Governor of Colorado
The Governor of Colorado is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Colorado. The governor is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Colorado General Assembly, to convene the legislature, and to grant pardons, except in cases of treason or impeachment.[2] The governor is also the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.
| Governor of Colorado | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the Executive Office | |
| Style | The Honorable |
| Residence | Colorado Governor's Mansion |
| Term length | Four years, renewable once consecutively |
| Inaugural holder | John Long Routt |
| Formation | August 1, 1876 |
| Deputy | Dianne Primavera |
| Salary | $123,193 (2019)[1] |
| Website | www.colorado.gov/governor |
Seven people served as governor of Colorado Territory over eight terms, appointed by the President of the United States. Since statehood, there have been 38 governors, serving 43 distinct terms. One governor Alva Adams served three non-consecutive terms, while John Long Routt, James Hamilton Peabody, and Edwin C. Johnson each served during two non-consecutive periods. The longest-serving governors were Richard "Dick" Lamm (1975–1987) and Roy Romer (1987–1999), who each served 12 years over three terms. The shortest term occurred on March 16 and 17, 1905, when the state had three governors in the span of 24 hours: Alva Adams won the election, but soon after he took office, the legislature declared his opponent, James Hamilton Peabody, governor, but on the condition that he immediately resign, so that his lieutenant governor, Jesse McDonald, could be governor. Thus, Peabody served less than a day as governor.
The current governor is Democrat Jared Polis, who took office on January 8, 2019.
Governors
Governor of the Territory of Jefferson
The self-proclaimed Provisional Government of the Territory of Jefferson was organized on November 7, 1859.[3] Jefferson Territory included all of present-day Colorado, but extended about 3 miles (5 km) farther east, 138 miles (222 km) farther north, and about 50 miles (80 km) farther west.[4] The territory was never recognized by the federal government in the tumultuous days before the American Civil War. The Jefferson Territory had only one governor, Robert Williamson Steele, a pro-union Democrat elected by popular vote. He proclaimed the territory dissolved on June 6, 1861, several months after the official formation of the Colorado Territory, but only days after the arrival of its first governor.[5]
Governors of the Territory of Colorado
The Territory of Colorado was organized on February 28, 1861, from parts of the territories of New Mexico, Utah, and Nebraska, and the unorganized territory that was previously the western portion of Kansas Territory.[6]
| No. | Governor | Term in office | Appointed by | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | .jpg.webp) |
William Gilpin October 4, 1813 – January 20, 1894 (aged 80) |
March 25, 1861[7][lower-alpha 1] – March 26, 1862[lower-alpha 2] |
Abraham Lincoln |
| 2 |  |
John Evans March 9, 1814 – July 2, 1897 (aged 83) |
March 26, 1862[7] – October 17, 1865[lower-alpha 3] | |
| 3 |  |
Alexander Cummings November 17, 1810 – 1879 (aged 68 or 69) |
October 17, 1865[11] – April 24, 1867 |
Andrew Johnson |
| 4 |  |
Alexander Cameron Hunt December 23, 1825 – May 14, 1894 (aged 68) |
April 24, 1867[11] – June 14, 1869 | |
| 5 |  |
Edward M. McCook June 15, 1833 – September 9, 1909 (aged 76) |
June 14, 1869[12] – Sometime in 1873[lower-alpha 4] |
Ulysses S. Grant |
| 6 |  |
Samuel Hitt Elbert April 3, 1833 – November 27, 1899 (aged 66) |
April 4, 1873[13] – Sometime in 1874[lower-alpha 5] | |
| 7 | |
Edward M. McCook June 15, 1833 – September 9, 1909 (aged 76) |
June 19, 1874[12] – March 29, 1875 | |
| 8 |  |
John Long Routt April 25, 1826 – August 13, 1907 (aged 81) |
March 29, 1875[14] – November 3, 1876[lower-alpha 6] | |
Governors of the State of Colorado
The State of Colorado was admitted to the Union on August 1, 1876.
