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List of governors of North Carolina

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The Governor of North Carolina has a duty to enforce state laws and to convene the legislature.[1] The Governor may grant pardons except in cases of impeachment.[2] For about 220 years the Governor had no power to veto bills passed by the North Carolina General Assembly, but a referendum in November 1996 altered the state's constitution, so that North Carolina ceased to be the only state whose governor lacked that power.[3]

There have been three Presidents and 71 Governors of North Carolina, with four Governors serving non-consecutive terms, totaling 78 terms in both offices. The current Governor is Democrat Roy Cooper, whose term began on January 1, 2017.

Governors

See List of Governors of North Carolina (1712–1776) for the pre-statehood period.

North Carolina was one of the original thirteen colonies, and was admitted as a state on November 21, 1789 . Prior to declaring its independence, North Carolina was a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain.

Presidents of the Provincial Council

The 13-member Provincial Council, renamed the Council of Safety in April 1776, was essentially the executive authority during the second year of the Revolution, and was appointed by the Provincial Congress. The Presidency of the Council and the Presidency of the Congress could each be considered the highest offices in the state during this time, but the council was supreme when the congress was not in session. [4]

  • Presidents of the Council:
    • Cornelius Harnett (18 October 1775 – 5 March 1776; 5 June 1776 – 21 August 1776)
    • Samuel Ashe (21 August 1776 – 27 September 1776)
    • Willie Jones (27 September 1776 – 25 October 1776; some sources indicate that Jones was president through November 12, when the Fifth Provincial Congress convened.)

Governors of the State of North Carolina

After the current state constitution was ratified in 1971, North Carolina Governors are limited to two consecutive terms in office; they had previously been limited to one term.[5]

Political party

  Democratic   Federalist   Democratic-Republican   Anti-Federalist   No party   Whig/National Republican   Republican/National Union

