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Governor of Utah
Spencer Cox (40247078991) (cropped).jpg
Incumbent
Spencer Cox

since January 4, 2021
Style The Honorable
Residence Utah Governor's Mansion
Term length Four years, renewable, no term limits
Inaugural holder Heber Manning Wells
Formation January 6, 1896
Deputy Deidre Henderson
Salary $150,000 (2019)

The governor of Utah is the head of government of Utah and the commander-in-chief of its military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws as well as the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Utah Legislature. The governor may also convene the legislature on "extraordinary occasions".

The self-proclaimed State of Deseret, precursor to the organization of the Utah Territory, had only one governor, Brigham Young. Utah Territory had 15 territorial governors from its organization in 1850 until the formation of the state of Utah in 1896, appointed by the President of the United States. John W. Dawson had the shortest term of only three weeks and Brigham Young, the first territorial governor, had the longest term at seven years.

There have been 17 governors of the State of Utah, with the longest serving being Calvin L. Rampton, who served three terms from 1965 to 1977. Olene Walker served the shortest term, the remaining 14 months of Mike Leavitt's term upon Leavitt's resignation to become head of the Environmental Protection Agency. At the age of 36, Heber Manning Wells was the youngest person to become governor. At the age of 70, Simon Bamberger became the oldest person to be elected, while Olene Walker, at age 72, was the oldest person to succeed to the office. Currently, a term of service is set at four years, and there are no overall limits (consecutive or lifetime) to the number of terms one may be elected to serve. Elections for the office of Governor of Utah are normally held in November of the same year as the United States presidential election.

The current governor is Spencer Cox, who took office on January 4, 2021. Governor Cox was elected in November 2020.

Qualifications

Anyone who seeks to be elected Governor of Utah must meet the following qualifications:

  • Be at least 30 years old
  • Be a resident of Utah for at least five years on the day of the election
  • Be a United States citizen
  • Be a qualified elector of Utah at the time of election

Governors

The area that became Utah was part of the Mexican Cession obtained by the United States on May 19, 1848, in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo following the Mexican–American War.

State of Deseret

A constitutional convention was convened in Salt Lake City on March 8, 1849, to work on a proposal for federal recognition of a state or territory. The convention resulted in the provisional State of Deseret. Deseret claimed most of present-day Utah, Nevada and Arizona, with parts of California, Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Oregon, and Wyoming. Brigham Young was elected governor on March 12, 1849, and the legislature first met on July 2, 1849. The state, having never been recognized by the federal government, was formally dissolved on April 5, 1851, several months after word of the creation of Utah Territory reached Salt Lake City.

Governors of the Territory of Utah

On September 9, 1850, as part of the Compromise of 1850, Utah Territory was organized, encompassing roughly the northern half of Deseret. The news did not reach Salt Lake City until January 1851. Governors of the Utah Territory were appointed by the president of the United States, and other than Brigham Young, they were frequently considered carpetbagger patronage appointees.

The territory initially consisted of present-day Utah, most of Nevada, and portions of Colorado and Wyoming. On February 28, 1861, the creation of Colorado Territory took land from the eastern side of Utah Territory. Nevada Territory was organized from the western section of Utah Territory on March 2, 1861. Also on that date, Nebraska Territory gained area from the northeastern part of Utah Territory. Nevada Territory gained area from Utah Territory on July 14, 1862, and again on May 5, 1866, after becoming a state. Wyoming Territory was created on July 25, 1868, from Nebraska Territory, taking more area from the northeast corner, giving Utah Territory its final borders.

Portrait Governor Took office Left office Appointed by Notes
Portrait of a well-dressed nineteenth-century man, sitting.   Brigham Young February 3, 1851 April 12, 1858 Millard Fillmore
Franklin Pierce
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Alfred Cumming April 12, 1858 May 17, 1861 James Buchanan
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   John W. Dawson December 7, 1861 December 31, 1861 Abraham Lincoln
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Stephen S. Harding July 7, 1862 June 11, 1863 Abraham Lincoln
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   James Duane Doty June 22, 1863 June 13, 1865 Abraham Lincoln
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Charles Durkee September 30, 1865 January 9, 1869 Andrew Johnson
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   John Shaffer March 20, 1870 October 31, 1870 Ulysses S. Grant
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Vernon H. Vaughan October 31, 1870 February 1, 1871 Ulysses S. Grant
Upper-body portrait of a mid-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   George Lemuel Woods March 10, 1871 October 13, 1874 Ulysses S. Grant
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Samuel Beach Axtell February 2, 1875 June 8, 1875 Ulysses S. Grant
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   George W. Emery July 3, 1875 January 25, 1880 Ulysses S. Grant
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Eli Houston Murray February 28, 1880 March 16, 1886 Rutherford B. Hayes
Chester A. Arthur
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Caleb Walton West May 12, 1886 May 6, 1889 Grover Cleveland
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Arthur Lloyd Thomas May 6, 1889 May 9, 1893 Benjamin Harrison
Upper-body portrait of a late-nineteenth-century man in a suit.   Caleb Walton West May 9, 1893 January 4, 1896 Grover Cleveland

Governors of the State of Utah

The State of Utah was admitted to the Union on January 4, 1896.

