List of governors of Georgia
| Governor of Georgia | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the State of Georgia | |
 | |
| Style | His Excellency |
| Residence | Georgia Governor's Mansion |
| Term length | Four years, renewable once |
| Inaugural holder | William Ewen 1775 |
| Formation | Georgia State Constitution |
| Salary | $139,339 (2013)[1] |
The Governor of Georgia is the head of the executive branch of the state of Georgia's government and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state's military forces.
The current governor is Nathan Deal. Governor Deal is only the second governor of Georgia from the Republican Party since the Reconstruction era.
Governors
- For the period before independence, see the list of colonial governors of Georgia.
Georgia was one of the original Thirteen Colonies and ratified the Constitution of the United States on January 2, 1788.[2] Before it declared its independence, Georgia was a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain. Like most early states, Georgia had claims to western areas, but did not cede its claims during the formation of the country like the other states. It sold this area, the Yazoo Lands, to the federal government on April 24, 1802,[3] when it was assigned to Mississippi Territory.
In the Rules and Regulations of 1776, considered by some to be the first constitution, the chief executive was a president chosen by the legislature every six months.[4] This was quickly superseded by the 1777 constitution, which called for a governor to be chosen by the legislature each year,[5] with a term limited to one year out of every three.[6] In the event of a vacancy, the president of the executive council acted as governor.[7] The governor's term was lengthened to two years in the 1789 constitution.[8] The 1798 constitution modified succession so that the president of the senate would act as governor should that office become vacant. An 1818 amendment to that constitution extended the line of succession to the speaker of the house,[9] and an 1824 amendment provided for popular election of the governor.[10]
While the 1861 secessionist constitution kept the office the same, the other constitutions surrounding the American Civil War brought lots of changes. The 1865 constitution, following Georgia's surrender, limited governors to two consecutive terms, allowing them to serve again after a gap of four years.[11] The Reconstruction constitution of 1868 increased the governor's term to four years.[12] The 1877 constitution, after local rule was re-established, returned the office to the provisions of the 1865 constitution.[13] An amendment in 1941 lengthened terms to 4 years, but governors could no longer succeed themselves, having to wait four years to serve again.[14] The constitution does not specify when terms start, only that the governor is installed at the next session of the General Assembly.[15]
The 1945 constitution provided for a lieutenant governor, to serve the same term as governor and to act as governor if that office became vacant. Should it become vacant within 30 days of the next general election, or if the governor's term would have ended within 90 days of the next election, the lieutenant governor acts out the term; otherwise, a successor is chosen in the next general election.[16] This was retained in the 1976 constitution. The current constitution of 1983 allows governors to succeed themselves once before having to wait four years to serve again,[17] and lieutenant governors now become governor in the event of a vacancy. Should the office of lieutenant governor be vacant, the speaker of the house acts as governor, and a special election to fill the office must happen in 90 days.[18]
- Parties
No party Military Democratic-Republican Democratic Whig Republican
| Party | Governors |
|---|---|
| Democratic | 43 |
| No Party | 21 |
| Democratic-Republican | 13 |
| Republican | 4 |
| Whig | 1 |
Other high offices held
This table lists congressional seats, other federal offices, and Confederate offices. All representatives and senators mentioned represented Georgia. * denotes those offices which the governor resigned to take.