# Governor Portrait Took office Left office Party Notes
1 Richard Caswell November 12, 1776 April 20, 1780 No party
2 Abner Nash April 20, 1780 June 26, 1781 No party
3 Thomas Burke June 26, 1781 April 22, 1782 No party
4 Alexander Martin April 22, 1782 May 13, 1785 Anti-Federalist
5 Richard Caswell May 13, 1785 December 20, 1787 No party
6 Samuel Johnston December 20, 1787 December 17, 1789 Federalist
7 Alexander Martin December 17, 1789 December 14, 1792 Anti-Federalist
8 Richard Dobbs Spaight December 14, 1792 November 19, 1795 Federalist
9 Samuel Ashe November 19, 1795 December 7, 1798 Anti-Federalist
10 William Richardson Davie December 7, 1798 November 23, 1799 Federalist
11 Benjamin Williams November 23, 1799 December 6, 1802 Federalist
12 James Turner December 6, 1802 December 10, 1805 Democratic-Republican [6]
13 Nathaniel Alexander December 10, 1805 December 1, 1807 Democratic-Republican
14 Benjamin Williams December 1, 1807 December 12, 1808 Federalist
15 David Stone December 12, 1808 December 1, 1810 Democratic-Republican
16 Benjamin Smith December 1, 1810 December 11, 1811 Democratic-Republican
17 William Hawkins December 11, 1811 November 29, 1814 Democratic-Republican
18 William Miller November 29, 1814 December 6, 1817 Democratic-Republican
19 John Branch December 6, 1817 December 7, 1820 Democratic-Republican
20 Jesse Franklin December 7, 1820 December 7, 1821 Democratic-Republican
21 Gabriel Holmes December 7, 1821 December 7, 1824 Democratic-Republican
22 Hutchins Gordon Burton December 7, 1824 December 8, 1827 No party
23 James Iredell Jr. December 8, 1827 December 12, 1828 Democratic-Republican
24 John Owen December 12, 1828 December 18, 1830 Democratic
25 Montfort Stokes December 18, 1830 December 6, 1832 Democratic
26 David Lowry Swain December 6, 1832 December 10, 1835 National Republican
27 Richard Dobbs Spaight Jr. December 10, 1835 December 31, 1836 Democratic
28 Edward Bishop Dudley December 31, 1836 January 1, 1841 Whig
29 John Motley Morehead January 1, 1841 January 1, 1845 Whig
30 William Alexander Graham January 1, 1845 January 1, 1849 Whig
31 Charles Manly January 1, 1849 January 1, 1851 Whig
32 David Settle Reid January 1, 1851 December 6, 1854 Democratic
33 Warren Winslow December 6, 1854 January 1, 1855 Democratic
34 Thomas Bragg January 1, 1855 January 1, 1859 Democratic
35 John Willis Ellis January 1, 1859 July 7, 1861 Democratic
36 Henry Toole Clark July 7, 1861 September 8, 1862 Democratic
37 Zebulon Baird Vance September 8, 1862 May 29, 1865 Conservative
38 William Woods Holden May 29, 1865 December 15, 1865 National Union [7]
39 Jonathan Worth December 15, 1865 July 1, 1868 Conservative
40 William Woods Holden July 1, 1868 March 22, 1871 Republican
41 Tod Robinson Caldwell March 22, 1871 July 11, 1874 Republican
42 Curtis Hooks Brogden July 11, 1874 January 1, 1877 Republican
43 Zebulon Baird Vance January 1, 1877 February 5, 1879 Democratic
44 Thomas Jordan Jarvis February 5, 1879 January 21, 1885 Democratic
45 Alfred Moore Scales January 21, 1885 January 17, 1889 Democratic
46 Daniel Gould Fowle January 17, 1889 April 7, 1891 Democratic
47 Thomas Michael Holt April 7, 1891 January 18, 1893 Democratic
48 Elias Carr January 18, 1893 January 12, 1897 Democratic
49 Daniel Lindsay Russell January 12, 1897 January 15, 1901 Republican [8]
50 Charles Brantley Aycock January 15, 1901 January 11, 1905 Democratic
51 Robert Broadnax Glenn January 11, 1905 January 12, 1909 Democratic
52 William Walton Kitchin January 12, 1909 January 15, 1913 Democratic
53 Locke Craig January 15, 1913 January 11, 1917 Democratic
54 Thomas Walter Bickett January 11, 1917 January 12, 1921 Democratic
55 Cameron A. Morrison January 12, 1921 January 14, 1925 Democratic
56 Angus Wilton McLean January 14, 1925 January 11, 1929 Democratic
57 Oliver Max Gardner January 11, 1929 January 5, 1933 Democratic
58 John C.B. Ehringhaus January 5, 1933 January 7, 1937 Democratic
59 Clyde R. Hoey January 7, 1937 January 9, 1941 Democratic
60 J. Melville Broughton January 9, 1941 January 4, 1945 Democratic
61 R. Gregg Cherry January 4, 1945 January 6, 1949 Democratic
62 W. Kerr Scott January 6, 1949 January 8, 1953 Democratic
63 William B. Umstead January 8, 1953 November 7, 1954 Democratic
64 Luther H. Hodges November 7, 1954 January 5, 1961 Democratic
65 Terry Sanford January 5, 1961 January 8, 1965 Democratic
66 Dan K. Moore January 8, 1965 January 3, 1969 Democratic
67 Robert W. Scott January 3, 1969 January 5, 1973 Democratic
68 James Holshouser January 5, 1973 January 8, 1977 Republican
69 James B. Hunt Jr. January 8, 1977 January 5, 1985 Democratic
70 James G. Martin January 5, 1985 January 9, 1993 Republican
71 James B. Hunt Jr. January 9, 1993 January 6, 2001 Democratic
72 Mike Easley January 6, 2001 January 10, 2009 Democratic
73 Beverly Perdue January 10, 2009 January 5, 2013 Democratic [9]
74 Pat McCrory January 5, 2013 January 1, 2017 Republican
75 Roy Cooper January 1, 2017 Present Democratic

Other high offices held

This is a table of congressional seats, other federal offices, and other governorships held by governors. All representatives and senators mentioned represented North Carolina except where noted. * denotes those offices which the governor resigned to take.

