Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger holds a news conference on Nov. 6, 2020, on the status of ballot counting in the close presidential race between Joe Biden and Donald Trump.
Jessica McGowan/Getty Images
There are dozens of secretaries of state in the US. Only one deals with foreign affairs. The majority of the rest, state secretaries of state, have powerful positions running elections in each state.
Former US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger has died, aged 100. His legacy, including his involvement in the Vietnam war, is long, complicated and divisive.
President Richard Nixon, left, speaks with national security adviser Henry Kissinger at the White House in September 1972.
AP Photo
Henry Kissinger’s influence on US foreign policy was profound. His transactional approach – avowedly values free – included support of murderous and genocidal foreign leaders.
Arizona Secretary of State GOP candidate Mark Finchem, who has denied the 2020 election results and was present at the U.S. Capitol insurrection.
AP Photo/Matt York
What happens if the public loses faith in fair elections? That’s the question being asked as candidates influenced by Donald Trump aim to become the chief election officials in their states.
Candidate signs during the first day of early primary voting on July 7, 2022, in Silver Spring, Md.
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A memorial took place on April 27, 2022 for former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, who died in March at age 84. Many of the foreign policy concepts she helped bring to the post-Cold War world remain.
From 2001 to 2020, female donors accounted for 23% of all general election contributions in statewide races while men accounted for 77%.
Mykola Sosiukin / EyeEm via GettyImages
Men give more money than women to candidates in high-level statewide elections. Money can equal political influence, so that may lead candidates to be less interested in women’s issues once elected.
Election workers unload a bag of ballots brought in a from a polling precinct to the Sacramento County Registrar of Voters office in Sacramento, California.
AP/Rich Pedroncelli
There are different ballots, voting machines, registration and eligibility requirements and procedures for counting votes across the country. That’s a recipe for occasional confusion and miscounts.
In 1945, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt met with King Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud, part of a behind-the-scenes policy to ensure access to oil for the U.S. and its allies.
National Archives and Records Administration
Big Oil has historically played a behind-the-scenes role on American policy and politics. No longer.
Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to the General Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal Church during their annual convention at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, July 8, 2016.
Charles Mostoller/Reuters