularly-elective. In 1901, Alabama adopted a new constitution which extended the term of office to four years.
Duties and responsibilities The office of secretary of state maintains several official state records including copies of state laws, gubernatorial orders, and incorporations, and is responsible for authenticating official copies of some documents. They are the keeper of the Great Seal of the State of Alabama, which is used in the authentication process. The secretary is also ex officio "Chief State Elections Official" for all federal, state, special, and constitutional electoral contests.
Organization The secretary of state's office retains a staff of about 40 people. It is organized as follows: The Executive Division administers the day-to-day operations of the secretary of state's office and also maintains the notaries public database and Civil Law Notaries. The Business Services Division of the secretary of state's office is divided into two sections: Business Entities, which operates as a depository for records of domestic entities and foreign entities that have qualified to transact business in Alabama, and Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which operates a filing and retrieval center for UCC financing statements at the state level. The Elections Division administers elections and campaign finance laws, including the preparation of ballots and implementation of state and federal election laws (such as the Help America Vote Act). The Government Support/Authentications & Trademarks Division maintains the distribution of the Acts of Alabama, preserves the use of the state seal, licenses Athlete Agents, oversees trademarking, and authenticates documents with either an apostille or certification. The Government Records Section is responsible for maintenance of legislative and other government records, including land titles. The state holds land titles going back to the date of statehood. The Finance Division works with the Executive Division to discuss budgets and handle transactions with state vendors. The Information Technology (IT) Division maintains the office's network security and runs the live Elections Night Reporting system during Alabama elections.
The Alabama secretary of state's website also contains a public organizational chart that features a more in-depth depiction of each division and the titles of each staff member therein.
Officeholders The current secretary of state is Republican Wes Allen from Pike County. Allen was elected secretary of state in November 2022, after serving one term in the Alabama House of Representatives from 2018 to 2022. Allen took office on January 16, 2023, succeeding John Merrill, who was first elected in 2014 and served from 2015 to 2023.
From 1944 to 1979, the office was held by five different women, the first of whom was Sibyl Pool. Agnes Baggett was the longest serving secretary of state, having been elected to three non-consecutive terms.
The parties are as follows: (D) and (R), or .
Alabama secretaries of state#ImageNameTermParty1Henry Hitchcock1818–18192Thomas A. Rodgers1819–18213James J. Pleasants1821–18244James I. Thornton1824–18345Edmund A. Webster1834–18366Thomas B. Tunstall1836–18407William Garrett1840–1852Democratic8Vincent M. Benham1852–1856Democratic9James H. Weaver1856–186010Patrick Henry Brittan1860–1865Democratic11Albert Stanhope Elmore1186512David D. Dalton1865–1867Democratic13Micah Taul1867–1868Democratic14Charles A. Miller1868–1870Republican15Jabez J. Parker1870–1872Democratic16Patrick Ragland1872–1873Republican17Neander H. Rice1873–1874Republican18Rufus King Boyd1874–1878Democratic19William W. Screws1878–1882Democratic20Ellis Phelan1882–1885Democratic21Charles C. Langdon1885–1890Democratic22Joseph D. Barron1890–1894Democratic23James K. Jackson1894–1898Democratic24Robert P. McDavid1898–1903Democratic25James Thomas Heflin1903–1904Democratic26Edmund R. McDavid1904–1907Democratic27Frank N. Julian1907–1910Democratic28Cyrus B. Brown1910–1915Democratic29John Purifoy1915–1919Democratic30William Peyton Cobb1919–1923Democratic31Sidney Herbert Blan1923–1927Democratic32John Marvin Brandon1927–1931Democratic33Pete Jarman1931–1935Democratic34David Howell Turner1935–1939Democratic35John Marvin Brandon1939–1943Democratic36David Howell Turner1943–1944Democratic37Sibyl Pool1944–1951Democratic38Agnes Baggett1951–1955Democratic39Mary Texas Hurt Garner1955–1959Democratic40Bettye Frink1959–1963Democratic41 Agnes Baggett1963–1967Democratic42Mabel Sanders Amos1967–1975Democratic43 Agnes Baggett1975–1979Democratic44Don Siegelman1979–1987Democratic45Glen Browder1987–1989Democratic46Fred Crawford 1989–1989Republican47Perry Hand1989–1991Republican48Billy Joe Camp1991–1993Democratic49Jim Bennett1993–1998Democratic 49Jim Bennett21998–2003Republican50Nancy Worley2003–2007Democratic51Beth Chapman2007–2013Republican52Jim Bennett2013–2015Republican53John Merrill2015–2023Republican54Wes Allen2023–presentRepublican
Notes: First native-born Alabamian to serve as Secretary of State. Switched to Republican Party in 1998.
References
External links
Alabama Secretary of State Business Database Search