N.C. Secretary of State
N.C. Department of the Secretary of State
Campbell Law, 1981
A 1981 graduate of Campbell Law, The Honorable Elaine Marshall was the first woman ever elected to a state-wide, executive branch office in North Carolina. She has served as the N.C. Secretary of State since 1997.
Secretary Marshall has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in state and local politics. From 1993-94 she served as a senator from North Carolina’s 15 District and was the Harnett County Democratic Party Chair and president of the Democratic Women of Harnett County. She was also the National Secretary of the Young Democrats of America in the 1970s.
Prior to her political career, Secretary Marshall was a partner at Marshall & Marshall and Bain & Marshall in nearby Lillington. She has also served as a teacher, co-owner of a book and gift store, and owner of an interior design firm.
Secretary Marshall has served on numerous boards and commissions, including as President of the National Electronic Commerce Coordinating Council, Member of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), and Chair of the National E-Notarization Standards Commission which set the nation-wide standards for notaries public using digital signatures. She currently serves as Co-Chair of the NASS National Business Identity Theft Task Force.
Secretary Marshall has been honored with numerous awards and accolades throughout her illustrious career, including the N.C. 4-H Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award, the North Carolina Association of Educators Women’s Equality Award, and the Triangle Business Journal’s 2006 Lifetime Achievement Award for Women in Business. In October 2014 Secretary Marshall was honored with Campbell University’s Distinguished Alumni Award.