| Post: | Attorney General |
| Body: | Arkansas |
| Insignia: | Seal of the Attorney General of Arkansas.png |
| Insigniasize: | 110px |
| Insigniacaption: | Seal of the Attorney General's Office |
| Incumbent: | Tim Griffin |
| Abbreviation: | AG |
| Precursor: | Arkansas Attorney for the Fifth Judicial District |
| Inaugural: | Robert W. Johnson |
| Seat: | Attorney General's Office, Little Rock, Arkansas |
| Termlength: | Four years, renewable once (Seventy-third Amendment to the Arkansas Constitution of 1874) |
| Constituting Instrument: | Act 1 of 1843 |
| Salary: | per year (2016)[1] |
The attorney general of Arkansas, usually known simply as the attorney general (AG), is one of Arkansas's seven constitutional officers. The officeholder serves as the state's top law enforcement officer and consumer advocate.
The Attorney General was not originally a state constitutional officer but rather was created by Act 1 of 1843, which designated the Arkansas Attorney for the Fifth Judicial District as the attorney general. The first Attorney General of Arkansas was Robert W. Johnson. The Arkansas Constitution of 1868 made the post elective, though it required only that the attorney general “perform such duties as are now, or may hereafter, be prescribed by law.” This was reaffirmed in the constitution of 1874. Act 131 of 1911 laid out four general responsibilities of the attorney general's office: 1) to give opinions to state officers and agencies “upon any constitutional or other legal question that may concern the official action of said officers”; 2) to defend the interest of the state in federal court and representing all state officers, boards, and commissions in litigation involving the interests of the state; 3) to furnish any board or commission an opinion as to the validity of the title on any land they seek to purchase; and 4) to make a biennial report to the governor and the Arkansas General Assembly on all transactions of the attorney general's office.[2]
The Attorney General represents state agencies and commissions in courts of law, giving opinions on issues presented by legislators and prosecutors, handling criminal matters and habeas corpus matters in the state, and advocating for citizens on issues pertaining to the environment, antitrust, and consumer protection.[3]
| Image | Name | Took office | Left office | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1843 | 1848 | Democratic | |||
| 1848 | 1851 | Whig, then Democratic | |||
| 1851 | 1856 | Democratic | |||
| 1856 | 1858 | Democratic | |||
| J. L. Hollowell | 1858 | 1861 | Democratic | ||
| P. Jordan | 1861 | 1862 | Confederate | ||
| Sam W. Williams | 1862 | 1864 | Confederate | ||
| Charles T. Jordan | 1864 | 1865 | Republican | ||
| R. S. Gantt | 1865 | 1866 | Republican | ||
| R. H. Deadman | 1866 | 1868 | Republican | ||
| J. R. Montgomery | 1868 | 1873 | Republican | ||
| 1873 | 1874 | Republican | |||
| J. L. Witherspoon | May 1874 | November 1874 | Democratic | ||
| 1874 | 1876 | Democratic | |||
| W. F. Henderson | 1877 | 1881 | Democratic[4] | ||
| C. B. Moore | 1881 | 1885 | Democratic | ||
| 1885 | 1889 | Democratic | |||
| W. E. Atkinson | 1889 | 1893 | Democratic | ||
| 1893 | 1895 | Democratic | |||
| E. B. Kinsworthy | 1895 | 1899 | Democratic | ||
| 1899 | 1901 | Democratic | |||
| 1901 | 1905 | Democratic | |||
| Robert L. Rogers | 1905 | 1907 | Democratic | ||
| 1907 | 1909 | Democratic | |||
| Hal L. Norwood | 1909 | 1913 | Democratic | ||
| William L. Moose[5] | 1913 | 1915 | Democratic | ||
| Wallace Davis | 1915 | 1917 | Democratic | ||
| John D. Arbuckle | 1917 | 1921 | Democratic | ||
| J. S. Utley | 1921 | 1925 | Democratic | ||
| W. H. Applegate | 1925 | 1929 | Democratic | ||
| Hal L. Norwood | 1929 | 1934 | Democratic | ||
| Walter L. Pope | 1934 | 1935 | Democratic | ||
| 1935 | 1937 | Democratic | |||
| Jack Holt, Sr. | 1937 | 1943 | Democratic | ||
| Guy E. Williams | 1943 | 1949 | Democratic | ||
| Ike Murry | 1949 | 1953 | Democratic | ||
| 1953 | 1957 | Democratic | |||
| 1957 | 1961 | Democratic | |||
| J. Frank Holt | 1961 | December 1962 | Democratic | ||
| Jack Holt, Jr. (acting) | December 1962 | 1963 | Democratic | ||
| 1963 | January 10, 1967 | Democratic | |||
| January 10, 1967 | January 12, 1971 | Democratic | |||
| January 12, 1971 | January 9, 1973 | Democratic | |||
| Rodney Parham (acting) | January 9, 1973 | January 9, 1973 | Democratic | ||
| January 9, 1973 | January 3, 1977 | Democratic | |||
| Billy Roy Wilson (acting) | 1976 | 1977 | Democratic | ||
| January 3, 1977 | January 9, 1979 | Democratic | |||
| January 9, 1979 | November 1990 | Democratic | |||
| Ron Fields (acting) | November 1990 | December 1990 | Democratic | ||
| Mary Stallcup (acting) | December 1990 | January 15, 1991 | Democratic | ||
| January 15, 1991 | January 12, 1999 | Democratic | |||
| January 12, 1999 | January 3, 2003 | Democratic | |||
| Leon Johnson (acting) | January 3, 2003 | January 14, 2003 | Democratic | ||
| January 14, 2003 | January 9, 2007 | Democratic | |||
| January 9, 2007 | January 13, 2015 | Democratic | |||
| January 13, 2015 | January 10, 2023 | Republican | |||
| January 10, 2023 | present | Republican |