Governor Gubernatorial term U.S. Congress Other offices held
House Senate
Alexander Martin 1782–1784
1789–1792 		S
Samuel Johnston 1787–1789 S*
Richard Dobbs Spaight 1792–1795 H Delegate to Philadelphia Convention and signer of the United States Constitution
William Richardson Davie 1798–1799 Delegate to Philadelphia Convention
Benjamin Williams 1799–1802
1807–1808 		H
James Turner 1802–1805 S
Nathaniel Alexander 1805–1807 H
David Stone 1808–1810 H S
John Branch 1817–1820 S United States Secretary of the Navy; Governor of Florida Territory
Jesse Franklin 1820–1821 H S
Gabriel Holmes 1821–1824 H
Hutchins Gordon Burton 1824–1827 H
James Iredell, Jr. 1827–1828 S*
Montfort Stokes 1830–1832 S
Richard Dobbs Spaight, Jr. 1835–1836 H
Edward Bishop Dudley 1836–1841 H
William Alexander Graham 1845–1849 S United States Secretary of the Navy; Confederate Senator
David Settle Reid 1851–1854 H S*
Warren Winslow 1854–1855 H
Thomas Bragg 1855–1859 S Confederate States Attorney General
Zebulon Baird Vance 1862–1865
1877–1879 		S*
Curtis Hooks Brogden 1874–1877 H
Thomas Jordan Jarvis 1879–1885 S United States Minister to Brazil
Alfred Moore Scales 1885–1889 H
Daniel Lindsay Russell 1897–1901 H
William Walton Kitchin 1909–1913 H
Cameron Morrison 1921–1925 H S
Oliver Max Gardner 1929–1933 U.S. Under Secretary of the Treasury
Clyde R. Hoey 1937–1941 H S
J. Melville Broughton 1941–1945 S
W. Kerr Scott 1949–1953 S
William B. Umstead 1953–1954 H S
Luther H. Hodges 1954–1961 United States Secretary of Commerce
Terry Sanford 1961–1965 S
Jim Martin 1985–1993 H

Living former Governors of North Carolina

As of January 2018, there are five former Governors of North Carolina who are currently living at this time, the oldest U.S. governor of North Carolina being James G. Martin (served 1985–1993, born 1935). The most recent Governor of North Carolina to die, and the most recently serving Governor of North Carolina to die, was James Holshouser (served 1973–1977, born 1934), on June 17, 2013.

Governor Gubernatorial term Date of birth (and age)
James G. Martin 1985–1993 (1935-12-11) December 11, 1935 (age 88)
James B. Hunt, Jr. 1977–1985
1993–2001 		(1937-05-16) May 16, 1937 (age 87)
Mike Easley 2001–2009 (1950-03-23) March 23, 1950 (age 74)
Bev Perdue 2009–2013 (1947-01-14) January 14, 1947 (age 77)
Pat McCrory 2013–2017 (1956-10-17) October 17, 1956 (age 68)

References

  1. ^ NC Constitution article III, § 5 (11).
  2. ^ NC Constitution article III, § 5 (6).
  3. ^ NC Constitution article II, § 22.
  4. ^ R. D. W. Connor (Robert Digges Wimberly), 1878-1950, ed. A Manual of North Carolina Issued by the North Carolina Historical Commission for the Use of the Members of the General Assembly Session 1913
  5. ^ http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/Legislation/constitution/ncconstitution.html
  6. ^ John Baptista Ashe was elected in 1802 to succeed Williams but died before he could take office, leading the legislature to elect Turner.
  7. ^ Provisional Governor appointed by President Andrew Johnson until a special election could be held.
  8. ^ Russell, while a Republican, was supported by many in the Populist Party as part of an electoral fusion coalition, though a separate Populist candidate was also nominated. http://www.northcarolinahistory.org/encyclopedia/58/entry
  9. ^ Beverly Perdue was elected as the first female governor of North Carolina in the election of 2008.
Official
General information
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