- Allen, Macon BollingFirst African American lawyer in the United States (1844); among the earliest Black judicial officeholders (Justice of the Peace, 1847)1816-1894
- Bedford, Louis A. Jr.First African American judge in Dallas County, Texas1926-2014
- Bolin, Jane MatildaFirst Black woman to become a judge in the United States1908-2007
- Booker, Cory AnthonyFirst African American U.S. senator from New Jersey1969-
- Bradley, Thomas 'Tom'First African American mayor of Los Angeles; longest-serving mayor in the city's history1917-1998
- Brooke, EdwardFirst African American popularly elected to the U.S. Senate; first Black state Attorney General1919-2015
- Bruce, Blanche KelsoFirst African American elected to a full term in the U.S. Senate; first Black senator to preside over the chamber1841-1898
- Bryant, William B.First African American chief judge of a U.S. District Court1911-2005
- Chisholm, ShirleyFirst Black woman elected to the U.S. Congress; first Black candidate to seek a major party's presidential nomination1924-2005
- Collins, Robert FrederickFirst African American federal judge in the Deep South1931-2009
- Doyle, Henry E.First African American appellate judge in Texasunknown
- Dunn, Oscar JamesFirst African American elected lieutenant governor of a U.S. state; served as acting governor of Louisiana in 1871, predating P.B.S. Pinchback's better-known tenurec.1822-1871
- Gregory, RogerFirst African American judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit1953-
- Harris, KamalaFirst woman of color nominated for vice president by a major political party; first Black and first South Asian American vice president of the United States1964-
- Hastie, William HenryFirst Black federal judge appointed for life to a court of general jurisdiction1904-1976
- Higginbotham, A. Leon Jr.Federal appellate judge and legal scholar on the history of race and American law1928-1998
- Holder, EricFirst African American U.S. Attorney General1951-
- Holmes Norton, EleanorFirst woman to chair the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; longtime advocate for Washington, D.C. statehood and congressional representation1937-
- Houston, Charles HamiltonArchitected the legal strategy that dismantled segregation; mentored Thurgood Marshall and a generation of civil rights lawyers1895-1950
- Jackson, Jesse Sr.Ran two of the most successful Black presidential campaigns in American history before Barack Obama, winning multiple state primaries in 1984 and 19881941-
- Jackson, Ketanji BrownBecame the first Black woman and first former federal public defender to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, sworn in as its 116th justice on June 30, 2022, after President Biden fulfilled a campaign pledge to nominate a Black woman to the nation's highest court1970-present
- Jefferson, Wallace B.First African American Justice and Chief Justice of the Texas Supreme Court1963-
- Jeffries, Hakeem SekouFirst Black American to lead a major political party in either chamber of Congress1970-
- Jordan, Barbara CharlineFirst African American woman elected to Congress from a Southern state; nationally renowned for her 1974 Watergate impeachment hearing remarks1936-1996
- Keith, Damon J.Ruled that the U.S. Attorney General must disclose wiretap transcripts authorized without a warrant, in the landmark 'Keith Case'1922-2019
- King, OtisFirst Black City Attorney of Houston, Texasunknown-2012
- Lee, Barbara JeanSole member of Congress to vote against the 2001 Authorization for Use of Military Force following the September 11 attacks1946-
- Lewis, John RobertServed 17 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives after a foundational role in the 1960s civil rights movement; known as 'the conscience of the Congress'1940-2020
- Lewis, William H.First African American Assistant U.S. Attorney General1868-1949
- Marshall, ThurgoodArgued and won Brown v. Board of Education; became the first Black U.S. Supreme Court Justice1908-1993
- McCree, Wade H.First African American judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit1920-1987
- Moore, Wesley 'Wes'First African American governor of Maryland; fifth African American to serve as a U.S. state governor overall1978-
- Moseley Braun, CarolFirst African American woman elected to the U.S. Senate1947-
- Motley, Constance BakerFirst Black woman to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court; wrote the original Brown v. Board of Education complaint1921-2005
- Nix, Robert N. C. Jr.First African American chief justice of a state supreme court1928-2003
- Obama, Barack44th President of the United States; first African American to hold the office1961-