To serve as governor, one must be at least 30 years old, be a citizen of the United States, and have been a resident of the state for at least two years prior to election. The state constitution of 1876 originally called for election of the governor every two years, with their term beginning on the second Tuesday of the January following the election.[15] An amendment passed in 1956, taking effect in 1959, increased terms to four years.[16] Originally, there was no term limit applied to the governor; a 1990 amendment allowed governors to succeed themselves only once.[17] There is however no limit on the total number of terms one may serve as long as one who has served the two term limit is out of office for four years.
Should the office of governor become vacant, the lieutenant governor becomes governor.[18] If both the offices governor and lieutenant governor are vacant, the line of succession moves down through the senior members of the state senate and state house of representatives of the same party as the governor.[19] The lieutenant governor was elected separately from the governor until a 1968 amendment to the constitution[20] made it so that they are elected on the same ticket.[21]
| No. | Governor | Term in office | Party | Election | Lt. Governor[lower-alpha 8] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |
John Long Routt April 25, 1826 – August 13, 1907 (aged 81) |
November 3, 1876[lower-alpha 6] – January 14, 1879 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1876 | Lafayette Head | ||
| 2 |  |
Frederick Walker Pitkin August 31, 1837 – December 18, 1886 (aged 49) |
January 14, 1879 – January 9, 1883 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1878 | Horace Tabor | ||
| 1880 | ||||||||
| 3 |  |
James Benton Grant January 2, 1848 – November 1, 1911 (aged 63) |
January 9, 1883 – January 13, 1885 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1882 | William H. Meyer[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 4 |  |
Benjamin Harrison Eaton December 15, 1833 – October 29, 1904 (aged 70) |
January 13, 1885 – January 11, 1887 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1884 | Peter W. Breene | ||
| 5 |  |
Alva Adams May 14, 1850 – November 1, 1922 (aged 72) |
January 11, 1887 – January 8, 1889 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1886 | Norman H. Meldrum | ||
| 6 |  |
Job Adams Cooper November 6, 1843 – January 20, 1899 (aged 55) |
January 8, 1889 – January 13, 1891 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1888 | William Grover Smith | ||
| 7 | |
John Long Routt April 25, 1826 – August 13, 1907 (aged 81) |
January 13, 1891 – January 10, 1893 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1890 | William Story | ||
| 8 |  |
Davis Hanson Waite April 9, 1825 – November 27, 1901 (aged 76) |
January 10, 1893 – January 8, 1895 (lost election) |
Populist | 1892 | David H. Nichols | ||
| 9 |  |
Albert McIntire January 15, 1853 – January 31, 1935 (aged 82) |
January 8, 1895 – January 12, 1897 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1894 | Jared L. Brush[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 10 | |
Alva Adams May 14, 1850 – November 1, 1922 (aged 72) |
January 12, 1897 – January 10, 1899 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1896 | |||
| 11 |  |
Charles S. Thomas December 6, 1849 – June 24, 1934 (aged 84) |
January 10, 1899 – January 8, 1901 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1898 | Francis Patrick Carney[lower-alpha 10] | ||
| 12 |  |
James Bradley Orman November 4, 1849 – July 21, 1919 (aged 69) |
January 8, 1901 – January 13, 1903 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1900 | David C. Coates[lower-alpha 11] | ||
| 13 |  |
James Hamilton Peabody August 21, 1852 – November 23, 1917 (aged 65) |
January 13, 1903 – January 10, 1905 (lost election)[lower-alpha 12] |
Republican | 1902 | Warren A. Haggott[lower-alpha 13] | ||
| 14 | |
Alva Adams May 14, 1850 – November 1, 1922 (aged 72) |
January 10, 1905 – March 16, 1905 (declared loser in election)[lower-alpha 12] |
