Reference
What does each office actually do?
You can’t evaluate a candidate for a job you can’t describe. Each page below covers what the office controls, what it can’t do, why the race matters, and what to look for in a candidate.
Federal
State
Governor
4 years in most states term
The chief executive of your state government.
State Senator
2 or 4 years, depending on the state term
Your representative in the upper chamber of your state legislature — the body that writes most law affecting daily life.
State Representative
2 years in most states term
Your representative in the lower chamber of the state legislature, elected from the smallest state-level district.
State Attorney General
4 years term
Your state's chief legal officer and top law-enforcement official.
Secretary of State
4 years term
In most states, the official who administers elections and maintains business and public records.
State Treasurer
4 years term
The official who manages state funds, debt, and often the public employee pension system.
Judicial
County
County Commissioner
4 years in most counties term
A member of the board that sets your county's budget and property tax rate.
Sheriff
4 years in most states term
The elected chief law-enforcement officer of the county, and in most places the operator of the county jail.
District Attorney
4 years in most states term
The elected prosecutor who decides which criminal charges are filed in your area.
Clerk of Court
4 years in most states term
The official who manages court records and, in many states, decides certain probate and guardianship matters.
Register of Deeds
4 years in most states term
The custodian of your county's land, vital, and property records.
Municipal
Special district
School Board Member
4 years in most districts term
A member of the board that governs your local public school district.
Soil and Water Conservation District Supervisor
4 years in most districts term
A supervisor of the local district that helps landowners manage erosion, water quality, and farmland conservation.