Lieutenant Governor of Maryland

The Lieutenant Governor of Maryland is the second highest-ranking official in the executive branch of the state government of Maryland in the United States. The officeholder is elected on the same ticket as the Governor of Maryland and must meet the same qualifications.

Lieutenant Governor of Maryland
Coat of arms of the state of Maryland
Incumbent
Boyd Rutherford

since January 21, 2015
Style
Term lengthFour years, renewable once, but renewable again after a 4-year respite
Inaugural holderBlair Lee III
FormationJanuary 1971
WebsiteOffice of the Lieutenant Governor

The current Lieutenant Governor is Boyd Rutherford.

History

The position was first created by the Maryland Constitution of 1864. Under that system of government, the lieutenant governor served as president of the Senate and would assume the office of governor if the incumbent should die, resign, be removed, or be disqualified.

The state's present constitution, adopted in 1867, abolished the lieutenant governorship. However, the position was re-established by a constitutional amendment ratified on November 3, 1970.

Duties and responsibilities

Under the 1970 amendment, the Lieutenant Governor "shall have only the duties delegated to him by the Governor." Maryland's lieutenant governorship is thus weaker than the office in several, but not all, other states that have one. For instance, in many states, including Texas, the lieutenant governor is the president of the state's Senate and in California the Lieutenant Governor assumes all of the Governor's powers when he or she is out of the state. In both of those states, as in some others, the lieutenant governor is elected in his or her own right, independently of the state's governor.

In practice, Maryland's lieutenant governor attends cabinet meetings, chairs various task forces and commissions, represents the state at ceremonial functions and at events with or without the governor, and advises the governor. If the governor dies, resigns or is removed from office (via impeachment), the lieutenant governor becomes governor. A vacancy in the lieutenant governorship is filled by a person nominated by the governor and confirmed by a majority vote of the General Assembly voting in joint session.

List of lieutenant governors

Parties

  Unionist (1)   Democratic (6)   Republican (2)

Lieutenant Governors under the Maryland Constitution of 1864

#PortraitLieutenant GovernorPartyTerm
1Christopher C. CoxUnionist18651868

Lieutenant Governors under the Maryland Constitution of 1867

Constitution amended November 4, 1970 to create the office of Lieutenant Governor.

#PortraitLieutenant GovernorPartyTerm startTerm endGovernor
2Blair Lee IIIDemocratJanuary 20, 1971January 17, 1979Marvin Mandel
3Samuel W. BogleyDemocratJanuary 17, 1979January 19, 1983Harry Hughes
4
J. Joseph Curran, Jr.DemocratJanuary 19, 1983January 21, 1987
5Melvin A. SteinbergDemocratJanuary 21, 1987January 18, 1995William D. Schaefer
6
Kathleen Kennedy TownsendDemocratJanuary 18, 1995January 15, 2003Parris Glendening
7
Michael SteeleRepublicanJanuary 15, 2003January 17, 2007Bob Ehrlich
8
Anthony G. BrownDemocratJanuary 17, 2007January 21, 2015Martin O'Malley
9
Boyd RutherfordRepublicanJanuary 21, 2015IncumbentLarry Hogan

Living former Lieutenant Governors of Maryland

As of January 2019, there are six former lieutenant governors of Maryland who are currently living at this time, the oldest lieutenant governor of Maryland being J. Joseph Curran, Jr. (served 19831987, born 1931). The most recent death of a former lieutenant governor of Maryland was that of Blair Lee III (served 19711979, born 1916), on October 25, 1985.

Lieutenant GovernorTermDate of birth (age)
Samuel W. Bogley 19791983 (1941-11-16) November 16, 1941
J. Joseph Curran Jr. 19831987 (1931-07-07) July 7, 1931
Melvin A. Steinberg 19871995 (1933-10-04) October 4, 1933
Kathleen Kennedy Townsend 19952003 (1951-07-04) July 4, 1951
Michael S. Steele 20032007 (1958-10-24) October 24, 1958
Anthony G. Brown 20072015 (1961-11-21) November 21, 1961

See also

References

  • Maryland State Archives. (October 20, 2017). Maryland Manual On-Line: A Guide to Maryland Government. "Lieutenant Governor". Retrieved August 15, 2020.
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