List of governors of Iowa explained

Post:	Governor
Body:	Iowa
Insignia:	Iowa-StateSeal.svg
Insigniasize:	110
Insigniacaption:	State seal
Incumbent:	Kim Reynolds
Incumbentsince:	May 24, 2017
Style:	The Honorable
Department:	Government of Iowa
Residence:	Terrace Hill
Termlength:	Four years, no term limits
Precursor:	Governor of Iowa Territory
Inaugural:	Ansel Briggs
Salary:	$130,000 (2022)^[1]

The governor of Iowa is the head of government of the U.S. state of Iowa. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the state government^[2] and is charged with enforcing state laws.^[3] The officeholder has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Iowa General Assembly,^[4] to convene the legislature,^[5] as well as to grant pardons, except in cases of treason and impeachment.^[6] The governor of Iowa is also the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.^[7]

There have been 41 individuals who held the position of Iowa governor, with two of those serving multiple distinct terms, Samuel J. Kirkwood and Terry Branstad. The current governor, Kim Reynolds, is the first woman to hold the position and was sworn in on May 24, 2017. The longest-serving is Terry Branstad, who served from 1983 to 1999 and then again from 2011 to 2017. He is the longest-serving governor in U.S. history, surpassing the previous record of 21 years set by George Clinton of New York. The shortest-serving was Robert D. Fulton, who served 16 days.

List of governors

Territory of Iowa

Iowa Territory was formed on July 4, 1838, from Wisconsin Territory. It had four governors appointed by the president of the United States, though the first resigned days after he was confirmed by the Senate and before ever reaching the territory.

!scope="colgroup" colspan="2"

Governor	Term in office	Appointed by
1	data-sort-value="Atkinson, Henry"		Henry Atkinson	- July 7, 1838
2	data-sort-value="Lucas, Robert"		Robert Lucas	- June 17, 1841
3	data-sort-value="Chambers, John"		John Chambers	- November 18, 1845
4	data-sort-value="Clarke, John"		James Clarke	- December 3, 1846

State of Iowa

The southeast portion of Iowa Territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Iowa on December 28, 1846. The first Constitution of Iowa, adopted in 1846, created the office of governor with a four-year term,^[8] with no specific start date. The 1857 constitution reduced this term to two years,^[9] but an amendment in 1972 increased this back to four years.^[10] The 1857 constitution also set the start of the term to the second Monday in the January following the election,^[11] which was moved one day later by a 1988 amendment.^[12]

The office of lieutenant governor was created in the 1857 constitution, elected for the same term as the governor.^[13] An amendment in 1988 specified that the lieutenant governor would be elected on the same ticket as the governor.^[14] If the office becomes vacant, it devolves upon the lieutenant governor for the remainder of the term or vacancy.^[15] Prior to 1857, if the office became vacant, the Secretary of State of Iowa would act as governor.^[16] There is no term limit on the number of terms a governor may serve.

!scope="colgroup" colspan="3"

