California Secretary of State
| California Secretary of State | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Office Type: | Partisan |
| Office website: | Official Link |
| Compensation: | $137,093 |
| 2012-2013 FY Budget: | $103,186,000 |
| Term limits: | 2 terms |
| Structure | |
| Length of term: | 4 years |
| Authority: | California Constitution, Article 5, Section 11 |
| Selection Method: | Elected |
| Current Officeholder | |
| Alex Padilla | |
| Elections | |
| Next election: | November 8, 2022 |
| Last election: | November 6, 2018 |
| Other California Executive Offices | |
| Governor • Lieutenant Governor • Secretary of State • Attorney General • Treasurer • Auditor • Controller • Superintendent of Public Instruction • Agriculture Secretary • Insurance Commissioner • Natural Resources Secretary • Industrial Relations Director • Public Utilities Commission | |
Current officeholder
The current secretary is Alex Padilla, a Democrat, who was first elected to the office in 2014. Padilla replaced Debra Bowen (D), who was constitutionally barred from holding office by term limits after two terms in office.
Authority
The office of secretary of state is established by the California Constitution.
California Constitution, Article 5, Section 11
|
The Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Controller, Secretary of State, and Treasurer shall be elected at the same time and places and for the same term as the Governor. |
Qualifications
Although there are no office-specific requirements for the office, each candidate for secretary of state must:[2]
- Be a registered voter
- Be registered with their party for at least three months
- Not have been registered with a different political party in the last 12 months
- Not have been previously term-limited out
Elections
Secretaries of state are elected on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in federal midterm election years, e.g. 2018, 2022, 2026 and 2030.[3] Like all constitutional state officers, the secretary of state assumes office on the first Monday in the new year following the election.
California Constitution, Article 5, Section 11
|
The Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Controller, Secretary of State, and Treasurer shall be elected at the same time and places and for the same term as the Governor. No Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Controller, Secretary of State, or Treasurer may serve in the same office for more than 2 terms. |
2018
California held an election for secretary of state on November 6, 2018. The candidate filing deadline was March 9, 2018.
2014
| Secretary of State of California, 2014 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic |  Alex Padilla |
53.6% | 3,799,711 | |
| Republican | Pete Peterson | 46.4% | 3,285,334 | |
| Total Votes | 7,085,045 | |||
| Election results via California Secretary of State | ||||
Term limits
Per Article 5, Section 11 of the California Constitution, secretaries of state face an absolute limit of two terms in office.
California Constitution, Article V, Section 11:
| The Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Controller, Secretary of State, and Treasurer shall be elected at the same time and places and for the same term as the Governor. No Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Controller, Secretary of State, or Treasurer may serve in the same office for more than 2 terms. |
Vacancies
The vacancy procedure for the office of secretary of state is determined by the state Constitution. When a vacancy occurs, the governor nominates a replacement to serve the remainder of the term under the next election. The appointee must be confirmed by a majority of both house of the California legislature. Until the replacement is approved, the former officeholder's chief deputy exercises the office.
California Constitution, Article 5, Section 5b
|
Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Controller, Treasurer, or Attorney General, or on the State Board of Equalization, the Governor shall nominate a person to fill the vacancy who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority of the membership of the Senate and a majority of the membership of the Assembly and who shall hold office for the balance of the unexpired term. In the event the nominee is neither confirmed nor refused confirmation by both the Senate and the Assembly within 90 days of the submission of the nomination, the nominee shall take office as if he or she had been confirmed by a majority of the Senate and Assembly; provided, that if such 90-day period ends during a recess of the Legislature, the period shall be extended until the sixth day following the day on which the Legislature reconvenes. |
Duties
The secretary of state's duties include:
- Serving as the state's Chief Elections Officer
- Implementing electronic filing and Internet disclosure of campaign and lobbyist financial information
- Maintaining business filings
- Commissioning notaries public
- Operating the Safe at Home Confidential Address Program
- Maintaining the Domestic Partners and Advance Healthcare Directive Registries
- Safeguarding the State Archives
