2018 New York Attorney General election


The 2018 New York Attorney General election took place on November 6, 2018. New York City Public Advocate Letitia James, a Democrat, was elected. James is the first woman and the first African-American to be elected New York Attorney General.
Former Attorney General Eric Schneiderman resigned on May 8, 2018 after allegations of domestic abuse and withdrew from his then-ongoing reelection campaign. Incumbent Solicitor General Barbara Underwood was chosen by the Legislature to complete her unexpired term, but opted not to seek election to a full term.
On September 13, 2018, James won the Democratic nomination for Attorney General, defeating Leecia Eve, former senior policy advisor to U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton; Sean Patrick Maloney, U.S. Representative for New York's 18th congressional district; and Zephyr Teachout, professor at Fordham University School of Law. In the general election, James defeated Republican Party candidate Keith Wofford with over 60% of the vote.

Background

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, a Democrat, was first elected to the office of Attorney General in 2010, winning reelection in 2014. He was in the midst of campaigning for a third term in office when on May 7, 2018, The New Yorker revealed allegations that he had physically abused several women he had dated during his tenure in office. Schneiderman resigned hours after the story was released, with the resignation taking effect at the end of the business day May 8; he did not seek re-election.
Barbara Underwood, the Solicitor General, took on the duties of Attorney General upon Schneiderman's resignation. A joint session of the New York State Legislature formally appointed Underwood to fill the rest of Schneiderman's term on May 22, after interviewing several potential candidates; of the 209 members in the State Legislature, 190 votes were cast in favor, with one voting against her in protest of the process, and 18 abstaining. Underwood has confirmed that she will not run for the office in the 2018 elections and returned to her previous position as Solicitor General following the election.

Democratic primary

Candidates

Filed

The following candidates were certified by the State Board of Elections as having filed for the primary ballot :

Polling

Results

Turnout: 28.08%

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Wofford grew up in Buffalo, New York and attended Harvard College on scholarship.

Withdrew

Qualified third parties

Conservative

chairman Michael R. Long indicated the party would cross-endorse the Republican nominee for Attorney General.
Nominee: Letitia James. The party endorsed both Letitia James and Zephyr Teachout prior to the September 13 primary election. Kenneth Schaefer, who was nominated as the Working Families Party's dummy candidate, withdrew by October 9 in favor of Democratic nominee Letitia James.

Independence Party

Nominee: Letitia James. Victor J. Messina, Jr., the original nominee, withdrew by October 9 as well.

Green Party

Nominee: Michael Sussman

Reform

On May 20, 2018, the Reform Party of New York State authorized four candidates to run for Attorney General in its September 13, 2018 primary:

Other third parties

Libertarian

Polling

Results

Letitia James went on to easily win the election, with 62% of the vote versus Wofford’s 35%. James is the first woman and the first African-American to be elected New York Attorney General.