Attorney General of Delaware

The Attorney General of Delaware is a constitutional officer of the U.S. state of Delaware, and is the chief law officer and the head of the State Department of Justice.

Description of the office

The Attorney General elected to a four-year term in the "off-year" state election, two years before/after the election of the Governor. Along with the State Treasurer, State Auditor, and State Insurance Commissioner, the office is intended to serve as a restraint to the Governor's exclusive executive authority. The office existed in various forms prior to the ratification of the Delaware Constitution of 1776, which continued the existing colonial tradition of granting the Governor of Delaware the power to appoint the Attorney General for a five-year tenure. With the ratification of the Delaware Constitution of 1897, the post was converted to its present four-year elected form, also establishing the Attorney General as third in line of succession to the office of Governor, after the Lieutenant Governor and Secretary of State.

Office Holders

Gunning Bedford, Jr. was the first holder of the office after American independence. The office is currently held by Joseph R. "Beau" Biden III, who was elected in 2006 and took office on January 2 2007. He is a Democrat and the eldest son of the senior U.S. Senator from Delaware, Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

Attorneys General of Delaware

• Gunning Bedford, Jr. 1778–1790
• Nicholas Ridgely 1790–1801
• Nicholas Van Dyke 1801–1806
• Outerbridge Horsey 1806–1810
• Thomas Clayton 1810–1815
• James Rogers 1815–1830
• Robert Frame 1830–1835
• James Rogers 1835–1840
• Edward W. Gilpin 1840–1850
• Willard Saulsbury, Sr. 1850–1855
• George P. Fisher 1855–1860
• Alfred Wooten 1860–1864
• Jacob Moore 1864–1869
• Charles B. Lore 1869–1874
• John B. Penington 1874–1879
• George Gray 1879–1885
• John H. Paynter 1885–1887
• John Biggs 1887–1892
• John R. Nicholson 1892–1895
• Robert C. White 1895–1901
• Herbert H. Ward 1901–1905
• Robert H. Richards 1905–1909
• Andrew C. Gray 1909–1913
• Josiah O. Wolcott 1913–1917
• David J. Reinhardt 1917–1921
• Sylvester D. Townsend, Jr. 1921–1925
• Clarence A. Southerland 1925–1929
• Reuben Satterthwaite, Jr. 1929–1933
• Daniel J. Layton 1933
• P. Warren Green 1933–1939
• James R. Morford 1939–1943
• Clair J. Killoran 1943–1947
• Albert W. James 1947–1951
• H. Albert Young 1951–1955
• Joseph D. Craven 1955–1959
• Januar D. Bove, Jr. 1959–1963
• David P. Buckson 1963–1971
• W. Laird Stabler, Jr. 1971–1975
• Richard R. Wier, Jr. 1975–1979
• Richard S. Gebelein 1979–1983
• Charles M. Oberly, III 1983–1995
• M. Jane Brady 1995–2005
• Carl C. Danberg 2005–2007
• Joseph R. "Beau" Biden, III 2007–present

See also

• State Attorney General

References

• Scharf, John Thomas (1888). History of Delaware 1609-1888. 2 vols. Philadelphia: L. J. Richards & Co. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
• Conrad, Henry C. (1908). History of the State of Delaware. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Wickersham Company. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• Office of the Attorney General, State of Delaware [1]
• Past Attorney Generals [2]

Places with more information

• Historical Society of Delaware [3] 505 Market St., Wilmington, Delaware (302) 655-7161
• University of Delaware Library [4] 181 South College Ave., Newark, Delaware (302) 831-2965