Cara Brown McCormick
In 47 US states, the secretary of state is a recognized statewide office, and in most of those states, voters get to decide who holds it. But in three 3 states — Maine, Tennessee, and New Hampshire — the legislature holds that power exclusively.
Neither the public nor the governor has any role in the appointment. It’s an arrangement that is drawing renewed scrutiny in an era when confidence in election systems — and those who oversee them — has become a central concern for voters across the political spectrum.
In 2022, 30 candidates for secretary of state refused to acknowledge who’d won the presidential election, despite dozens of court cases making that question absolutely certain.
A Low-Profile Office Now in the Spotlight
The secretary of state is traditionally one of the most powerful administrative offices in state government. While responsibilities vary by state, in most cases, the role includes managing elections and overseeing voter registration databases.
The 2020 and 2024 elections pushed this position into the national spotlight, as secretaries of state were thrust into the middle of public disputes over election certification, ballot access, and misinformation. Since then, voters have become more aware of who holds the office — and how they got there.
In 3 States... No Vote, No Veto
Across the country, 38 states allow voters to elect their secretary of state, giving the public direct control over this key administrative role.
But in Maine, Tennessee, and New Hampshire, the secretary of state is selected solely by the legislature, bypassing both the governor and the voters. These are the only three states where the chief election officer is installed without a public vote or any executive sign-off.
In Maine, the legislature also selects the attorney general and state treasurer, a practice rooted in the state’s 1820 Constitution.
Supporters argue the system enhances accountability by giving elected lawmakers more control over key oversight roles. Critics say it consolidates partisan power within legislative leadership and excludes the public from decisions that directly impact democratic institutions.
2024 Elections
In 2024, voters in 7 states elected a secretary of state: Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia. As of January 2025, the national breakdown of secretaries of state stands at 26 Republicans and 21 Democrats.
Notably, North Carolina’s secretary of state does not oversee elections. That authority lies with the State Board of Elections, which has recently been at the center of a legal and political fight.
In 2023, North Carolina’s legislature passed a law to transfer the board’s appointment authority from the governor to the legislature. Governor Roy Cooper vetoed the measure, but the legislature overrode him. A court temporarily blocked the law in November 2023.
Tennessee Voters Never Voted for 5-Term Secretary of State Tre Hargett
The Tennessee General Assembly elected Tre Hargett, a Republican, to serve as Tennessee's 37th secretary of state in 2009. On January 15, 2025, lawmakers from both chambers re-elected Hargett for a fifth 4-year term. His long tenure reflects how Tennessee’s legislative appointment process can offer continuity in state election leadership.
In 2019, Hargett supported legislation imposing civil and criminal penalties on groups that submitted large numbers of incomplete or erroneous voter registration forms — a move prompted by a last-minute submission of thousands of forms in Shelby County, Tennessee.
Governor Bill Lee signed the law, but it was later blocked by a federal judge over constitutional concerns. A revised version was passed in 2020.
Hargett opposed expanding access to absentee voting during the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the initial state policy limited absentee voting for those concerned about the virus, a Davidson County judge ultimately ordered state officials to notify voters that people with underlying health conditions or those caring for them could vote absentee.
Throughout his tenure, Hargett and Elections Coordinator Mark Goins have opposed Democratic Party-backed efforts in Tennessee to expand voter access, including automatic voter registration, no-excuse absentee voting, later registration deadlines, and voter-verified paper ballots.
In July 2024, Hargett's office mailed over 14,000 letters to registered voters asking them to confirm their citizenship. The letters, sent just weeks before early voting in the August 2024 Tennessee primary, drew sharp criticism from immigrant rights and voting groups, who said the letter’s language was intimidating.
Critics said it was a voter suppression tactic aimed at discouraging participation.
In 2021, Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro, a Democrat, abstained from voting to reappoint Hargett and criticized his record: “During his tenure, the number of Tennesseans registering and the turnout of Tennesseans relative to the rest of the country has been plummeting, and that is impossible to disconnect from the policies and operations of Secretary Hargett’s tenure.”
He added that Hargett’s office had been “relentless” in supporting litigation aligned with Trump-era challenges to voting rights.
In 2022, Hargett was arrested for DUI after leaving the Bonnaroo Music Festival. He later entered a plea agreement that included 48 hours in jail, a $350 fine, DUI school, and a one-year restricted license. Despite the incident, lawmakers did not call for his resignation.
New Hampshire Voters Did Not Directly Choose Secretary of State David Scanlan
The New Hampshire secretary of state is David Scanlan (R), who took office in 2022 after Bill Gardner's (R) retirement. Scanlan had served as deputy secretary for 20 years and was elevated to his role through a joint vote of the legislature. As required by the state constitution, the secretary “shall be chosen by joint ballot of the senators and representatives assembled in one room.”
Gardner, who retired after serving 45 years in the role, was first elected by the legislature in 1976 and re-elected to his 23rd two-year term in 2020. He was the nation’s longest-serving secretary of state.
Gardner was famous for his fierce protection of New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary status. New Hampshire state law gives the secretary of state exclusive authority to set the date and mandates it be held at least 7 days before any similar contest in America.
Gardner drew criticism from fellow Democrats in his later years for participating in former President Trump’s voter fraud commission and supporting legislation to tighten voter registration rules. Both Gardner and Scanlan opposed Democratic Party-backed federal election reforms championed by former President Joe Biden.
Maine Voters Didn’t Directly Elect Secretary of State Shenna Bellows
On January 8, 2025, Shenna Bellows was sworn in for her third, two-year term as Maine’s 50th secretary of state. A Democrat, Bellows previously served in the Maine Senate and as executive director of the Holocaust and Human Rights Center of Maine and the ACLU of Maine.
In 2014, Bellows got 33% of the vote in a US Senate race against Maine's incumbent U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R).
In a 2021 op-ed, Bellows wrote that she ran for office because she was “truly frightened for our democracy” after the 2020 election. Bellows criticized the Electoral College as “a relic of white supremacy.”
In 2023, Bellows achieved nationwide attention when she ruled that Donald Trump was ineligible to appear on Maine’s 2024 presidential primary ballot under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.
In an interview with NPR, Bellows said:
“Under Maine law, when I qualified Mr. Trump for the ballot, any registered voter had the right to challenge that qualification. Five voters did so, including two former Republican state senators. And then I was required under the statute, under the law, to hold a hearing and issue a decision, and do so within a very compressed timeline. So this wasn't something I initiated, but it's something that's required under Maine election law.”
Trump unsuccessfully sought to have Bellows disqualified. The secretary of state’s move drew criticism from Democratic US Rep. Jared Golden, who said: “We are a nation of laws; until he (Trump) is actually found guilty of the crime of insurrection, he should be allowed on the ballot.”
Senator Angus King, an independent, said in a statement that he respected Bellows’ “careful process,” but believed “that the decision as to whether or not Mr. Trump should again be considered for the presidency should rest with the people as expressed in free and fair elections.”
“This is the ultimate check within our Constitutional system,” King continued.
Following a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in March 2024 that states cannot disqualify federal candidates under that clause, Bellows rescinded her decision.
In her 2025 inaugural remarks, she pledged to modernize services and uphold the rule of law: “We must stand up for the rule of law and do the right thing even when it is hard.” Bellows recently announced she would continue to serve as secretary of state while running for the Democratic Party’s nomination for governor.
Why It Matters
In an era of intense political polarization and ongoing debates over election legitimacy, how secretaries of state are chosen matters. That three states continue to install their chief election officials without any public or executive input is a significant feature of state governance and one that shapes trust in democratic systems. As election oversight remains top of mind, public understanding of how these officials are selected is key.