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The United States has 50 states and 5 territories that each elect a governor to serve as chief executive of the state or territorial government.[1] The sole federal district, the District of Columbia, elects a mayor to oversee their government in a similar manner.[2][3] In the event of a vacancy, the governor is succeeded by the second-highest-ranking state official; in 45 states and 4 territories, the lieutenant governor is the first in the line of succession.[4][5]
As of January 9, 2024, there are 27 states with Republican governors and 23 states with Democratic governors. Three territories have Democratic governors, while one has an independent governor. Pedro Pierluisi of Puerto Rico is a member of the New Progressive Party, although he is also affiliated with the Democratic Party.[6] The federal District of Columbia is governed by a Democratic mayor.[7]
The current gubernatorial term ends and new term begins in January for most states and territories, two months after their election; in Alaska, Hawaii, North Dakota, and Kentucky, the term begins in December.[8][9] Governors serve four-year terms in most states and all territories; New Hampshire and Vermont have two-year terms for their governors. Most states and all but one territory also have term limits that generally allow for two consecutive terms to be served by a candidate. To run for governor, a candidate must generally be a U.S. citizen with prior state residence who meets the minimum age requirement—set at 30 years old in 35 states.[10]
All 55 governors are members of the National Governors Association, a non-partisan organization which represents states and territories in discussions with the federal government.[11] Other organizations for governors include the partisan Democratic Governors Association and Republican Governors Association; and the three regional associations: Midwestern, Northeastern, and Western.[12]
The longest serving incumbent U.S. governor is Jay Inslee of Washington, who took office on January 16, 2013.[13] The most recently inaugurated governor is Jeff Landry of Louisiana, who took office on January 8, 2024.[6] A total of 15 current governors previously served as lieutenant governor, while ten previously served in the United States House of Representatives.[14] The governor's office has term limits in 37 states and 4 territories; these terms are four years except in New Hampshire and Vermont, where governors serve two-year terms.[10][15]
The average age of governors at the time of their inauguration was about 59 years old. Alabama governor Kay Ivey (born 1944) is the oldest current governor, and Arkansas governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders (born 1982) is the youngest.[16] As of the 2022 elections, there are 12 female state governors currently serving. Of the 50 state governors, 46 are non-Hispanic white, two are Hispanic (Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico and Chris Sununu of New Hampshire), one is Black (Wes Moore of Maryland), and one is Native American (Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma).[16]
The notation "(term limits)" after the year indicates that the governor is ineligible to seek re-election in that year; the notation "(retiring)" indicates that the governor has announced his or her intention not to seek re-election at the end of the term nor to run for another office.
Parties: Republican (27), Democratic (23)
Parties: Democratic (3), Independent (1), New Progressive (1)
Territory | Image | Governor[6] | Party[6] | Born | Prior public experience | Inauguration[6] | End of term[6] | Ref. | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
American Samoa (list) | Lemanu Peleti Mauga | Democratic | January 3, 1960 | Lieutenant Governor American Samoa Senate |
January 3, 2021 | 2025 | [79][80][81] | ||
Guam (list) | Lou Leon Guerrero | Democratic | November 8, 1950 | Guam Legislature | January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | [82][83] | ||
Northern Mariana Islands (list) | Arnold Palacios | Independent | August 22, 1955 | Lieutenant Governor President of the CNMI Senate Speaker of the CNMI House |
January 9, 2023 | 2027 | [84] | ||
Puerto Rico (list) | Pedro Pierluisi | New Progressive | April 25, 1959 | U.S. House Territorial Secretary of Justice |
January 2, 2021 | 2025 (retiring) | [85] | ||
U.S. Virgin Islands (list) | Albert Bryan | Democratic | February 21, 1968 | Commissioner of the Virgin Islands Department of Labor | January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | [86][87] |
The District of Columbia is a federal district that elects a mayor that has similar powers to those of a state or territorial governor.[2] The cities of Washington and Georgetown within the district elected their own mayors until 1871, when their governments were consolidated into a reorganized District of Columbia by a Congressional act.[88] The district's chief executive from 1871 to 1874 was a governor appointed by the President of the United States; the office was replaced by a Board of Commissioners with three members appointed by the president—two residents and a representative from the United States Army Corps of Engineers.[88][89] The Board of Commissioners was originally a temporary body but was made permanent in 1878 with one member selected to serve as the Board President, in effect the city's chief executive.[90] The system was replaced in 1967 by a single mayor–commissioner and home rule in the District of Columbia was fully restored in 1975 under a reorganized government led by an elected mayor.[91]
Parties: Democratic (1)
Federal district | Image | Mayor | Party | Born | Prior public experience | Inauguration | End of term | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
District of Columbia (list) | Muriel Bowser | Democratic[92] | [92] | August 2, 1972D.C. Council Advisory Neighborhood Commission[92] |
January 2, 2015[93] | 2027 |