Letitia Ann "Tish" James (born October 18, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving since 2019 as the 67th

attorney general of New York The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and head of the Department of Law of the government of New York (state), state government. The office has existed in various forms since ...

(NYAG), having won the 2018 election to succeed Barbara Underwood. A member of the Democratic Party, James is the first

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

and first woman to be elected New York Attorney General. Born and raised in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, James graduated from

Lehman College Lehman College is a public college in New York City, United States. Founded in 1931 as the Bronx campus of Hunter College, it became an independent college in 1967. The college is named after Herbert H. Lehman, a former New York governor, United ...

the Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

before obtaining her

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree at

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

She worked as a

public defender A public defender is a lawyer appointed to represent people who otherwise cannot reasonably afford to hire a lawyer to defend themselves in a trial. Several countries provide people with public defenders, including the UK, Belgium, Hungary and Si ...

, then on staff in the

New York State Assembly The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits. The Ass ...

, and later as a New York State Assistant Attorney General in the Brooklyn regional office. James served as a member of the

New York City Council The New York City Council is the lawmaking body of New York City in the United States. It has 51 members from 51 council districts throughout the five boroughs. The council serves as a check against the mayor in a mayor-council government mod ...

from 2004 to 2013. She represented the 35th district, which includes the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Clinton Hill,

Fort Greene Fort Greene is a neighborhood in the northwestern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The neighborhood is bounded by Flushing Avenue and the Brooklyn Navy Yard to the north, Flatbush Avenue Extension and Downtown Brooklyn to the w ...

, parts of

Crown Heights Crown Heights is a neighborhood in the central portion of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. Crown Heights is bounded by Washington Avenue to the west, Atlantic Avenue to the north, Ralph Avenue to the east, and Empire Boulevard to the so ...

, Prospect Heights, and Bedford–Stuyvesant. James chaired the committees on economic development and sanitation and served on several others. From 2013 to 2018, she was the

New York City Public Advocate The office of New York City Public Advocate (President of the City Council) is a citywide elected position in New York City, which is first in line to succeed the Mayor of New York City, mayor. The office serves as a direct link between the wikti ...

, making her the first African-American woman to be elected to and hold citywide office in New York City. James' office filed a civil suit against Republican Party leader

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

that resulted in penalties and a fine of several hundred million dollars. The verdict has been

appealed In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

. She was briefly a candidate in the

2022 New York gubernatorial election The 2022 New York gubernatorial election took place on November 8, 2022 to elect the Governor of New York, governor and Lieutenant Governor of New York, lieutenant governor of New York (state), New York. Kathy Hochul had ascended to the gove ...

, but suspended her campaign in December 2021, opting to instead run for reelection as Attorney General.

Early life and education

Letitia Ann James was born on October 18, 1958, in

, New York. She is one of eight children born to Nellie James (b. 1919,

Martinsville, Virginia Martinsville is an Political subdivisions of Virginia#Independent cities, independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 13, ...

) and Robert James. She attended New York City

public schools Public school may refer to: *Public school (government-funded), a no-fee school, publicly funded and operated by the government *Public school (United Kingdom), certain elite fee-charging private schools in England and Wales *Great Public Schools, ...

. Raised in

Park Slope, Brooklyn A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are green spaces set aside for recreation inside towns and cities. N ...

, she attended

Fort Hamilton High School Fort Hamilton High School (HS 490) is a Public school (government funded), public high school in Brooklyn, New York, United States, under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Education. Students in Bay Ridge, Sunset Park, Brook ...

in nearby

Bay Ridge Bay Ridge is a neighborhood in the southwest corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by Sunset Park to the north, Dyker Heights to the east, the Narrows and the Belt Parkway to the west, and Fort Hamilton Army Base an ...

