Andrea Joy Campbell
On January 18, 2023, Andrea Joy Campbell was sworn in to be the 45th Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, becoming the first woman of color to win statewide office in Massachusetts.
She, along with her incredible team, are committed to ensuring their work is responsive to the needs of residents and businesses. They pledge to build economic prosperity for all residents, prioritize the mental health and well-being of children, and break cycles of poverty, incarceration and mediocrity while ensuring that people across the state have access to the AG's Office regardless of their zip code, language or ability.
Andrea’s journey to becoming the first Black woman elected Attorney General of Massachusetts didn’t follow a traditional path. Born and raised in Roxbury and the South End neighborhoods of Boston, her mother passed away in a tragic car accident on her way to visit her father in prison when Andrea was only eight months old. While Andrea’s grandmother did the best she could to raise Andrea and her siblings, she occasionally struggled with alcoholism. Andrea and her brothers would spend their early years moving between relatives and foster care until their father came home from prison, and she met him for the first time at eight years old.
Life wasn’t easy. Her family was poor and relied on public housing and food assistance. Her father, who had worked hard to rebuild his life after prison, would not live to see Andrea graduate from college. He died suddenly when Andrea was 19 years old, a sophomore at Princeton University. Her twin brother Andre would later die at just 29 years old in the Department of Correction’s custody due to receiving inadequate healthcare as a pre-trial detainee – a tragedy that fuels Andrea’s fight for accountability and justice to this day.
Through all of this, Andrea persevered. Thanks to loving relatives, community support and a network of teachers who encouraged her, she turned pain into purpose. After graduating from Boston Latin School, Andrea would go on to become the first in her family to graduate from college and law school, receiving her degrees from Princeton University and UCLA Law School.
After earning her law degree, she worked as a legal services attorney defending the rights of children and their families — particularly those with disabilities.
Andrea also practiced law in the private sector and ultimately left to serve the public as General Counsel at the Metropolitan Area Planning Commission, working across 101 cities and towns to address regional challenges like healthcare access, affordable housing, and climate change.
Andrea served as legal counsel to Governor Deval Patrick, working to improve our education and transportation systems and move forward an agenda of equity across the state.
Before becoming Attorney General, in 2015, Andrea successfully ran for the Boston City Council, becoming the first woman to represent District 4 on the Council. Her first piece of legislation was the Community Preservation Act, which still generates over $20 million annually for new affordable housing, historical preservation, and parks and open space. In 2018, she was unanimously elected City Council President – the first Black woman to hold that title.
