List of female governors in the United States

As of January 3, 2013, thirty-six women have served or are serving as the governor of a U.S. state (including one from the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico). Currently, five women are serving as governors of U.S. states.

History

The first woman to act as governor was Carolyn B. Shelton, who served as "acting governor" of Oregon for one weekend – 9 a.m. Saturday, February 27, through 10 a.m. Monday, March 1, 1909. The outgoing governor, George Earle Chamberlain, had been elected to the Senate and had to leave for Washington, D.C., before his term was over, and the incoming governor, Frank W. Benson, had gotten sick and couldn't assume office early. Chamberlain left Shelton, his "Chief of Staff," in charge for the weekend. Ironically enough, it would be another three and a half years before women would be allowed to vote in Oregon. (As a side note, Chamberlain and Shelton married each other 17 years later.)

The first acting governor to be entrusted with substantial duties while in office was Soledad Chávez Chacón, who held the office of Governor of New Mexico for 2 weeks in 1924 while Governor James F. Hinkle attended the Democratic Convention in New York. Lieutenant Governor Jose A. Baca had died unexpectedly in May, so Chacón, the Secretary of State, filled the position. Chacón said she believed that her 1924 elevation was the first time in the U.S. that a woman had been called on to assume the responsibilities of governor.

The first elected female governor was Nellie Tayloe Ross of Wyoming, who was elected on November 4, 1924, and sworn in on January 5, 1925. She was preceded in office by her late husband William B. Ross. Wyoming was the first state to provide women's suffrage. Elected on November 3 was Miriam A. Ferguson of Texas, whose husband Governor James Edward Ferguson had previously held the office but been impeached and removed from office in 1917. The first female governor elected without being the wife or widow of a past state governor was Ella T. Grasso of Connecticut, elected in 1974 and sworn in on January 8, 1975.

Demographics

Connecticut and Arizona are the only two states to have elected female governors from both major parties. New Hampshire has also had female governors from two parties, but Republican Vesta M. Roy served only in the acting capacity for a short time. Arizona was the first state where a woman followed another woman as governor (they were from different parties). Arizona also has had the most female governors with a total of four, and is the first state to have three women in a row serve as governor.

A record nine women served as chief executive of their states on two different occasions: first, between December 6, 2006, when Sarah Palin was inaugurated as the first female governor of Alaska, and January 14, 2008, when Kathleen Blanco left office as governor of Louisiana, and second, between January 10, 2009, when Beverly Perdue was inaugurated as governor of North Carolina, and January 20, 2009, when Ruth Ann Minner retired as governor of Delaware.

The U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, though not states, have also had female chief executives: Governor Sila María Calderón and Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly, respectively.

A total of 24 states have never had a female governor. Those states are: Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin.