Governor	Term in office	Party	Election	Lt. Governor
1	data-sort-value="Briggs, Ansel"			Ansel Briggs ^[17]	^[18]  - December 4, 1850	Democratic	1846	Office did not exist
2	data-sort-value="Hempstead, Stephen"			Stephen P. Hempstead ^[19]	^[20]  - December 9, 1854	Democratic	1850
3	data-sort-value="Grimes, James"			James W. Grimes ^[21]	^[22]  - January 14, 1858	Whig	1854
4	data-sort-value="Lowe, Ralph"			Ralph P. Lowe ^[23]	^[24]  - January 11, 1860	Republican	1857
5		Samuel J. Kirkwood ^[25]		^[26]  - January 14, 1864	Republican	1859
						1861
6		William M. Stone ^[27]		^[28]  - January 16, 1868	Republican	1863
						1865
7		Samuel Merrill ^[29]		^[30]  - January 11, 1872	Republican	1867
						1869
							Vacant
8		Cyrus C. Carpenter ^[31]		^[32]  - January 13, 1876	Republican	1871
						1873
9	data-sort-value="Kirkwood, Samuel"			Samuel J. Kirkwood	^[33]  - February 1, 1877	Republican		1875
10	data-sort-value="Newbold, Joshua"			Joshua G. Newbold ^[34]	^[35]  - January 17, 1878	Republican		Vacant
11		John H. Gear ^[36]		^[37]  - January 12, 1882	Republican	1877
						1879
12		Buren R. Sherman ^[38]		^[39]  - January 14, 1886	Republican	1881
						1883
13		William Larrabee ^[40]		^[41]  - February 27, 1890	Republican	1885
						1887
14			Horace Boies ^[42]	- January 11, 1894	Democratic	1889
						1891
15	data-sort-value="Jackson, Frank"			Frank D. Jackson ^[43]	^[44]  - January 16, 1896	Republican	1893
16	data-sort-value="Drake, Francis"			Francis M. Drake ^[45]	^[46]  - January 13, 1898	Republican	1895
17		L. M. Shaw ^[47]		^[48]  - January 16, 1902	Republican	1897
						1899
18		Albert B. Cummins ^[49]		^[50]  - November 24, 1908	Republican	1901
						1903
						1906
19	data-sort-value="Garst, Warren"			Warren Garst ^[51]	^[52]  - January 14, 1909	Republican		Vacant
20		Beryl F. Carroll ^[53]		^[54]  - January 16, 1913	Republican	1908
						1910
21		George W. Clarke ^[55]		^[56]  - January 11, 1917	Republican	1912
						1914
22		William L. Harding ^[57]		^[58]  - January 13, 1921	Republican	1916
						1918
23		Nathan E. Kendall ^[59]		^[60]  - January 15, 1925	Republican	1920
						1922
24		John Hammill ^[61]		^[62]  - January 15, 1931	Republican	1924
						1926
							Vacant
						1928
25	data-sort-value="Turner, Dan"			Dan W. Turner ^[63]	^[64]  - January 12, 1933	Republican			1930
26			Clyde L. Herring ^[65]	^[66]  - January 14, 1937	Democratic	1932
						1934
27	data-sort-value="Kraschel, Nelson"			Nelson G. Kraschel ^[67]	^[68]  - January 12, 1939	Democratic		1936
28			George A. Wilson ^[69]	^[70]  - January 14, 1943	Republican	1938
						1940
29	data-sort-value="Hickenlooper, Bourke"			Bourke B. Hickenlooper ^[71]	^[72]  - January 11, 1945	Republican		1942
30			Robert D. Blue ^[73]	^[74]  - January 13, 1949	Republican	1944
						1946
31			William S. Beardsley ^[75]	^[76]  - November 21, 1954	Republican	1948
						1950
						1952
32	data-sort-value="Elton, Leo"			Leo Elthon ^[77]	^[78]  - January 13, 1955	Republican		Vacant
33	data-sort-value="Hoegh, Leo"			Leo Hoegh ^[79]	^[80]  - January 17, 1957	Republican	1954
34			Herschel C. Loveless ^[81]	^[82]  - January 12, 1961	Democratic	1956
						1958
35	data-sort-value="Erbe, Norman"			Norman A. Erbe ^[83]	^[84]  - January 17, 1963	Republican		1960
36			Harold Hughes ^[85]	^[86]  - January 1, 1969	Democratic	1962
						1964
						1966
37	data-sort-value="Fulton, Robert"			Robert D. Fulton ^[87]	^[88]  - January 16, 1969	Democratic		Vacant
38			Robert D. Ray ^[89]	^[90]  - January 14, 1983	Republican	1968
						1970
						1972
						1974
						1978
39			Terry Branstad ^[91]	^[92]  - January 15, 1999	Republican	1982
						1986
						1990
						1994
40			Tom Vilsack ^[93]	^[94]  - January 12, 2007	Democratic	1998
						2002
41	data-sort-value="Culver, Chet"			Chet Culver ^[95]	^[96]  - January 14, 2011	Democratic		2006
42			Terry Branstad	^[97]  - May 24, 2017	Republican	2010
						2014
43			Kim Reynolds ^[98]	^[99]  - Incumbent	Republican		Vacant
						2018
						2022

