Here is an internet ad that was created a few years back for a candidate running for Alabama Agriculture Commissioner. In Alabama, Ag Commissioner is an elected position. In most states, however, it is an appointed position. The appointment would be made by the Governor. Most states have an elected Lt. Governor, while a state like Tennessee does not have a Lt. Governor. Other states elect their Secretaries of State, State Comptrollers, or State Treasurers, while other states rely on the appointment power of the Governor to fill such positions. Outside the executive position of Governor, what other statewide positions do you believe should be filled by an election? Which ones should be filled by an appointment by the Governor?
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Politics Matters 
I think the Governor should only appoint people to commissions and advisory positions. I think positions of Comptroller or Treasurer and the like should be elected by the people of the State they live in. People that directly control our money need to be elected because it allows us to keep a tighter grip on where the money goes (to a sense.)
I don’t agree with giving the Governor a lot of power like that, I think it should be the people that do that. We can’t afford another crooked politician (although that’s hard to do.)
I agree with John J. that governors should only appoint people to commissions and advisory positions.I believe all other positions such as Secretary of State, State treasurer, Attorney General, etc..should be filled by having an election.This will involve people with not only local elections but state wide as well. I believe the Governor should only appoint officials in elected seats when a sudden vacancy occurs. The appointed official may run for election in the following term/election. This will hopefully help with corruption within any Governors administration.
We live in a state filled with corruption and crooked politicians and senators. Governors should have the power to do what Maria and John have said, commissioner and advisory positions for the simple fact that they are like a ‘state-wide’ official that effect everyone on individual level. You got your Sec. of State, the Treasurer, and Attorney General all taking care and effecting people personally from the drivers licenses to money to health care to the safety of people every day 24/7. The appointed officials can be deciphered when a vacancy happens yeah, but who knows about corruption then because they are hand choosing the people right?
I think all state positions should be elected and none should be appointed by a governor. It isn’t right that the gov should be able to pick who he wants based on how he wants to push his political agenda. All the state officials should be elected by the populous based on who we think will help us out the most.
From what happened with Rod Blagojevich and how he tried to sell the Senate seat, I think that positions should be elected by the people and not the governor. That is way too much power for one person in my opinion. There is always going to be corruption when one person has most of the power.
I think that the positions that have influences on more than one area should be elected. Things like Agriculture Commissioner who are in charge of one area are okay to be appointed to by the governor. If all were elected it might cause conflict within the office. That is why it is better for the smaller yet important spots in office to be appointed.
I believe that governors should only have the ability to appoint their own advisors. All other positions should be elected by the people. Allowing the governor to appoint whoever he wants could lead to more corruption and give him or her more power than they deserve. They should be able to hire their advisors because those are the people who will share the same views and help him do the best possible job.
All state positions should be acquired through an election. We live in a democratic country. If the governor is given the power to appoint who he wants for all positions then the state would be dominated by which ever party he is from. Also if a corrupt governor is in charge, he will most likely appoint corrupt officials and destroy the state he is in charge of. One man should not have that much authority. People deserve a say in how their state is being ran.
Nobody should be appointed, they should be elected by the people, because they are representing the people of the state. The people should have a vote on who they want. I don’t think the governor should appoint anyone to those positions.
i dont think anyone should be appointed because it should be up to the people. people vote for who and what they want not the goverment. they would be doing their selves a favor and what works best for them. i think we citzens have a say and need to be heard. so we should elected because he is representing us.
I think that the Governor should only be able to appoint people for his/or her advisory cabinet. Those people are who the Governor knows has the proper knowledge and information needed to advise the governor on matters within the State. When it comes to other political positions like commissioners, secretaries of state and state treasurers etc., I think that there should be an election held for the people of the community to decide who they feel is the best candidate for the job.
We can not have elections for every position but we also need to avoid allowing a governor to appoint the majority of statewide positions. It is pretty obvious that we should not vote cabinet members into their positions, who are we to tell an elected official who he can have as his/her advisors. On the other hand, several positions such as Secretaries, Comptrollers, and Treasurers, amongst others, must be elected positions. Otherwise where do we as voters come into the equation?