- Obama, Michelle LaVaughn RobinsonBecame the first African American First Lady of the United States in 2009, leading national initiatives on childhood nutrition, education, and military families, and later authored Becoming, one of the best-selling memoirs in publishing history with more than 17 million copies sold worldwide1964-present
- Overstreet, MorrisFirst African American elected to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals1953-
- Parsons, James BentonFirst African American appointed as a life-tenured (Article III) U.S. District Court judge1911-1993
- Paterson, David AlexanderFirst legally blind person to serve as governor of a U.S. state; third African American to serve as a state governor1954-
- Patrick, DevalFirst African American governor of Massachusetts; second Black governor in U.S. history and the first elected to a second term1956-
- Pinchback, P.B.S. (Pinckney Benton Stewart)Generally credited as the first African American to serve as a U.S. state governor, taking an oath of office in Louisiana in 18721837-1921
- Powell, Colin LutherFirst African American Secretary of State; first Black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff1937-2021
- Randolph, A. PhilipLabor organizer who led the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters and linked Black civil rights with economic justice1889–1979
- Rangel, Charles BernardFirst African American to chair the House Ways and Means Committee; served 46 years in Congress1930-2025
- Ray, Charlotte E.First known African American woman lawyer in the United States1850-1911
- Reeves, BassFirst African American Deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River; arrested over 3,000 outlaws across a 32-year career; widely believed to be a real-life inspiration for the Lone Ranger legend1838-1910
- Revels, Hiram RhodesFirst African American to serve in the U.S. Congress, seated in the Senate in 1870 just 22 days after the 15th Amendment's ratification1827-1901
- Rice, CondoleezzaFirst Black woman to serve as U.S. Secretary of State; first woman to serve as National Security Advisor1954-
- Robinson, Spottswood W. IIIPioneering opinions on civil rights, equal employment law, and administrative law as a federal appellate judge1916-1998
- Rock, John S.First African American admitted to practice before the U.S. Supreme Court1825-1866
- Scott, Timothy EugeneFirst Black senator from the South since Reconstruction; became the longest-serving Black senator in U.S. history in 20251965-
- Stokes, Carl BurtonFirst African American elected mayor of a major U.S. city1927-1996
- Sturns, LouisFirst African American appointed to the Texas Court of Criminal Appealsunknown
- Thomas, Lawson E.First African American judge in the American South since Reconstruction1898-1989
- Tillman, HarrelFirst African American municipal court judge in Texas (1964); actor and pastor1925-1998
- Warnock, Raphael GamalielFirst African American to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate; first Black Democrat elected to the Senate from a former Confederate state1969-
- Washington, HaroldFirst African American mayor of Chicago1922-1987
- Waters, Maxine MooreMost senior Black woman in Congress; first woman and first African American to chair the House Financial Services Committee1938-
- Watkins, CraigFirst African American elected District Attorney in Texas history1968-2023
- Weaver, Robert CliftonFirst African American to serve in a U.S. presidential cabinet1907-1997
- White, Walter FrancisLed the NAACP as executive secretary for 24 years; personally investigated more than 40 lynchings and 8 race riots undercover, using his light complexion to pass as white at grave personal risk1893-1955
- Wilder, L. DouglasFirst African American elected governor of any U.S. state1931-
- Wilkins, Roy OttowayLed the NAACP for 22 years as executive secretary and director, guiding the organization through Brown v. Board of Education, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965; helped organize the 1963 March on Washington1901-1981
- Willis, Archie Walter Jr.Co-founded Memphis's first integrated law firm; first African American elected to the Tennessee General Assembly since Reconstruction1925-1988
- Wright, Jonathan JasperFirst African American to serve on a state supreme court1840-1885
- Evers, Medgar WileyU.S. Army veteran and the first NAACP field secretary in Mississippi, organizing voter registration, desegregation and investigations of racial violence.1925–1963
- Madikizela-Mandela, WinnieSocial worker, anti-apartheid organizer, ANC Women’s League leader and parliamentarian whose resistance to state repression coexists with a contested record of violence and criminal convictions.1936–2018