Democratic | 1904[lower-alpha 12] | Arthur Cornforth | ||
| 15 | |
James Hamilton Peabody August 21, 1852 – November 23, 1917 (aged 65) |
March 16, 1905 – March 17, 1905 (resigned)[lower-alpha 12] |
Republican | Jesse Fuller McDonald | |||
| 16 |  |
Jesse Fuller McDonald June 30, 1858 – February 25, 1942 (aged 83) |
March 17, 1905 – January 8, 1907 (did not run for election) |
Republican | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor[lower-alpha 12] |
Arthur Cornforth[lower-alpha 14] (removed July 5, 1905) | ||
| Fred W. Parks | ||||||||
| 17 |  |
Henry Augustus Buchtel September 30, 1847 – October 22, 1924 (aged 77) |
January 8, 1907 – January 12, 1909 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1906 | Erastus Harper | ||
| 18 |  |
John F. Shafroth June 9, 1854 – February 20, 1922 (aged 67) |
January 12, 1909 – January 14, 1913 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1908 | Stephen R. Fitzgarrald | ||
| 1910 | ||||||||
| 19 |  |
Elias M. Ammons July 28, 1860 – May 20, 1925 (aged 64) |
January 14, 1913 – January 12, 1915 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1912 | |||
| 20 |  |
George Alfred Carlson October 23, 1876 – December 6, 1926 (aged 50) |
January 12, 1915 – January 9, 1917 (lost election) |
Republican | 1914 | Moses E. Lewis | ||
| 21 |  |
Julius Caldeen Gunter October 31, 1858 – October 26, 1940 (aged 81) |
January 9, 1917 – January 14, 1919 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1916 | James Pulliam | ||
| 22 |  |
Oliver Henry Shoup December 13, 1869 – September 30, 1940 (aged 70) |
January 14, 1919 – January 9, 1923 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1918 | George Stephan | ||
| 1920 | Earl Cooley | |||||||
| 23 |  |
William Ellery Sweet January 27, 1869 – May 9, 1942 (aged 73) |
January 9, 1923 – January 13, 1925 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1922 | Robert F. Rockwell[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 24 |  |
Clarence Morley February 9, 1869 – November 15, 1948 (aged 79) |
January 13, 1925 – January 11, 1927 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1924 | Sterling Byrd Lacy[lower-alpha 14] | ||
| 25 |  |
Billy Adams February 15, 1861 – February 4, 1954 (aged 92) |
January 11, 1927 – January 10, 1933 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1926 | George Milton Corlett[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 1928 | ||||||||
| 1930 | Edwin C. Johnson | |||||||
| 26 |  |
Edwin C. Johnson January 1, 1884 – May 30, 1970 (aged 86) |
January 10, 1933 – January 1, 1937 (resigned)[lower-alpha 15] |
Democratic | 1932 | Ray Herbert Talbot | ||
| 1934 | ||||||||
| 27 | .jpg.webp) |
Ray Herbert Talbot August 19, 1896 – January 30, 1955 (aged 58) |
January 1, 1937 – January 12, 1937 (successor took office) |
Democratic | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor |
Vacant | ||
| 28 | .gif) |
Teller Ammons December 3, 1895 – January 16, 1972 (aged 76) |
January 12, 1937 – January 10, 1939 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1936 | Frank Hayes | ||
| 29 |  |
Ralph Lawrence Carr December 11, 1887 – September 22, 1950 (aged 62) |
January 10, 1939 – January 12, 1943 (not candidate for election)[lower-alpha 16] |
Republican | 1938 | John Charles Vivian | ||
| 1940 | ||||||||
| 30 | .jpg.webp) |
John Charles Vivian June 30, 1887 – February 10, 1964 (aged 76) |
January 12, 1943 – January 14, 1947 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1942 | William Eugene Higby | ||
| 1944 | ||||||||
| 31 |  |
William Lee Knous February 2, 1889 – December 12, 1959 (aged 70) |
January 14, 1947 – April 15, 1950 (resigned)[lower-alpha 17] |
Democratic | 1946 | Homer L. Pearson | ||
| 1948 | Walter Walford Johnson | |||||||
| 32 |  |
Walter Walford Johnson April 16, 1904 – March 23, 1987 (aged 82) |
April 15, 1950 – January 9, 1951 (lost election) |
Democratic | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor |
Charles P. Murphy[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 33 | .jpg.webp) |
Daniel I. J. Thornton January 31, 1911 – January 18, 1976 (aged 64) |
January 9, 1951 – January 11, 1955 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1950 | Gordon Allott | ||
| 1952 | ||||||||
| 34 | |
Edwin C. Johnson January 1, 1884 – May 30, 1970 (aged 86) |
January 11, 1955 – January 8, 1957 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1954 | Stephen McNichols | ||
| 35 |  |
Stephen McNichols March 7, 1914 – November 25, 1997 (aged 83) |
January 8, 1957 – January 8, 1963 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1956 | Frank L. Hays[lower-alpha 9] | ||
| 1958[lower-alpha 18] | Robert Lee Knous | |||||||
| 36 |  |
John Arthur Love November 29, 1916 – January 21, 2002 (aged 83) |
January 8, 1963 – July 16, 1973 (resigned)[lower-alpha 19] |
Republican | 1962 | |||
| 1966 | Mark Anthony Hogan[lower-alpha 14] | |||||||
| 1970 | John D. Vanderhoof | |||||||
| 37 | John D. Vanderhoof May 27, 1922 – September 19, 2013 (aged 91) |
July 16, 1973 – January 14, 1975 (lost election)[32] |
Republican | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor |
Ted L. Strickland | |||
| 38 |  |
Richard Lamm August 3, 1935 |
January 14, 1975 – January 13, 1987 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1974 | George L. Brown | ||
| 1978 | Nancy E. Dick | |||||||
| 1982 | ||||||||
| 39 | .jpg.webp) |
Roy Romer October 31, 1928 |
January 13, 1987 – January 12, 1999 (term limited) |
Democratic | 1986 | Mike Callihan (resigned May 10, 1994) | ||
| 1990 | ||||||||
| Vacant | ||||||||
| Samuel H. Cassidy (took office May 11, 1994) | ||||||||
| 1994 | Gail Schoettler | |||||||
| 40 | .jpg.webp) |
Bill Owens October 22, 1950 |
January 12, 1999 – January 9, 2007 (term limited) |
Republican | 1998 | Joe Rogers | ||
| 2002 | Jane E. Norton | |||||||
| 41 | .jpg.webp) |
Bill Ritter September 6, 1956 |
January 9, 2007 – January 11, 2011 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 2006 | Barbara O'Brien | ||
| 42 |  |
John Hickenlooper February 7, 1952 |
January 11, 2011 – January 8, 2019 (term limited) |
Democratic | 2010 | Joseph García (resigned May 12, 2016) | ||
| 2014 | ||||||||
| Donna Lynne | ||||||||
| 43 | .jpg.webp) |
Jared Polis May 12, 1975 |
January 8, 2019 – present[lower-alpha 20] |
Democratic | 2018 | Dianne Primavera | ||
Succession
See also
Notes
- The territory was formed on February 28, 1861, but no governor was appointed until March 25, 1861. Gilpin himself did not arrive in the territory until May 27, 1861.[8]
- Gilpin was removed from office for improper financial drafts from the federal treasury.[9]
- Evans resigned at the request of President Johnson following the Sand Creek Massacre. The resignation was requested on July 18, 1865.[10]
- McCook was removed from office by petition.[12]
- Records show Elbert served "less than a year", but his successor was appointed on June 19, 1874, which was 14 months after Elbert took office.[13]
- The state was admitted on August 1, but Routt was formally inaugurated as state governor on November 3.[22]
- Data is sourced from the National Governors Association, unless supplemental references are required.
- Lieutenant governors represented the same party as their governor unless noted.
- Represented the Republican Party
- Represented the Populist Party
- The Colorado State Archives labels Coates a Democrat;[23] however, a contemporary New York Times article describes him as a Populist elected on a fusion ticket, and that he had renounced all other parties and become a Socialist.[24]
- The 1904 election was rife with fraud and controversy. Alva Adams won election, but soon after he took office the Republican legislature declared James Peabody to be the actual winner, on the condition that Peabody immediately tender his resignation, postdated to the next day. Peabody's lieutenant governor, Jesse McDonald, then succeeded to the governorship.[25]
- The Colorado State Archives says Haggott served from 1902 to 1903; however, multiple sources say he served with Peabody[26] well into 1904,[27] so it is assumed the Archives are in error.
- Represented the Democratic Party
- Johnson resigned to take an elected seat in the United States Senate.[28]
- Carr instead unsuccessfully ran for United States Senate.[29]
- Knous resigned to take a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Colorado.[30]
- First term under a 1956 constitutional amendment, which lengthened terms to four years.[16]
- Love resigned to be Director of the Office of Energy Policy.[31]
- Polis' first term expires on January 10, 2023.
References
- General
- "Governors of Colorado". National Governors Association. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- "Governors". Colorado State Archives. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
- "The Territorial Governors Collection". Colorado State Archives. Retrieved January 18, 2008.
- The University of Colorado Studies, volume IV. University of Colorado. 1907.
- Sobel, Robert (1978). Biographical directory of the governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. I. Meckler Books. ISBN 9780930466015. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- Constitutions
- "Constitution of the State of Colorado, as amended, annotated". Michie's Legal Resources. 1876. Retrieved October 22, 2008.
- "Constitution of the State of Colorado" (PDF). Colorado State Archives. 1876. Retrieved October 22, 2008.
- Specific
- "Memorandum" (PDF). Legislative Council Staff. January 3, 2019. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
- CO Const. art IV
- University of Colorado Studies, p. 71
- University of Colorado Studies, p. 68
- University of Colorado Studies, pp. 75–76
- Thirty-sixth United States Congress (February 28, 1861). "An Act to provide a temporary Government for the Territory of Colorado" (PDF). State of Colorado, Department of Personnel and Administration, Colorado State Archives. Retrieved November 29, 2007.
- Houston Jr., Robert B. (2005). Two Colorado Odysseys: Chief Ouray Porter Nelson. p. 3. ISBN 0-595-35860-8.
- McGinnis, Ralph Y.; Calvin N. Smith (1994). Abraham Lincoln and the Western Territories. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 58. ISBN 0-8304-1247-6.
- "William Gilpin". Colorado Governor's Index. Colorado State Archives. Retrieved October 23, 2008.
- "Correspondence from W. H. Seward to Gov. John Evans, re: Request by President for Resignation – 7/18/1865". Colorado State Archives. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- "Alexander Cummings". Colorado Governor's Index. Colorado State Archives. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- "Edward Moody McCook". Colorado Governor's Index. Colorado State Archives. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- "Samuel Hitt Elbert". Colorado Governor's Index. Colorado State Archives. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- "John L. Routt". Colorado Governor's Index. Colorado State Archives. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- CO Const. art IV, original section 1
- "Ballot History". Colorado Legislature. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
- "Ballot History". Colorado Legislature. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
- CO Const. art IV, sec 13
- CO Const. art IV, sec 13, paragraph 7
- "Ballot History". Colorado Legislature. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
- CO Const. art IV, sec 1
- The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. 1896. p. 450. Retrieved December 13, 2018.
- "Lieutenant Governors of Colorado". Colorado State Archives. Retrieved October 25, 2009.
- "General Notes". The New York Times. July 13, 1902. Retrieved October 25, 2009.
- Powe, Lucas A. (1992). The Fourth Estate and the Constitution: Freedom of the Press in America. University of California Press. pp. 2–3. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
- Goodspeed, Weston Arthur (1904). The Province and the States: Missouri, Kansas, Colorado. p. 481. Retrieved October 25, 2009.
- "Shots Fired from Windows". The New York Times. June 6, 1904. Retrieved October 25, 2009.
- "Edwin Carl Johnson". National Governors Association. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 3, 1942" (PDF). Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
- "William Lee Knous". National Governors Association. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- "John Arthur Love". National Governors Association. Retrieved July 10, 2019.
- "Former Colorado Gov. Vanderhoof dies at 91". The Gazette. Colorado Springs, Colorado. Associated Press. September 23, 2013. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Governors of Colorado. |
 Colorado statewide elected officials | |
|---|---|
|
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.