| Governor | Gubernatorial term | U.S. House | U.S. Senate | Other offices held |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Walton | 1775–1776 1779–1780 1789–1790 |
— | S | Continental Delegate |
| Archibald Bulloch | 1776–1777 | — | — | Continental Delegate |
| Button Gwinnett | 1777 | — | — | Continental Delegate |
| John Houstoun | 1778–1779 1784–1785 |
— | — | Continental Delegate |
| Richard Howly | 1780 | — | — | Continental Delegate |
| Nathan Brownson | 1781–1782 | — | — | Continental Delegate |
| Lyman Hall | 1783–1784 | — | — | Continental Delegate |
| Samuel Elbert | 1785–1786 | — | — | Elected to the Continental Congress but declined to serve |
| Edward Telfair | 1786–1786 1790–1793 |
— | — | Continental Delegate |
| George Mathews | 1787–1788 1793–1796 |
H | — | |
| James Jackson | 1798–1801 | H | S* | |
| Josiah Tattnall | 1801–1802 | — | S | |
| John Milledge | 1802–1806 | H | S* | |
| Peter Early | 1813–1815 | H | — | |
| George Troup | 1823–1827 | H | S | |
| John Forsyth | 1827–1829 | H† | S | Minister to Spain, U.S. Secretary of State[25] |
| George R. Gilmer | 1829–1831 1837–1839 |
H | — | |
| Wilson Lumpkin | 1831–1835 | H | S | |
| William Schley | 1835–1837 | H | — | |
| George W. Crawford | 1843–1847 | H | — | U.S. Secretary of War |
| George W. Towns | 1847–1851 | H | — | |
| Howell Cobb | 1851–1853 | H | — | Speaker of the House, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury, President of the Provisional Confederate Congress |
| Herschel V. Johnson | 1853–1857 | — | S | Confederate Senator |
| Joseph E. Brown | 1857–1865 | — | S | |
| James Johnson | 1865 | H | — | |
| James Milton Smith | 1872–1877 | — | — | Confederate Representative |
| Alfred H. Colquitt | 1877–1882 | H | S | |
| Alexander H. Stephens | 1882–1883 | H | — | Confederate Representative, Vice President of the Confederate States of America; elected to the U.S. Senate but was refused his seat |
| John Brown Gordon | 1886–1890 | — | S | |
| Allen D. Candler | 1898–1902 | H | — | |
| Joseph M. Terrell | 1902–1907 | — | S | |
| Hoke Smith | 1907–1909 1911 |
— | S* | U.S. Secretary of the Interior[26] |
| Thomas W. Hardwick | 1921–1923 | H | S | |
| Richard Russell, Jr. | 1931–1933 | — | S | President pro tempore of the Senate |
| Herman Talmadge | 1947 1948–1955 |
— | S | |
| Jimmy Carter | 1971–1975 | — | — | President of the United States |
| Zell Miller | 1991–1999 | — | S | |
| Nathan Deal | 2011– | H | — |
Living former U.S. governors of Georgia
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As of May 2015[update], there are five former U.S. governors of Georgia who are currently living at this time, the oldest U.S. governor of Georgia being Jimmy Carter (1971–1975, born 1924). The former U.S. governor of Georgia to die most recently was Carl Sanders (1963–1967), on November 16, 2014. The most recently serving U.S. governor of Georgia to die was George Busbee (1975–1983), on July 16, 2004.
| Governor | Gubernatorial term | Date of birth (and age) |
|---|---|---|
| Jimmy Carter | 1971–1975 | October 1, 1924 |
| Joe Frank Harris | 1983–1991 | February 16, 1936 |
| Zell Miller | 1991–1999 | February 24, 1932 |
| Roy Barnes | 1999–2003 | March 11, 1948 |
| George E. "Sonny" Perdue | 2003–2011 | December 20, 1946 |
Notes
- ^ Deal is officially the 82nd governor; other numbering is inferred from that.[1]
- ^ The office of Lieutenant Governor was created in 1945, first being filled in 1947.
- ^ The fractional terms of some governors are not to be understood absolutely literally; rather, they are meant to show single terms during which multiple governors served, due to resignations, deaths and the like.
- ^ a b c President of Council of Safety.
- ^ a b c There were no terms for the Council of Safety, the state being at war.[citation needed]
- ^ a b The Council of Safety voted Bulloch as president and commander-in-chief on April 15, [2] but did not send a 'letter of congratulation' until May 1.[3]
- ^ As president pro tempore of the Council of Safety, acted as president in the absence of elected president Elisha Butler, whom never arrived.[4]
- ^ a b President.
- ^ a b c Died in office.
- ^ Was speaker of the Provincial Congress, and was selected by the Council of Safety to succeed Bulloch.[5]
- ^ a b Most sources say January 8;[6] [7] [8] [9] some say January 10 [10] [11]
- ^ a b Many sources do not include William Glascock and Seth John Cuthbert as a governor; some mention Glascock as speaker of the House Assembly, and that he acted as governor.[12] Other sources state that due to the chaos caused by the fall of Savannah, the revolutionaries were without leadership, and William Glascock and Seth John Cuthbert made efforts to fill this gap until John Wereat took office.[13]
- ^ a b A schism emerged in late 1779 with competing executive councils, each of which elected a president, John Wereat and George Walton.[14][15] The official list, however, lists both.
- ^ Reportedly was or acted as governor, according to some sources; died in office.