. She received her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from the

City University of New York The City University of New York (CUNY, pronounced , ) is the Public university, public university system of Education in New York City, New York City. It is the largest urban university system in the United States, comprising 25 campuses: eleven ...

in 1981, majoring in

liberal arts Liberal arts education () is a traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term ''skill, art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically the fine arts. ''Liberal arts education'' can refe ...

with an emphasis in

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

. James received her

degree from

Howard University School of Law Howard University School of Law (Howard Law or HUSL) is the law school of Howard University, a private, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is one of the oldest law schools in the country and the old ...

in 1987, and was admitted to practice law in New York State in 1989. James earned a

Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...

degree in 2013 from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

School of International and Public Affairs The School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) is the List of schools of international relations in the United States, international affairs and public policy school, public policy school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League univers ...

(SIPA), located in the

Morningside Heights Morningside Heights is a neighborhood on the West Side of Upper Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by Morningside Drive to the east, 125th Street to the north, 110th Street to the south, and Riverside Drive to the west. Morningsi ...

section of Manhattan. She later served as Columbia University's William S. Beinecke Visiting Professor of Public Policy in the Faculty of International and Public Affairs.

Career

James served as a

for the

Legal Aid Society The Legal Aid Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit legal aid provider based in New York City. Founded in 1876, it is the oldest and largest provider of legal aid in the United States. Its attorneys provide representation on criminal and civil mat ...

and established the Urban Network, a coalition of

African-American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa. ...

professional organizations aimed at providing scholarships for inner city youth. She served on former New York Governor

Mario Cuomo Mario Matthew Cuomo ( , ; June 15, 1932 – January 1, 2015) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 52nd governor of New York for three terms, from 1983 to 1994. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic ...

's Task Force on

Diversity Diversity, diversify, or diverse may refer to: Business *Diversity (business), the inclusion of people of different identities (ethnicity, gender, age) in the workforce *Diversity marketing, marketing communication targeting diverse customers * ...

in the Judiciary. She served as

counsel A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of ''lawyer''. The word ''counsel'' can also mean advice given ...

for Albert Vann,

Chief of Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

for Roger L. Green in the

, and in the administration of

New York Attorney General The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York and head of the Department of Law of the state government. The office has existed in various forms since 1626, originally established under the Dutch c ...

Eliot Spitzer Eliot Laurence Spitzer (born June 10, 1959) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 54th governor of New York from 2007 until his resignation in 2008 after a prostitution scandal. A member of the Democratic Party, he was also ...

. She was appointed the first Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Brooklyn regional office in 1999. While working in that position, James worked in many capacities but notably focused on consumer complaints involving

predatory lending Predatory lending refers to unethical practices conducted by lending organizations during a loan origination process that are unfair, deceptive, or fraudulent. While there are no internationally agreed legal definitions for predatory lending, a 20 ...

and other unlawful business practices.

2001 and 2003 city council races

James's first run for the 35th Council district was in November 2001. In a close race, James received 42% of the vote on the

Working Families Party The Working Families Party (WFP) is a progressive minor political party in the United States, founded in New York in 1998. There are active chapters in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois ...

line but lost to James E. Davis, a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

. In July 2003, just months before the next election, Davis was assassinated by Othniel Askew, a former political rival. Following Davis's death, his brother Geoffrey ran for his vacant council seat on the Democratic Party ticket, but on election day, November 4, 2003, Geoffrey A. Davis lost by a large margin to James as the Working Families Party nominee. In that 2003 race, James officially became a member of the Working Families Party, and was the first citywide office-holder to run solely on the WFP line.

City council tenure

James is the first member of the Working Families Party to win office in New York State, and the first

third-party Third party may refer to: Business * Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller * Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party * Third-party insurance, such as a veh ...

member to be elected to the city council since 1977. She has since changed back to the Democratic party. James again won the Working Families and the Democratic parties' nominations by a large margin over Samuel Eric Blackwell, an urban planner at

Long Island University Long Island University (LIU) is a private university in Brooklyn and Brookville, New York, United States. The university enrolls over 16,000 students and offers over 500 academic programs at its main campuses, LIU Brooklyn and LIU Post on Long I ...

and pro-stadium advocate. She was re-elected on the Democratic line on November 8, 2005, with 88.11% of the vote, compared to 6.80% for Republican Anthony Herbert, and 5.08% for Independence Party candidate Charles B. Billups. On October 10, 2006, there was a devastating fire at the Broken Angel House, an architectural icon in

Clinton Hill, Brooklyn Clinton Hill is a neighborhood in north-central Brooklyn, a borough of New York City. It is bordered by the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Flushing Avenue to the north, Williamsburg to the northeast, Classon Avenue and Bedford–Stuyvesant to the ea ...

. The fire attracted attention from the

New York City Department of Buildings The New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) is the department of the New York City government that enforces the city's building codes and zoning regulations, issues building permits, licenses, registers and disciplines certain construction ...

, which resulted in citations being issued for numerous building code violations. James represented Broken Angel's owner, Arthur Wood,

pro bono ( English: 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. The term traditionally referred to provision of legal services by legal professionals for people who a ...

in his negotiations to keep his home. The agency decided to allow Wood to re-occupy Broken Angel provided the upper levels were taken down and the central stairwell reconstructed. Council Member Letitia James

She was the first to question cost overruns and irregularities in the subcontracting work of the new CityTime payroll system much touted by Bloomberg which eventually led to several indictments, Bloomberg asking a tech giant for $600 million back, and two consultants fleeing the country in 2011. James originally advocated for the demolition of the Second Empire houses on

Admiral's Row Admiral's Row was a row of ten homes formerly used by naval officers in the New York City borough of Brooklyn at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and owned by the National Guard of the United States. The houses were built between 1864 and 1901. Althou ...

in order to build a parking lot for a proposed supermarket to serve residents in nearby housing developments, but later supported preserving some of the historic housing. In 2008, James, with

Bill de Blasio Bill de Blasio (; born Warren Wilhelm Jr., May 8, 1961; later Warren de Blasio-Wilhelm) is an American politician who was the List of mayors of New York City, 109th mayor of New York City, mayor of New York City from 2014 to 2021. A member of t ...

, advocated against Mayor

Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...

's attempts to seek a third term without a voter referendum. James won the Democratic

primary Primary or primaries may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music Groups and labels * Primary (band), from Australia * Primary (musician), hip hop musician and record producer from South Korea * Primary Music, Israeli record label Work ...

in September 2009 against her opponents, community organizer Delia Hunley-Adossa, who received more than $200,000 from Forest City Ratner and Medhanie Estiphanos, a financial consultant. James went on to win re-election for a second term. In May 2013, with a group that included construction unions, community groups and other elected officials, she was a part of an Article 78 lawsuit against the

Bloomberg administration The mayoralty of Michael Bloomberg began on January 1, 2002, when Michael Bloomberg was inaugurated as the List of mayors of New York City, 108th mayor of New York City, and ended on December 31, 2013. Bloomberg was known as a political pragmat ...

and Acadia Realty Trust seeking the shut-down of the City Point real estate project and a reassessment of its environmental impact. In June 2016, James attempted to pressure six

financial institution A financial institution, sometimes called a banking institution, is a business entity that provides service as an intermediary for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial ins ...

s, including

BB&T BB&T Corporation (previously known as the Branch Banking and Trust Company) was one of the largest banking and financial services firms in the United States, based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. In 2019, BB&T announced its intentions to merge ...

, Berkshire Bank,

Citizens Financial Group Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is an American bank holding company, headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. The company owns the bank Citizens Bank, N.A., which operates in the U.S. states of Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, Massach ...

People's United Bank People's United Financial, Inc., was an American bank holding company that owned People's United Bank. The bank operated 403 branches in Connecticut, southeastern New York State, Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire. It was the seco ...

Regions Financial Corporation Regions Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company headquartered in the Regions Center in Birmingham, Alabama. The company provides retail and commercial banking, trust, stock brokerage, and mortgage services. Its banking subsi ...

and

TD Bank Toronto-Dominion Bank (), doing business as TD Bank Group (), is a Canadian Multinational corporation, multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered in Toronto, Ontario. The bank was created on February 1, 1955, through ...

, into ending its practice of providing

financial services Financial services are service (economics), economic services tied to finance provided by financial institutions. Financial services encompass a broad range of tertiary sector of the economy, service sector activities, especially as concerns finan ...

to gun manufacturers.

was specifically requested to drop the accounts of

SIG Sauer SIG Sauer is since the 1970s a combined brand name of several Firearms manufacturing companies, with SIG referring to ''Swiss Industry Group'' originally founded 1853, while the latter part comes from Sauer & Sohn, founded in 1751 in Germany a ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

, but denied the request.

Committee assignments

*Committee on Economic Development (chair) *Committee on Sanitation (chair) *Committee on Parks & Recreation *Committee on Small Business *Committee on Technology in Government *Committee on Veteran Affairs *Committee on Women's Issues

Public Advocate

Letitia James at March for Our Lives NYC

In 2013, James ran for

and received 36% of the vote in the first Democratic primary, under the 40% threshold that would have avoided a

runoff election The two-round system (TRS or 2RS), sometimes called ballotage, top-two runoff, or two-round plurality, is a single-winner electoral system which aims to elect a member who has support of the majority of voters. The two-round system involves one ...

. James won the runoff election on October 1, 2013, against

Daniel Squadron Daniel L. Squadron (born November 9, 1979) is an American politician and former member of the New York State Senate for the 26th district. A Democrat, Squadron was elected a New York State Senator in 2008, and was a candidate in the 2013 r ...

, 59.4%–40.6%, becoming the party's nominee for the city's elected watchdog position in November. In the 2013 election campaign for Public Advocate, James was endorsed by many of the city's important labor unions,

NOW Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...

Planned Parenthood The Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc. (PPFA), or simply Planned Parenthood, is an American nonprofit organization

, Democracy for NYC,

League of Conservation Voters The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) is an American environmental advocacy group. LCV says that it "builds political power for people and the planet." Through its affiliated super PAC, it is a major supporter of the Democratic Party. The org ...

, ''

Amsterdam News The ''Amsterdam News'' (also known as ''New York Amsterdam News'') is a weekly Black-owned newspaper serving New York City. It is one of the oldest newspapers geared toward African Americans in the United States and has published columns by s ...

'' and '' El Diario.'' On October 1, 2013, James achieved a Democratic primary win in spite of her campaign fundraising trailing

's and

Reshma Saujani Reshma Saujani (born November 18, 1975) is an American lawyer, politician, civil servant, and the founder of the nonprofit organization "Girls Who Code", which aims to increase the number of women in computer science and close the gender employm ...

, to become the Democratic Party's nominee for New York City's elected watchdog position. She was endorsed by third-place finisher Saujani in September James won the Democratic

. Without a Republican opponent, she won the general election with over 83% of the vote. In 2017, James won the Democratic primary for her position with 77% of the vote, over closest competitor David Eisenbach's 23%.

New York State Attorney General

2018 election

In May 2018, James, who initially planned to run for

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The Mayoralty in the United States, mayor's office administers all ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

, declared her candidacy for

Attorney General of New York The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and head of the Department of Law of the government of New York (state), state government. The office has existed in various forms since ...

and won the Democratic primary on September 13, 2018, with 40.6% of the vote; she defeated

Zephyr Teachout Zephyr Rain Teachout (, born October 24, 1971) is an American attorney, author, political candidate, and professor of law specializing in democracy and antitrust at Fordham University. In 2014, Teachout ran for the Democratic Party nomination f ...

(31%) and two other candidates. On November 6, 2018, she was elected Attorney General, defeating Republican Keith Wofford. She made history by becoming the first woman and African American to be elected as attorney general in New York and serve in that role. During her campaign, James vowed to pursue

, who she said was an “illegitimate president” and an “embarrassment.”

Tenure

James was sworn in as attorney general on January 1, 2019, succeeding Barbara Underwood, who was first appointed after the resignation of

Eric Schneiderman Eric Tradd Schneiderman (born December 31, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 65th attorney general of New York from 2011 until his resignation in May 2018. Schneiderman, a member of the Democratic Party, spent ten year ...

Suit against All Faiths Cemetery

In September 2019, James filed suit against the officials of

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

All Faiths Cemetery The All Faiths Cemetery is located in Middle Village, Queens, New York. The 225-acre (91-hectare) cemetery was established in 1850 by Lutheran pastor Frederick W. Geissenhainer, and incorporated in 1852. Originally named Lutheran Cemetery, it w ...

, alleging financial misconduct.

State civil suit against the NRA

In August 2020, James filed a civil lawsuit in

New York Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of New York is the superior court in the Judiciary of New York. It is vested with unlimited civil and criminal jurisdiction, although in many counties outside New York City it acts primarily as a court of civil ju ...

against the

National Rifle Association of America The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...

(NRA), accusing the organization of corruption and financial misconduct, and calling for its dissolution. The NRA filed a countersuit against James, citing statements she made during her 2018 campaign. In February 2024, a lawsuit brought by the New York Attorney General’s Office under James found that the NRA mismanaged charitable funds when it failed to stop top executives, including CEO Wayne LaPierre, from diverting millions of dollars for lavish personal trips, no-show contracts and other questionable expenditures. A jury found that LaPierre should pay the gun rights group $4.3 million in damages for mismanagement and misspending of charitable funds, having violated his fiduciary duties from 2014 to 2022. The panel also found the NRA’s former CFO Wilson Phillips should pay back $2 million for breaching his fiduciary duties as an executive.

Investigation into state COVID-19 response

In early March 2020, the attorney general's office began to preliminarily "investigate allegations of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

-related neglect of residents in nursing homes." The office solicited and subsequently received 953 complaints from patients' families regarding neglect of patients through November 16. The probe released its first report on both the nursing homes and the state

Department of Health A health department or health ministry is a part of government which focuses on issues related to the general health of the citizenry. Subnational entities, such as states, counties and cities, often also operate a health department of their o ...

(DOH) on January 28, 2021, where it concluded that the department's public data under-counted nursing home deaths by up to 50 percent. The methodology of the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) was to compare deaths from COVID reported to the DOH and such deaths reported to OAG. The OAG press release makes no mention of medical analysis of the cases. James said investigations into 20 separate nursing homes "whose reported conduct during the first wave of the pandemic presented particular concern" would continue for the foreseeable future. The report was heralded by some in Albany as a "declaration of independence" from New York State Governor

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

after a two-year alliance in opposition to President

. Three weeks after the report, the ''

Albany Times-Union The ''Times Union'', or ''Times-Union'', is an American daily newspaper, serving the Capital Region of New York. Although the newspaper focuses on Albany and its suburbs, it covers all parts of the four-county area, including the cities of Tr ...

'' revealed an ongoing joint investigation by the FBI and the

United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York The United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York is the chief federal law enforcement officer in five New York counties: Kings (Brooklyn), Queens, Richmond (Staten Island), Nassau and Suffolk. , the acting U.S. attorney is Jo ...

, examining how Governor Cuomo's coronavirus task force played a role in nursing homes' COVID-19 response. On March 18, 2021, '' The City'' found that the FBI's scope included a last-minute addition to the state's 2020 budget that provided greater immunity to long-term care organizations. The head of the Greater New York Hospital Association said in an August 2020

New York State Senate The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...

hearing that the lobbying group had provided a "draft" of "some ideas to be included" to the governor's office.

Report on Andrew Cuomo sexual harassment

On August 3, 2021, James's office released a report finding that Cuomo engaged in multiple acts of sexual harassment.

2022 Democratic primary for governor

On October 29, 2021, James stated her intention to run for the office of

Governor of New York The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ...

in the 2022 Democratic primary but withdrew from the race in December, after consistently polling behind incumbent Governor

Kathy Hochul Kathleen Hochul ( ; ; born August 27, 1958) is an American politician and lawyer who has served since 2021 as the 57th governor of New York. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, she is New York's List of female ...