See also

• Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States#Iowa

References

General

• Web site: Former Iowa Governors . July 2, 2019 . National Governors Association.
• Book: Sobel, Robert . Biographical directory of the governors of the United States, 1789-1978, Vol. II . Meckler Books . 1978 . 9780930466008 . February 27, 2023.
• Book: McMullin, Thomas A. . Biographical directory of American territorial governors . 1984 . Westport, CT : Meckler . 978-0-930466-11-4 . January 19, 2023.
• Book: Dubin, Michael J. . United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1776-1860: The Official Results by State and County . 2003 . McFarland . 978-0-7864-1439-0.
• Book: Dubin, Michael J. . United States Gubernatorial Elections, 1861-1911: The Official Results by State and County . 2014 . McFarland . 978-0-7864-5646-8 . en.
• Book: Kallenbach, Joseph Ernest . American State Governors, 1776-1976 . 1977 . Oceana Publications . 978-0-379-00665-0 . September 23, 2023.
• Book: Glashan, Roy R. . American Governors and Gubernatorial Elections, 1775-1978 . 1979 . Meckler Books . 978-0-930466-17-6.
• Web site: Our Campaigns - Governor of Iowa - History . 2023-07-25 . www.ourcampaigns.com.

Constitutions

• Web site: 1857 . Constitution of the State of Iowa . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110703135226/http://www.legis.state.ia.us/Constitution.html . July 3, 2011 . November 8, 2014 . Iowa General Assembly.
• Web site: 1998 . Amendments to the Constitution of Iowa . November 8, 2014 . Iowa General Assembly.
• Web site: 1846 . Constitution of the State of Iowa . November 8, 2014 . Iowa General Assembly.