- ^ Resigned in favor of Stephen Heard.
- ^ a b c Resigned to take elected seat in the United States Senate.
- ^ a b c d As president of the state senate, filled unexpired term.
- ^ Resigned due to declining health.
- ^ Resigned to be agent to the Creek Indians.
- ^ Resigned following the defeat of the Confederate States of America.
- ^ Provisional governor appointed by President Andrew Johnson following the American Civil War.
- ^ NGA says he left five days after Jenkins was installed.[citation needed]
- ^ Removed from office by the military because he refused to allow state funds to be used for a racially integrated state constitutional convention; the state was still under military occupation during Reconstruction.
- ^ Was he elected twice?[citation needed]
- ^ NGA might say 17th?[citation needed]
- ^ NGA might say June 28?[citation needed]
- ^ Provisional governor appointed by General George Meade.
- ^ NGA might say July 21?[citation needed]
- ^ NGA says resigned Oct 23?[citation needed]
- ^ Resigned and fled the state to avoid impeachment; he was arrested in 1876 and found not guilty of embezzlement.
- ^ NGA says he took office 7 days after Bullock resigned?[citation needed]
- ^ a b c As president of the senate, acted as governor until special election.
- ^ a b c Elected in special election.
- ^ Colquitt's first term was for four years, under the 1868 constitution; his second term was for two years under the 1877 constitution, which also shortened his second term by two months.
- ^ The start of office was apparently moved from November to October during Northen's term.
- ^ The start of a gubernatorial term has always been set by the legislature, rather than the constitution; it appears the start of the term changed from the last Saturday in October to the last Saturday in June, lengthening Terrell's second term by eight months.
- ^ The start of the gubernatorial term changed from the last Saturday in June to the second Tuesday in January, shortening Russell's term by five months.[16]
- ^ a b c Eugene Talmadge was elected to a third term in 1946, but died before taking office. Ellis Arnall, governor at the time, claimed the office, as did Lieutenant Governor Melvin Thompson. The state legislature chose Eugene Talmadge's son, Herman Talmadge, to be governor, but the state supreme court declared this unconstitutional and declared Thompson rightful governor, and Talmadge stepped down after 67 days. Talmadge later defeated Thompson in a special election.
- ^ Represented the Democratic Party.
- ^ Governor Deal's second term expires January 14, 2019. He is term limited.
References
- General
- "Governors of Georgia". National Governors Association. Retrieved March 5, 2011. <--broken link Aug 2015.
- "The New Georgia Encyclopedia". Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- A History of Georgia, second ed. Kenneth Coleman, general editor. University of Georgia Press: 1991.
- Constitutions
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia, as amended" (PDF). Secretary of State of Georgia. 1983. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia, as ratified". University of Georgia. 1983. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1976. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1945. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1877. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1868. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1865. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1861. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1798. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1789. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Constitution of the State of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1777. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- "Rules and Regulations of the Colony of Georgia". University of Georgia. 1776. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
- Specific
- ^ "CSG Releases 2013 Governor Salaries". The Council of State Governments. June 25, 2013. Retrieved November 23, 2014.
- ^ "Ratification of the Constitution by the State of Georgia - January 2, 1788". The Avalon Project at Yale Law School. Retrieved January 9, 2011.
- ^ "Yazoo Land Fraud". Our Georgia History. Retrieved 2006-08-04.
- ^ 1776 Const. art. I
- ^ 1777 Const. art. II
- ^ 1777 Const. art. XXIII
- ^ 1777 Const. art. XXIX
- ^ 1789 Const. art. 2, § 1
- ^ 1798 Const. Amendment 4
- ^ 1798 Const. Amendment 7
- ^ 1865 Const. art III, § 1
- ^ 1868 Const. art. IV, § 1
- ^ 1877 Const. art. 5, § 1 par. 2
- ^ [17]
- ^ GA Const. art V, § 1 par. 2
- ^ 1945 Const. art. V, § 1 par. 7
- ^ GA Const. art V, § 1 par 4
- ^ GA Const. art. V, § 1 par 5
- ^ [18]
- ^ [19]
- ^ [20]
- ^ a b President of Executive Council.
- ^ a b c d e f g [21]
- ^ The Troup party was essentially the continuation of the Jackson faction (followers of James Jackson).
- ^ [22]
- ^ [23]
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