List of governors of Connecticut facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Governor of Connecticut |
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Government of Connecticut | |
Style | Governor (informally) His Excellency (formal) |
Member of | Cabinet |
Residence | Governor's Residence |
Seat | Connecticut State Capitol, Hartford, Connecticut |
Nominator | Political parties |
Appointer | Popular vote |
Term length | Four years, no limit |
Constituting instrument | Constitution of Connecticut |
Precursor | Governor of Saybrook (merged with Connecticut, 1644) Governor of New Haven (merged with Connecticut, 1665) |
Formation | 1639 |
Deputy | Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut |
Salary | $150,000 (2013) |
Website | Office of the Governor |
The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Connecticut General Assembly and to convene the legislature. Unusual among U.S. governors, the Governor of Connecticut has no power to pardon. The Governor of Connecticut is automatically a member of the state's Bonding Commission. He is an ex-officio member of the board of trustees of the University of Connecticut and Yale University.
There have been 69 post-Revolution governors of the state, serving 73 distinct spans in office. Four have served non-consecutive terms: Henry W. Edwards, James E. English, Marshall Jewell, and Raymond E. Baldwin. The longest terms in office were in the state's early years, when four governors were elected to nine or more one-year terms. The longest was that of the first governor, Jonathan Trumbull, who served over 14 years, but 7 of those as colonial governor; the longest-serving state governor — with no other position included in the term — was his son, Jonathan Trumbull Jr., who served over 11 years. The shortest term was that of Hiram Bingham III, who served only one day before resigning to take an elected seat in the U.S. Senate. Additionally, Lowell Weicker is noted for a rare third party win in American politics, having been elected to a term in 1990 representing A Connecticut Party.
The current governor is Ned Lamont, a Democrat who took office on January 9, 2019.
Governors
Connecticut was one of the original Thirteen Colonies and was admitted as a state on January 9, 1788. Before it declared its independence, Connecticut was a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain.
Connecticut did not create a state constitution for itself until several decades after it became a state; until 1818, the state operated under the provisions of its colonial charter. The charter called for the election of a governor every year, but not more than once every two years, with the term commencing on the second Thursday in May.
The current Constitution of Connecticut, ratified in 1965, calls for a four-year term for the governor, commencing on the Wednesday after the first Monday in the January following an election. The previous constitution of 1818 originally had only a one-year term for governor; this was increased to two years in 1875, and four years in 1948. The 1875 amendment also set the start date of the term to its current date; before then, it was the first Wednesday in the May following an election. The constitution provides for the election of a lieutenant governor for the same term as the governor. The two offices are elected on the same ticket; this provision was added in 1962. In the event of a vacancy in the office of governor, the lieutenant governor becomes governor. Before the adoption of the 1965 constitution, the lieutenant governor only acted as governor. There is no limit of any kind on the number of terms one may serve.
No. | Governor | Term in office | Party | Election | Lt. Governor | |||
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16 | Jonathan Trumbull October 12, 1710 – August 17, 1785 (aged 74) |
1769 – May 13, 1784 (not candidate for election) |
No party | 1776 | Matthew Griswold | |||
1777 | ||||||||
1778 | ||||||||
1779 | ||||||||
1780 | ||||||||
1781 | ||||||||
1782 | ||||||||
1783 | ||||||||
17 | Matthew Griswold March 25, 1714 – April 28, 1799 (aged 85) |
May 13, 1784 – May 11, 1786 (lost election) |
Federalist | 1784 | Samuel Huntington | |||
1785 | ||||||||
18 | Samuel Huntington July 16, 1731 – January 5, 1796 (aged 64) |
May 11, 1786 – January 5, 1796 (died in office) |
Federalist | 1786 | Oliver Wolcott | |||
1787 | ||||||||
1788 | ||||||||
1789 | ||||||||
1790 | ||||||||
1791 | ||||||||
1792 | ||||||||
1793 | ||||||||
1794 | ||||||||
1795 | ||||||||
19 | Oliver Wolcott November 20, 1726 – December 1, 1797 (aged 71) |
January 5, 1796 – December 1, 1797 (died in office) |
Federalist | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1796 | Jonathan Trumbull Jr. | |||||||
1797 | ||||||||
20 | Jonathan Trumbull Jr. March 26, 1740 – August 7, 1809 (aged 69) |
December 1, 1797 – August 7, 1809 (died in office) |
Federalist | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1798 | John Treadwell | |||||||
1799 | ||||||||
1800 | ||||||||
1801 | ||||||||
1802 | ||||||||
1803 | ||||||||
1804 | ||||||||
1805 | ||||||||
1806 | ||||||||
1807 | ||||||||
1808 | ||||||||
1809 | ||||||||
21 | John Treadwell November 23, 1745 – August 18, 1823 (aged 77) |
August 7, 1809 – May 9, 1811 (lost election) |
Federalist | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1810 | Roger Griswold | |||||||
22 | Roger Griswold May 21, 1762 – October 25, 1812 (aged 50) |
May 9, 1811 – October 25, 1812 (died in office) |
Federalist | 1811 | John Cotton Smith | |||
1812 | ||||||||
23 | John Cotton Smith February 12, 1765 – December 7, 1845 (aged 80) |
October 25, 1812 – May 8, 1817 (lost election) |
Federalist | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1813 | Chauncey Goodrich (died August 18, 1815) |
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1814 | ||||||||
1815 | ||||||||
Vacant | ||||||||
1816 | Jonathan Ingersoll (died January 12, 1823) |
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24 | Oliver Wolcott Jr. January 11, 1760 – June 1, 1833 (aged 73) |
May 8, 1817 – May 2, 1827 (lost election) |
Toleration Republican |
1817 | ||||
1818 | ||||||||
1819 | ||||||||
1820 | ||||||||
1821 | ||||||||
1822 | ||||||||
Vacant | ||||||||
1823 | David Plant | |||||||
1824 | ||||||||
1825 | ||||||||
1826 | ||||||||
25 | Gideon Tomlinson December 31, 1780 – October 8, 1854 (aged 73) |
May 2, 1827 – March 2, 1831 (resigned) |
Democratic- Republican |
1827 | John Samuel Peters | |||
National Republican | 1828 | |||||||
1829 | ||||||||
1830 | ||||||||
26 | John Samuel Peters September 21, 1772 – March 30, 1858 (aged 85) |
March 2, 1831 – May 1, 1833 (lost election) |
National Republican | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1831 | Vacant | |||||||
1832 | Thaddeus Betts | |||||||
27 | Henry W. Edwards October 1779 – July 22, 1847 (aged 67) |
May 1, 1833 – May 7, 1834 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1833 | Ebenezer Stoddard | |||
28 | Samuel A. Foot November 8, 1780 – September 15, 1846 (aged 65) |
May 7, 1834 – May 6, 1835 (lost election) |
Whig | 1834 | Thaddeus Betts | |||
29 | Henry W. Edwards October 1779 – July 22, 1847 (aged 67) |
May 6, 1835 – May 2, 1838 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1835 | Ebenezer Stoddard | |||
1836 | ||||||||
1837 | ||||||||
30 | William W. Ellsworth November 10, 1791 – January 15, 1868 (aged 76) |
May 2, 1838 – May 4, 1842 (lost election) |
Whig | 1838 | Charles Hawley | |||
1839 | ||||||||
1840 | ||||||||
1841 | ||||||||
31 | Chauncey Fitch Cleveland February 16, 1799 – June 6, 1887 (aged 88) |
May 4, 1842 – May 1, 1844 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1842 | William S. Holabird | |||
1843 | ||||||||
32 | Roger Sherman Baldwin January 4, 1793 – February 19, 1863 (aged 70) |
May 1, 1844 – May 6, 1846 (not candidate for election) |
Whig | 1844 | Reuben Booth | |||
1845 | ||||||||
33 | Isaac Toucey November 15, 1792 – July 30, 1869 (aged 76) |
May 6, 1846 – May 5, 1847 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1846 | Noyes Billings | |||
34 | Clark Bissell September 7, 1782 – September 15, 1857 (aged 75) |
May 5, 1847 – May 2, 1849 (not candidate for election) |
Whig | 1847 | Charles J. McCurdy | |||
1848 | ||||||||
35 | Joseph Trumbull December 7, 1782 – August 4, 1861 (aged 78) |
May 2, 1849 – May 4, 1850 (not candidate for election) |
Whig | 1849 | Thomas Backus | |||
36 | Thomas H. Seymour September 29, 1807 – September 3, 1868 (aged 60) |
May 4, 1850 – October 13, 1853 (resigned) |
Democratic | 1850 | Charles H. Pond | |||
1851 | Green Kendrick | |||||||
1852 | Charles H. Pond | |||||||
1853 | ||||||||
37 | Charles H. Pond April 26, 1781 – April 28, 1861 (aged 80) |
October 13, 1853 – May 3, 1854 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
38 | Henry Dutton February 12, 1796 – April 26, 1869 (aged 73) |
May 3, 1854 – May 2, 1855 (lost election) |
Whig | 1854 | Alexander H. Holley | |||
39 | William T. Minor October 3, 1815 – October 13, 1889 (aged 74) |
May 2, 1855 – May 6, 1857 (not candidate for election) |
American | 1855 | William Field | |||
1856 | Albert Day | |||||||
40 | Alexander H. Holley August 12, 1804 – October 2, 1887 (aged 83) |
May 6, 1857 – May 5, 1858 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1857 | Alfred A. Burnham | |||
41 | William Alfred Buckingham May 28, 1804 – February 5, 1875 (aged 70) |
May 5, 1858 – May 2, 1866 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1858 | Julius Catlin | |||
1859 | ||||||||
1860 | ||||||||
1861 | Benjamin Douglas | |||||||
1862 | Roger Averill | |||||||
1863 | ||||||||
National Union | 1864 | |||||||
1865 | ||||||||
42 | Joseph Roswell Hawley October 31, 1826 – March 18, 1905 (aged 78) |
May 2, 1866 – May 1, 1867 (lost election) |
Republican | 1866 | Oliver Winchester | |||
43 | James E. English March 13, 1812 – March 2, 1890 (aged 77) |
May 1, 1867 – May 5, 1869 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1867 | Ephraim H. Hyde | |||
1868 | ||||||||
44 | Marshall Jewell October 20, 1825 – February 10, 1883 (aged 57) |
May 5, 1869 – May 4, 1870 (lost election) |
Republican | 1869 | Francis Wayland III | |||
45 | James E. English March 13, 1812 – March 2, 1890 (aged 77) |
May 4, 1870 – May 16, 1871 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1870 | Julius Hotchkiss | |||
46 | Marshall Jewell October 20, 1825 – February 10, 1883 (aged 57) |
May 16, 1871 – May 7, 1873 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1871 | Morris Tyler | |||
1872 | ||||||||
47 | Charles Roberts Ingersoll September 16, 1821 – January 25, 1903 (aged 81) |
May 7, 1873 – January 3, 1877 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1873 | George G. Sill | |||
1874 | ||||||||
1875 | ||||||||
April 1876 | ||||||||
48 | Richard D. Hubbard September 7, 1818 – February 28, 1884 (aged 65) |
January 3, 1877 – January 9, 1879 (lost election) |
Democratic | November 1876 | Francis Loomis | |||
49 | Charles B. Andrews November 4, 1834 – September 12, 1902 (aged 67) |
January 9, 1879 – January 5, 1881 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1878 | David Gallup | |||
50 | Hobart B. Bigelow May 16, 1834 – October 12, 1891 (aged 57) |
January 5, 1881 – January 3, 1883 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1880 | William H. Bulkeley | |||
51 | Thomas M. Waller February 15, 1839 – January 25, 1924 (aged 84) |
January 3, 1883 – January 8, 1885 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1882 | George G. Sumner | |||
52 | Henry Baldwin Harrison September 11, 1821 – October 29, 1901 (aged 80) |
January 8, 1885 – January 7, 1887 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1884 | Lorrin A. Cooke | |||
53 | Phineas C. Lounsbury January 10, 1841 – June 22, 1925 (aged 84) |
January 7, 1887 – January 10, 1889 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1886 | James L. Howard | |||
54 | Morgan Bulkeley December 26, 1837 – November 6, 1922 (aged 84) |
January 10, 1889 – January 4, 1893 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1888 | Samuel E. Merwin | |||
1890 | ||||||||
55 | Luzon B. Morris April 16, 1827 – August 22, 1895 (aged 68) |
January 4, 1893 – January 9, 1895 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1892 | Ernest Cady | |||
56 | Owen Vincent Coffin June 20, 1836 – January 13, 1921 (aged 84) |
January 9, 1895 – January 6, 1897 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1894 | Lorrin A. Cooke | |||
57 | Lorrin A. Cooke April 6, 1831 – August 12, 1902 (aged 71) |
January 6, 1897 – January 4, 1899 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1896 | James D. Dewell | |||
58 | George E. Lounsbury May 7, 1838 – August 16, 1904 (aged 66) |
January 4, 1899 – January 9, 1901 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1898 | Lyman A. Mills | |||
59 | George P. McLean October 7, 1857 – June 6, 1932 (aged 74) |
January 9, 1901 – January 7, 1903 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1900 | Edwin O. Keeler | |||
60 | Abiram Chamberlain December 7, 1837 – May 15, 1911 (aged 73) |
January 7, 1903 – January 4, 1905 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1902 | Henry Roberts | |||
61 | Henry Roberts January 22, 1853 – May 1, 1929 (aged 76) |
January 4, 1905 – January 9, 1907 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1904 | Rollin S. Woodruff | |||
62 | Rollin S. Woodruff July 14, 1854 – June 30, 1925 (aged 70) |
January 9, 1907 – January 6, 1909 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1906 | Everett J. Lake | |||
63 | George L. Lilley August 3, 1859 – April 21, 1909 (aged 49) |
January 6, 1909 – April 21, 1909 (died in office) |
Republican | 1908 | Frank B. Weeks | |||
64 | Frank B. Weeks January 20, 1854 – October 2, 1935 (aged 81) |
April 21, 1909 – January 4, 1911 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
65 | Simeon Eben Baldwin February 5, 1840 – January 27, 1927 (aged 86) |
January 4, 1911 – January 6, 1915 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 1910 | Dennis A. Blakeslee | |||
1912 | Lyman T. Tingier | |||||||
66 | Marcus H. Holcomb November 28, 1844 – March 5, 1932 (aged 87) |
January 6, 1915 – January 5, 1921 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1914 | Clifford B. Wilson | |||
1916 | ||||||||
1918 | ||||||||
67 | Everett J. Lake February 8, 1871 – September 16, 1948 (aged 77) |
January 5, 1921 – January 3, 1923 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1920 | Charles A. Templeton | |||
68 | Charles A. Templeton March 3, 1871 – August 15, 1955 (aged 84) |
January 3, 1923 – January 7, 1925 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1922 | Hiram Bingham III | |||
69 | Hiram Bingham III November 19, 1875 – June 6, 1956 (aged 80) |
January 7, 1925 – January 8, 1925 (resigned) |
Republican | 1924 | John H. Trumbull | |||
70 | John H. Trumbull March 4, 1873 – May 21, 1961 (aged 88) |
January 8, 1925 – January 7, 1931 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1926 | J. Edwin Brainard | |||||||
1928 | Ernest E. Rogers | |||||||
71 | Wilbur Lucius Cross April 10, 1862 – October 5, 1948 (aged 86) |
January 7, 1931 – January 4, 1939 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1930 | Samuel R. Spencer | |||
1932 | Roy C. Wilcox | |||||||
1934 | T. Frank Hayes | |||||||
1936 | ||||||||
72 | Raymond E. Baldwin August 31, 1893 – October 4, 1986 (aged 93) |
January 4, 1939 – January 8, 1941 (lost election) |
Republican | 1938 | James L. McConaughy | |||
73 | Robert A. Hurley August 25, 1895 – May 3, 1968 (aged 72) |
January 8, 1941 – January 6, 1943 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1940 | Odell Shepard | |||
74 | Raymond E. Baldwin August 31, 1893 – October 4, 1986 (aged 93) |
January 6, 1943 – December 27, 1946 (resigned) |
Republican | 1942 | William L. Hadden | |||
1944 | Charles Wilbert Snow | |||||||
75 | Charles Wilbert Snow April 6, 1884 – September 28, 1977 (aged 93) |
December 27, 1946 – January 8, 1947 (successor took office) |
Democratic | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
76 | James L. McConaughy October 21, 1887 – March 7, 1948 (aged 60) |
January 8, 1947 – March 7, 1948 (died in office) |
Republican | 1946 | James C. Shannon | |||
77 | James C. Shannon July 21, 1896 – March 6, 1980 (aged 83) |
March 7, 1948 – January 5, 1949 (lost election) |
Republican | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
78 | Chester Bowles April 5, 1901 – May 25, 1986 (aged 85) |
January 5, 1949 – January 3, 1951 (lost election) |
Democratic | 1948 | William T. Carroll | |||
79 | John Davis Lodge October 20, 1903 – October 29, 1985 (aged 82) |
January 3, 1951 – January 5, 1955 (lost election) |
Republican | 1950 | Edward N. Allen | |||
80 | Abraham Ribicoff April 9, 1910 – February 22, 1998 (aged 87) |
January 5, 1955 – January 21, 1961 (resigned) |
Democratic | 1954 | Charles W. Jewett | |||
1958 | John N. Dempsey | |||||||
81 | John N. Dempsey January 3, 1915 – July 16, 1989 (aged 74) |
January 21, 1961 – January 6, 1971 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | Lieutenant Governor acting as Governor |
Acting as Governor | |||
1962 | Samuel J. Tedesco (resigned January 15, 1966) |
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Fred J. Doocy | ||||||||
1966 | Attilio R. Frassinelli | |||||||
82 | Thomas Meskill January 30, 1928 – October 29, 2007 (aged 79) |
January 6, 1971 – January 8, 1975 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | 1970 | T. Clark Hull (resigned June 1, 1973) |
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Peter L. Cashman | ||||||||
83 | Ella Grasso May 10, 1919 – February 5, 1981 (aged 61) |
January 8, 1975 – December 31, 1980 (resigned) |
Democratic | 1974 | Robert K. Killian | |||
1978 | William A. O'Neill | |||||||
84 |
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William A. O'Neill August 11, 1930 – November 24, 2007 (aged 77) |
December 31, 1980 – January 9, 1991 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor |
Joseph J. Fauliso | ||
1982 | ||||||||
1986 | ||||||||
85 | Lowell Weicker May 16, 1931 |
January 9, 1991 – January 4, 1995 (not candidate for election) |
A Connecticut Party | 1990 | Eunice Groark | |||
86 | John G. Rowland May 24, 1957 |
January 4, 1995 – July 1, 2004 (resigned) |
Republican | 1994 | Jodi Rell | |||
1998 | ||||||||
2002 | ||||||||
87 | Jodi Rell June 16, 1946 |
July 1, 2004 – January 5, 2011 (not candidate for election) |
Republican | Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor |
Kevin Sullivan | |||
2006 | Michael Fedele | |||||||
88 | Dannel Malloy July 21, 1955 |
January 5, 2011 – January 9, 2019 (not candidate for election) |
Democratic | 2010 | Nancy Wyman | |||
2014 | ||||||||
89 | Ned Lamont January 3, 1954 |
January 9, 2019 – Incumbent |
Democratic | 2018 | Susan Bysiewicz | |||
2022 |
See also
- Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States#Connecticut