Specific

External links

• Office of the Governor of Iowa

Notes and References

1. Web site: Selected State Administrative Officials: Annual Salaries . The Council of State Governments . August 7, 2024.
2. IA Const. art. IV, § 1.
3. IA Const. art. IV, § 9.
4. IA Const. art III, § 16
5. IA Const. art. IV, § 11.
6. IA Const., art. IV, § 16.
7. IA Const. art. IV, § 7.
8. 1846 Const. article V, § 2
9. IA Const. art. IV, § 2
10. IA Const. amendment 32
11. IA Const. art. IV, § 15
12. IA Const. amendment 42
13. IA Const. art. IV, § 3
14. IA Const. amendment 41
15. IA Const. art. IV, § 17
16. 1846 Const. art V, § 18
17. Web site: Ansel Briggs . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
18. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1846 sess., 33, accessed August 20, 2023
19. Web site: Stephen Hempstead . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
20. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1850 sess., 35, accessed August 20, 2023
21. Web site: James Wilson Grimes . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
22. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1854 sess., 42, accessed August 20, 2023
23. Web site: Ralph Phillips Lowe . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
24. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1858 sess., 47, accessed August 20, 2023
25. Web site: Samuel Jordan Kirkwood . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
26. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1860 sess., 51, accessed August 20, 2023
27. Web site: William Milo Stone . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
28. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1864 sess., 42, accessed August 20, 2023
29. Web site: Samuel Merrill . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
30. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1868 sess., 46, accessed August 20, 2023
31. Web site: Cyrus Clay Carpenter . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
32. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1872 sess., 54, accessed August 20, 2023
33. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1876 sess., 25, accessed August 20, 2023
34. Web site: Joshua G. Newbold . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
35. News: 1877-02-07 . none . Last Thursday, at half past ten a.m., Lieut. Governor Newbold became full fledged Governor of Iowa by taking the oath as prescribed by the Constitution. . 4 . The Courier . 2023-08-20.
36. Web site: John Henry Gear . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
37. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1878 sess., 24, accessed August 20, 2023
38. Web site: Buren Robinson Sherman . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
39. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1882 sess., 20, accessed August 20, 2023
40. Web site: William Larrabee . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
41. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1886 sess., 33, accessed August 20, 2023
42. Web site: Horace Boies . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
43. Web site: Frank Darr Jackson . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
44. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1894 sess., 29, accessed August 20, 2023
45. Web site: Francis Marion Drake . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
46. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1896 sess., 33, accessed August 20, 2023
47. Web site: Leslie Mortier Shaw . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
48. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1898 sess., 102, accessed August 20, 2023
49. Web site: Albert Baird Cummins . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
50. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1902 sess., 53, accessed August 20, 2023
51. Web site: Warren Garst . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
52. News: 1908-11-25 . Garst Takes Oath As Iowa Governor . 2 . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-20.
53. Web site: Beryl Franklin Carroll . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
54. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1909 sess., 49, accessed August 20, 2023
55. Web site: George Washington Clarke . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
56. News: 1913-01-17 . New Regime Takes Hold at Capital . 1 . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-20.
57. Web site: William Lloyd Harding . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
58. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1917 sess., 117, accessed August 20, 2023
59. Web site: Nathan Edward Kendall . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
60. News: 1921-01-13 . Kendall Takes Oath of Office . 1 . Quad-City Times . 2023-08-20.
61. Web site: John Hammill . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
62. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1925 sess., 71, accessed August 20, 2023
63. Web site: Daniel Webster Turner . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
64. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1931 sess., 93, accessed August 20, 2023
65. Web site: Clyde Laverne Herring . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
66. News: 1933-01-12 . Herring Takes Oath As 26th Governor of State . 1 . Iowa City Press-Citizen . Associated Press . 2023-08-20.
67. Web site: Nelson George Kraschel . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
68. News: 1937-01-15 . Government Changes Urged . 4 . Sioux City Journal . Associated Press . 2023-08-20.
69. Web site: George Allison Wilson . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
70. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1939 sess., 55, accessed August 20, 2023
71. Web site: Bourke Blakemore Hickenlooper . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
72. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1943 sess., 48, accessed August 20, 2023
73. Web site: Robert Donald Blue . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
74. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1945 sess., 49, accessed August 20, 2023
75. Web site: William S. Beardsley . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
76. News: Mills . George . 1949-01-14 . Both Parties Laud Speech of Beardsley . 1 . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
77. Web site: Leo Elthon . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
78. News: Mills . George . 1954-11-22 . Crash Kills Beardsley; Car Hits Rear of Truck Near D. M.; Elthon Is Governor; Will Serve 2 Months As Iowa's Chief . 1 . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
79. Web site: Leo ARthur Hoegh . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
80. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1955 sess., 52, accessed August 20, 2023
81. Web site: Herschel C. Loveless . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
82. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the House of Representatives. 1957 sess., 57, accessed August 20, 2023
83. Web site: Norman Arthur Erbe . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
84. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1961 sess., 48, accessed August 20, 2023
85. Web site: Harold Everett Hughes . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
86. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1963 sess., 46, accessed August 20, 2023
87. Web site: Robert David Fulton . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
88. News: Mabry . Drake . 1969-01-02 . Governor's Oath to Fulton . 1 . Des Moines Tribune . 2023-08-21.
89. Web site: Robert D. Ray . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
90. Iowa General Assembly. Journal of the Senate. 1969 sess., 62, accessed August 20, 2023
91. Web site: Terry E. Branstad . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
92. News: Yepsen . David . Knudson . Dewey . Witosky . Tom . 1983-01-15 . New Governor Calls for Action on Social Programs, Education . 1A . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
93. Web site: Thomas J. Vilsack . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
94. News: Yepsen . David . 1999-01-16 . Vilsack's Inaugural Address Stresses Importance of Iowa's Children . 1A . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
95. Web site: Chet Culver . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
96. News: Beaumont . Thomas . 2007-01-13 . State Needs To Lead the Nation in Renewable Energy, He Says . 1A . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
97. News: Beaumont . Thomas . 2011-01-15 . New Era Dawns for Branstad . 1A . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.
98. Web site: Kim Reynolds . February 27, 2023 . National Governors Association.
99. News: Noble . Jason . 2017-05-25 . State's 43rd Chief Executive Completes Her Historic Ascent . 1A . The Des Moines Register . 2023-08-21.