List of Female State Governors

Picture	Name	State	From	To	Party	Notes
	Nellie Tayloe Ross	Wyoming	1925	1927	Democratic	Widow of Governor William B. Ross (1923–1924). First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Wyoming.
	Miriam A. Ferguson	Texas	1925 1933	1927 1935	Democratic	Wife of Governor James E. Ferguson (1915–1917). First woman to serve as Governor of Texas.
	Lurleen Wallace	Alabama	1967	1968	Democratic	Wife of Governor George Wallace (1963–1967, 1971–1979, & 1983-1987). First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Alabama. First (and only) female Governor to die in office.
	Ella T. Grasso	Connecticut	1975	1980	Democratic	First female Governor not a wife or widow of a previous Governor. First woman to serve as Governor of Connecticut. First woman Governor in the United States to be elected to two consecutive terms, and the first to resign (terminal ovarian cancer).
	Dixy Lee Ray	Washington	1977	1981	Democratic	First woman to serve as Governor of Washington.
	Vesta M. Roy	New Hampshire	1982	1983	Republican	Acting Governor for a single week, never sworn in.
	Martha Layne Collins	Kentucky	1983	1987	Democratic	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Kentucky.
	Madeleine M. Kunin	Vermont	1985	1991	Democratic	First female Jewish Governor of any state. First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Vermont.
	Kay A. Orr	Nebraska	1987	1991	Republican	First Republican woman elected Governor. First woman elected Governor over another female major party candidate. First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Nebraska.
	Rose Perica Mofford	Arizona	1988	1991	Democratic	First woman to serve as Governor of Arizona.
	Joan Finney	Kansas	1991	1995	Democratic	First woman to serve as Governor of Kansas. First woman to defeat an incumbent Governor in a general election.
	Ann Richards	Texas	1991	1995	Democratic	First female Governor of Texas not a wife of a previous Governor.
	Barbara Roberts	Oregon	1991	1995	Democratic	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Oregon.
	Christine Todd Whitman	New Jersey	1994	2001	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of New Jersey. First Republican woman to defeat an incumbent Governor in a general election.
	Jane Dee Hull	Arizona	1997	2003	Republican	First Republican woman to serve as Governor of Arizona.
	Jeanne Shaheen	New Hampshire	1997	2003	Democratic	First woman elected to serve as Governor of New Hampshire.
	Nancy P. Hollister	Ohio	1998	1999	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Ohio. As Lt. Governor, succeeded to the office when Governor George Voinovich resigned
	Jane Swift	Massachusetts	2001	2003	Republican	Acting Governor. At age 36, youngest female governor in US history. First Governor to give birth while in office (to twins).
	Judy Martz	Montana	2001	2005	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Montana.
	Ruth Ann Minner	Delaware	2001	2009	Democratic	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Delaware.
	Linda Lingle	Hawaii	2002	2010	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Hawaii.
	Olene Smith Walker	Utah	2003	2005	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Utah.
	Jennifer M. Granholm	Michigan	2003	2011	Democratic	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Michigan. Also the second Canadian-born Governor of a US State, after Frank Bell of Nevada.
	Janet Napolitano	Arizona	2003	2009	Democratic	First woman to be elected to two terms as Governor of Arizona. Resigned to become Secretary of Homeland Security in the Obama Administration. First woman to immediately succeed another woman as Governor.
	Kathleen Sebelius	Kansas	2003	2009	Democratic	Resigned to become Secretary of Health and Human Services in the Obama Administration.
	Kathleen Blanco	Louisiana	2004	2008	Democratic	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Louisiana.
	M. Jodi Rell	Connecticut	2004	2011	Republican	As Lieutenant Governor, she succeeded to the office when Governor John G. Rowland resigned.
	Christine Gregoire	Washington	2005	2013	Democratic	Prior to her election to the Governorship, she was Washington's first female attorney general.
	Sarah Palin	Alaska	2006	2009	Republican	First woman (and only to date) to serve as Governor of Alaska (also Alaska's youngest Governor). First female Governor of any state to appear on a major party presidential ticket, as the Republican candidate for vice president in 2008. First governor to get pregnant and give birth while in office (Swift's childbirth happened one month into her term of office).
	Beverly Perdue	North Carolina	2009	2013	Democratic	First woman (and only to date) to serve as Governor of North Carolina. Prior to her election to the governorship, she was North Carolina's first female Lieutenant Governor.
	Jan Brewer	Arizona	2009	Present	Republican	As Secretary of State, she succeeded to the office when Governor Janet Napolitano resigned. Third consecutive woman to serve as Governor of Arizona.
	Susana Martinez	New Mexico	2011	Present	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of New Mexico. First female Hispanic American Governor outside Puerto Rico.
	Mary Fallin	Oklahoma	2011	Present	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of Oklahoma. Prior to her election to the governorship, she was Oklahoma's first female Lieutenant Governor.
	Nikki Haley	South Carolina	2011	Present	Republican	First (and only) woman to serve as Governor of South Carolina. First female Indian American (and Asian American) Governor. Also (as of January 2013), the youngest current Governor.
	Maggie Hassan	New Hampshire	2013	Present	Democratic	Elected November 6, 2012

Women who have held Governor-equivalent positions

picture	Name	State	From	To	Party	Notes
	Sharon Pratt Kelly	District of Columbia	1991	1995	Democratic	First African-American woman to serve as mayor of a major American city and only woman to date to have served as Mayor of District of Columbia.

Timeline of female U.S. Governors

External links

• "History of Women Governors" Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey