California statewide elected officials

The Secretary of State of California is the chief clerk of the U.S. state of California, overseeing a department of 500 people. The Secretary of State is elected for four year terms, like the state's other constitutional officers; the officeholder is restricted by term limits to two terms. The current Secretary of State, Alex Padilla, took office on January 5, 2015.

The Lieutenant Governor of California is a statewide constitutional officer and vice-executive of the U.S. state of California. The lieutenant governor is elected to serve a four-year term and can serve a maximum of two terms. In addition to basically ceremonial roles, serving as acting governor in the absence of the Governor of California and as President of the California State Senate, the lieutenant governor either sits on (or appoints representatives to) many of California's regulatory commissions and executive agencies.

The Attorney General of California is the state attorney general of the Government of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" (Constitution of California, Article V, Section 13.) The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice. The Department employs over 1,100 attorneys and 3,700 non-attorney employees.

The Governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The California Governor is the chief executive of the state government and the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Military Reserve.

The State Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) of California is the nonpartisan (originally partisan) elected executive officer of the California Department of Education. The SPI directs all functions of the Department of Education, executes policies set by the California State Board of Education, and also heads and chairs the Board. The superintendents serves a four-year term, serves as the state’s chief spokesperson for public schools, provides education policy and direction to local school districts, and also serve as an ex officio member of governing boards of the state’s higher education system. The current Superintendent of Public Instruction is Tony Thurmond.

California Insurance Commissioner has been an elected executive office position in California since 1991. Prior to that time, the Insurance Commissioner was appointed by the Governor. The officeholder is in charge of the California Department of Insurance.

The California State Treasurer is responsible for the state's investment and finance. The post has narrower responsibilities and authority than the California State Controller. Some of the responsibilities include issuing bonds and notes for the state, and trustee, as well as registrar and paying agent for all general obligation bonds and certain revenue bonds investment of temporarily idle state money. The administration of the state's budgets, financial analyses and planning, money allocation, and economic research is under the California Department of Finance.

The State Controller of California is the Chief Financial Officer of the U.S. state of California. The post has broader responsibilities and authority than the California State Treasurer. Responsibilities include investigative authority for every dollar spent by the state, and being an ex-officio member of the state's Board of Equalization.