Rufus Leigh Edmisten (1941-) is a white attorney who served as North Carolina attorney general and secretary of state. Born in Boone, NC, Edmisten graduated from Appalachian High School in 1959. He then attended UNC-Chapel Hill and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science and religious studies in 1963. Edmisten went on to attend George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC.
Edmisten joined the staff of Senator Sam Ervin while still in law school. After earning his law degree (Doctor of Jurisprudence) in 1966, Senator Ervin appointed him counsel for the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitutional Rights. In 1969, Senator Ervin named Edmisten chief counsel and staff director for the Subcommittee on Separation of Powers.
In 1972, Edmisten was appointed Deputy Chief Counsel on the Senate Watergate Committee, which was chaired by Senator Ervin. As part of his work on this committee, Edmisten served the subpoena to President Nixon for the Watergate tapes, which provided evidence of the cover-up of the Watergate break-in and the subsequent destruction of evidence and intimidation of witnesses. This was the first time in history that a congressional committee served a subpoena on a sitting president.
When Ervin retired in 1974, Edmisten returned to North Carolina. He was elected state attorney general in 1974 and served until 1985. Edmisten was the Democratic nominee for Governor in 1984 but lost to Republican James G. Martin. He later won the office of North Carolina Secretary of State in the 1988 and 1992 elections. During his second term as North Carolina Secretary of State, a critical review by the state auditor in 1994 led to a State Bureau of Investigation inquiry in 1996. The investigation focused on the use of state vehicles, telephones, and employee time for political activity and personal favors; however, the investigation ended with no charges filed.
In 1996, Edmisten resigned from office and launched a governmental relations legal practice that become Edmisten & Webb Law (in Raleigh, NC). Outside of his legal practice, he created and has continued to lead the Super Kids Scholarship Program which offers college scholarships and educational opportunities to underprivileged students.
Due to Edmisten’s role as a prominent figure in North Carolina politics and a UNC-Chapel Hill alumnus, Wilson Library received the collection from Edmisten in June 2012. Two items of particular note for this digital exhibit are the original subpoena to Nixon for the White House tapes (July 23, 1973) and John Dean’s original copy of the Enemies List.
References:
NC SPIN. (n.d.). Rufus Edmisten. Retrieved July 18, 2023, from https://www.ncspin.com/rufus-edmisten
North Carolina Former Attorneys General. (n.d.). National Association of Attorneys General. Retrieved September 14, 2023, from https://www.naag.org/attorneys-general/past-attorneys-general/north-carolina-former-attorneys-general/
Southern Historical Collection. (n.d.). Rufus Edmisten Papers, 1939-2009 [finding aid]. Rufus Edmisten Papers (05528), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC. Retrieved July 18, 2023, from https://finding-aids.lib.unc.edu/05528/#separatedfolder_92#1