- Serving as a trustee of the California Museum for History, Women & the Arts[4]
Divisions
The Office of Secretary of State has five divisions. These are:[5]
- Elections and Voter Information
- Campaign and Lobbying Information
- California Business Portal
- Archives and the California Museum
State budget
- See also: California state budget and finances
The budget for the Office of California Secretary of State in the 2012-2013 Fiscal Year was $103,186,000.[6]
Compensation
- See also: Compensation of state executive officers
The salaries of California's elected executives are determined by the California Citizens Compensation Commission, a seven-member board appointed by the governor to six-year terms. The commission was established after voters passed Proposition 112, an amendment to the California Constitution, in 1990. Commissioners meet prior to June 30 of each year to determine salary recommendations with changes effective the following December. From 2001 to 2013, the commission voted to increase salaries or benefits five times and decreased or made no changes to salaries eight times.[7]
2016
In 2016, the secretary of state received a salary of $137,093, according to the Council of State Governments.[8]
2015
In 2015, the secretary of state received a salary of $133,100, according to the Council of State Governments.[9]
2014
In 2014, the secretary received a salary of $130,490, according to the Council of State Governments.[10]
2013
In 2013, the secretary received a salary of $130,490, according to the Council of State Governments.[11]
2010
In 2010, the secretary received a salary of $130,490, according to the Council of State Governments.[12]
Historical officeholders
| List of Former
Officeholders from 1849-Present[13] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | Name | Tenure | Party | ||
| 1 | William Van Voohies | 1849-1853 |  Democratic
| ||
| 2 | James W. Denver | 1853-1855 | Democratic
| ||
| 3 | Charles H. Hempstead | 1855-1856 | Democratic
| ||
| 4 | David F. Douglass | 1856-1858 |  American Independent Party
| ||
| 5 | Ferris Forman | 1858-1860 | Democratic
| ||
| 6 | Johnson Price | 1860-1862 | Democratic Leocompton
| ||
| 7 | William H. Weeks | 1862-1863 |  Republican
| ||
| 8 | A. A. H. Tuttle | 1863-1863 | Republican
| ||
| 9 | Benhamin B. Redding | 1863-1867 | Republican Unionist
| ||
| 10 | H. L. Nichols | 1867-1871 | Democratic
| ||
| 11 | Drury Melone | 1871-1875 | Republican
| ||
| 12 | Thomas Beck | 1875-1880 | Democratic
| ||
| 13 | Daniel M. Burns | 1880-1883 | Republican
| ||
| 14 | Thomas L. Thompson | 1883-1887 | Democratic
| ||
| 15 | William C. Hendricks | 1887-1891 | Democratic
| ||
| 16 | Edwin G. Waite | 1891-1894 | Republican
| ||
| 17 | Albert Hart | 1894-1895 | Republican
| ||
| 18 | Lewis H. Brown | 1895-1899 | Republican
| ||
| 19 | Charles F. Curry | 1899-1911 | Republican
| ||
| 20 | Frank C. Jordan | 1911-1940 | Republican
| ||
| 21 | Paul Peek | 1940-1943 | Democratic
| ||
| 22 | Frank M. Jordan | 1943-1970 | Republican
| ||
| 23 | H. P. Sullivan | 1970-1971 | Republican
| ||
| 24 | Edmund G. Brown Jr. | 1971-1975 | Democratic
| ||
| 25 | March Fong Eu | 1975-1994 | Democratic
| ||
| 26 | Tony Miller | 1994-1995 | Democratic
| ||
| 27 | Bill Jones | 1995-2003 | Republican
| ||
| 28 | Kevin Shelley | 2003-2005 | Democratic
| ||
| 29 | Cathy Mitchell | 2005-2005 | Democratic
| ||
| 30 | Bruce McPherson | 2005-2007 | Republican
| ||
| 31 | Debra Bowen | 2007-2015 | Democratic
| ||
| 32 | Alex Padilla | 2015-present | Democratic
| ||
Recent news
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Contact Information
Capitol Address:
1500 11th Street
Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: (916) 653-6814
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ California Secretary of State's official website, "Secretary of State Debra Bowen," accessed September 24, 2012
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Summary of Qualifications and Requirements for June 8, 2010 Primary Election... Secretary of State, Controller, or Treasurer," accessed June 23, 2011
- ↑ California Elections Code, "Sections 1001-1003," accessed June 23, 2011
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "About the Agency," accessed June 23, 2011
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Organizational Chart," accessed June 23, 2011
- ↑ California Department of Finance, "Enacted Budget FY 2012-2013," accessed May 28, 2013
- ↑ California Citizens Compensation Commission, "About the Commission," accessed February 19, 2015
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2016," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries, 2015," accessed August 27, 2016
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries," accessed November 14, 2014
- ↑ The Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2013, Table 4.11," accessed February 2, 2014
- ↑ Council of State Governments, "Book of the States 2010 -- Table 4.11," accessed June 23, 2011
- ↑ National Governors Association, "History of California Constitutional Officers," accessed September 9, 2013
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