, with James instead choosing to seek reelection as Attorney General.

2022 election

After James launched her reelection bid, all previous Democratic candidates withdrew their candidacies and endorsed her. On November 8, 2022, James was reelected Attorney General, defeating Republican Michael Henry in the general election.

NFL investigation

On May 4, 2023, James and her California counterpart attorney general

Rob Bonta Robert Andres Bonta (born September 22, 1972) is a Filipino and American lawyer and politician who has served as attorney general of California since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the California Stat ...

announced they would jointly investigate the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

over employment practices at its offices in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, citing a report by ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' detailing complaints of harassment and discrimination made by former female staffers.

2024 Trump lawsuit in New York

In 2022, in her capacity as New York Attorney General, James filed a civil lawsuit against

the Trump Organization The Trump Organization, Inc. is an American Conglomerate (company), conglomerate. Privately owned by Donald Trump, it serves as the holding company for most of Business career of Donald Trump, Trump's business ventures and investments, with ar ...

and worked alongside the

Manhattan district attorney The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County, New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws (federal la ...

's office in its criminal investigation of the organization. Trump argued that previous comments by James, including referring to him as an "illegitimate president" during her campaign for attorney general, prove that she has a political

vendetta Vendetta may refer to: * Feud or vendetta, a long-running argument or fight Film * ''Vendetta'' (1919 film), a film featuring Harry Liedtke * ''Vendetta'' (1950 film), an American drama produced by Howard Hughes * ''Vendetta'' (1986 film), an ...

against him. On February 16, 2024, the fraud case against the former president,

, proved successful. Judge

Arthur Engoron Arthur F. Engoron ( ; born ) is an American judge serving on the New York Supreme Court since 2013. He presided over the New York civil investigation of the Trump Organization in 2024. Early life and education Engoron was born in Queens, New ...

's 92-page ruling barred Trump from operating any business in New York for three years and fined him more than $355 million.

Security clearance revocation

In February 2025,

President Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 45th president from 2017 to 2021. ...

announced the revocation of James's security clearance, along with several other officials. Trump stated that the decision was made because they were individuals he "didn't respect" and believed had "come very close" to breaking the law. James's office dismissed the action, stating it had no impact on her work. Some viewed the revocation as an administrative decision, while others suggested it was politically motivated.

Department of Justice lawsuit

On February 12, 2025, Attorney General

Pam Bondi Pamela Jo Bondi ( ; born November 17, 1965) is an American attorney, lobbyist, and politician who has served as the 87th United States attorney general since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, she served as the 37th attorney general of Fl ...

announced that the Department of Justice was filing a civil lawsuit against James, as well as other officials in the state such as Kathy Hochul, over their handling of immigration issues.

Allegations of mortgage fraud

In April 2025, the

Federal Housing Finance Agency The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is an independent federal agency in the United States created as the successor regulatory agency of the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB), the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO), ...

(FHFA) referred James to the US Department of Justice for possible criminal prosecution, alleging that she misrepresented facts in three separate instances in order to gain government assistance and more favorable loan terms. They allege that she misrepresented an investment property as her primary residence, the number of units in an investment property, and misrepresented her father as her husband. James denied the allegations, calling them "baseless" retaliation by president Trump. In May 2025, the FBI opened a formal criminal probe into the mortgage fraud claims. In response to the accusation of improperly claiming a property as her primary residence, her lawyer has admitted "she made a mistake on one line

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

had no significance." For the other claims, he has presented alternative deeds containing the correct information and accused the prosecutors of "cherry picking".

Personal life

James lives in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn and is a member of Emmanuel Baptist Church. She has never married. At a May 2022 rally, James stated that she supported abortion rights, and had received an abortion early in her tenure as a member of the New York City Council. James said, "'I was just elected and I was faced with the decision of whether to have an abortion or not, and I chose to have an abortion. I walked proudly into