Secretary of State of Kentucky

The secretary of state of Kentucky is one of the constitutional officers of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is now an elected office, but was an appointed office prior to 1891. The current secretary of state is Republican Michael Adams, who was elected on November 5, 2019; he took office on January 6, 2020.

Secretary of State of Kentucky
Seal of Kentucky
Incumbent
Michael Adams
since January 6, 2020
Term length4 years
Inaugural holderJames Brown
June 5, 1792
FormationKentucky Constitution
1792
Salary$124,113.60[1]
Websitesos.ky.gov

History and name of position

Despite the fact that Kentucky designates itself a commonwealth, the office itself is still referred to as "Secretary of State" (unlike Virginia, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, which refer to the office as "Secretary of the Commonwealth"). The office was created by Article II, Section 17 of the Kentucky Constitution of 1792 simply as "the secretary". Article III, Section 21, of the Kentucky Constitution of 1850 changed the title of the office to Secretary of State.

Section 91 of the Kentucky Constitution of 1891 (the most recent state constitution), changed the method by which the secretary of state is selected. Prior to 1891, the secretary was appointed by the governor; under the present Constitution, the secretary of state is elected by the qualified voters of the state. The most recent election was in 2019. In 1992, the Constitution was amended to allow the secretary of state to serve two successive terms.[2][3]

Emma Guy Cromwell ran for the office of Secretary of State, defeating another woman, Mary Elliott Flanery, and two men in the 1923 Democratic primary. In the general election, Cromwell went on to defeat her Republican opponent, Eleanor Wickliffe. She was sworn in on January 10, 1924, and became the first woman elected to statewide office in Kentucky.[4]

Structure and duties of the office

The secretary of state's office is composed of five divisions:

List of secretaries of state of Kentucky
# Image Name Term of office Party
1 James Brown 1792—1796 Democratic-Republican
2 Harry Toulmin 1796—1804 Democratic-Republican
3 John Rowan 1804—1807 Democratic-Republican
4 Alfred W. Grayson 1807—1808
5 William C. Greenup 1808
6 Jesse Bledsoe 1808—1812 Democratic-Republican
7 Fielding Winlock 1812
8 Martin D. Hardin 1812 Democratic-Republican
9 Christopher Greenup 1813 Democratic-Republican
10 Martin D. Hardin 1813—1816 Democratic-Republican
11 Charles Stewart Todd 1816 Democratic-Republican
12 John Pope 1816—1819 Democratic-Republican
13 Oliver G. Waggener 1819—1820
14 Cabell Breckinridge 1820—1823 Democratic-Republican
15 Thomas Bell Monroe 1823—1824 Democratic-Republican
16 William T. Barry 1824—1825 Democratic-Republican
17 James C. Pickett 1825—1828 Democratic-Republican
18 George Robertson 1828 Democratic-Republican
19 Thomas T. Crittenden 1828—1832
20 John F. McCurdy 1832
21 Lewis Sanders 1832—1834
22 John Jordan Crittenden 1834—1835 National Republican
23 William Owsley 1835—1836 National Republican
24 Austin P. Cox 1836
25 James M. Bullock 1836—1840
26 James Harlan 1840—1844 Whig
27 Benjamin Hardin 1844—1846 Whig
28 George B. Kinkead 1846—1847 Whig
29 William Decatur Reed 1847—1848 Whig
30 Orlando Brown 1848—1849 Whig
31 Joshua Fry Bell 1849—1850 Whig
32 John William Finnell 1850—1851 Whig
33 David Meriwether 1851—1852 Democratic
34 James P. Metcalfe 1852—1854 Democratic
35 Grant Green 1854—1855 Democratic
36 Mason Brown 1855—1859 American
37 Thomas Bell Monroe Jr. 1859—1861 Democratic
38 Nathaniel Gaither 1861—1862 Democratic
39 Daniel C. Wickliffe 1862—1863 Democratic
40 Ephraim L. Van Winkle 1863—1866
41 John S. Van Winkle 1866—1867
42 Samuel B. Churchill 1867—1871 Democratic
43 Andrew Jackson James 1871—1872 Democratic
44 George Washington Craddock 1872—1875 Democratic
45 J. Stoddard Johnston 1875—1879 Democratic
46 Samuel B. Churchill 1879—1880 Democratic
47 James W. Blackburn 1880—1883 Democratic
48 James A. McKenzie 1883—1887 Democratic
49 George Madison Adams 1887—1891 Democratic
50 Willis Lunsford Ringo 1891 Democratic
51 John W. Headley 1891—1896 Democratic
52 Charles Finley 1896—1899 Republican
53 John W. Headley 1899 Democratic
54 Charles Finley 1899 Republican
55 Caleb Powers 1899—1900 Republican
56 Caleb Breckinridge Hill 1900—1904 Democratic
57 Harry V. McChesney 1904—1908 Democratic
58 Ben L. Bruner 1908—1912 Republican
59 Carl F. Crecelius 1912—1916 Democratic
60 James P. Lewis 1916—1920 Republican
61 Fred A. Vaughn 1920—1924 Republican
62 Emma Guy Cromwell 1924—1928 Democratic
63 Ella Lewis 1928—1932 Democratic
64 Sara W. Mahan 1932—1936 Democratic
65 Charles D. Arnett 1936—1940 Democratic
66 George G. Hatcher 1940—1944 Democratic
67 Charles K. O'Connell 1944—1948 Democratic
68 George G. Hatcher 1948—1952 Democratic
69 Charles K. O'Connell 1952—1956 Democratic
70 Thelma Stovall 1956—1960 Democratic
71 Henry H. Carter 1960—1964 Democratic
72 Thelma Stovall 1964—1968 Democratic
73 Elmer Begley 1968—1970 Republican
74 Leila Feltner Begley 1970—1971 Republican
75 Kenneth F. Harper 1971—1972 Republican
76 Thelma Stovall 1972—1976 Democratic
77 Drexell R. Davis 1976—1980 Democratic
78 Frances Jones Mills 1980—1984 Democratic
79 Drexell R. Davis 1984—1988 Democratic
80 Bremer Ehrler 1988—1992 Democratic
81 Bob Babbage 1992—1996 Democratic
82 John Young Brown III 1996—2004 Democratic
83 Trey Grayson 2004—2011 Republican
84 Elaine Walker 2011—2012 Democratic
85 Alison Lundergan Grimes 2012—2020 Democratic
86 Michael Adams 2020—present Republican

See also

References
  1. "Transparency.ky.gov – Salary Search". August 4, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  2. Executive Branch of the Office of the Secretary of State—History of the office
  3. Timeline of legal changes to the Office of Secretary of State
  4. "Secretary of State: Emma Guy Cromwell". Kentucky Secretary of State. Frankfort, Kentucky: Commonwealth of Kentucky. Retrieved March 12, 2010.
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