The governor has a four-year term, commencing on the first Monday of the January after an election. The Constitution of Utah originally stated that, should the office of governor be vacant, the power be devolved upon the Secretary of State, but the office of Lieutenant Governor was created in 1976, and a 1980 constitutional amendment added it to the constitution. If the office of governor becomes vacant during the first year of the term, the lieutenant governor becomes governor until the next general election; if it becomes vacant after the first year of the term, the lieutenant governor becomes governor for the remainder of the term. The offices of governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ticket. The Governor of Utah was formerly limited to serving three terms, but all term limit laws were repealed by the Utah Legislature in 2003; Utah is one of the few states where gubernatorial term limits are not determined by the constitution.

      Republican (11)           Democratic (6)

Governor Term of office Party Election Previous office Lt. Governor
1 Heber Wells (Utah Governor).jpg   Heber Manning Wells
August 11, 1859 – March 12, 1938
(aged 78)
January 6, 1896

January 2, 1905
Republican 1895 Delegate to the
Utah Constitutional Convention
(1895)
None
1900
2 John Christopher Cutler.jpg   John Christopher Cutler
February 5, 1846 – July 30, 1928
(aged 82)
January 2, 1905

January 4, 1909
Republican 1904 Salt Lake County Clerk (1884-1890)
3 William Spry.jpg   William Spry
January 11, 1864 – April 21, 1929
(aged 65)
January 4, 1909

January 1, 1917
Republican 1908 United States Marshal for the District of Utah (1906-1908)
1912
4 Simon Bamberger.jpg   Simon Bamberger
February 27, 1846 – October 6, 1926
(aged 80)
January 1, 1917

January 3, 1921
Democratic 1916 Utah State Senator
(1903–1913)
5 CharlesRMabey.jpg   Charles R. Mabey
October 4, 1877 – April 26, 1959
(aged 81)
January 3, 1921

January 5, 1925
Republican 1920 Utah State Representative
(1913–1915)
6 George H Dern.jpg   George Dern
September 8, 1872 – August 27, 1936
(aged 63)
January 5, 1925

January 2, 1933
Democratic 1924 Utah State Senator
(1914–1923)
1928
7 Henry H. Blood.jpg   Henry H. Blood
October 1, 1872 – June 19, 1942
(aged 69)
January 2, 1933

January 6, 1941
Democratic 1932 Chairman, Utah State Road Commission (1925–1932)
1936
8 Herbert B. Maw (UT).png   Herbert B. Maw
March 11, 1893 – November 17, 1990
(aged 97)
January 6, 1941

January 3, 1949
Democratic 1940 President of the Utah State Senate
(1934–1938)
1944
9 J. Bracken Lee.jpg   J. Bracken Lee
January 7, 1899 – October 20, 1996
(aged 97)
January 3, 1949

January 7, 1957
Republican 1948 Mayor of Price
(1935–1948)
1952
10 George Dewey Clyde.jpg   George Dewey Clyde
July 21, 1898 – April 2, 1972
(aged 73)
January 7, 1957

January 4, 1965
Republican 1956 Director, Utah Water and Power Board
1960
11 Calvin L. Rampton.jpg   Calvin L. Rampton
November 6, 1913 – September 16, 2007
(aged 93)
January 4, 1965

January 3, 1977
Democratic 1964 Davis County Attorney
(1938–1940)
1968
1972   Clyde L. Miller
12 Scott Matheson speaking at the commissioning ceremony of the USS Salt Lake City, May 12, 1984 (cropped).JPEG   Scott M. Matheson
January 8, 1929 – October 7, 1990
(aged 61)
January 3, 1977

January 7, 1985
Democratic 1976 None   David Smith Monson
1980
13 Norman Bangerter (Utah Governor).jpg   Norman H. Bangerter
January 4, 1933 – April 14, 2015
(aged 82)
January 7, 1985

January 4, 1993
Republican 1984 Utah State Representative
(1975–1985)
  W. Val Oveson
1988
14 Mike Leavitt.jpg   Mike Leavitt
(1951-02-11) February 11, 1951 (age 73)
January 4, 1993

November 5, 2003
Republican 1992 Member, Utah State Board of Regents (1989–1992)   Olene Walker
1996
2000
15 Olene Walker.JPG   Olene Walker
November 15, 1930 – November 28, 2015
(aged 85)
November 5, 2003

January 3, 2005
Republican Succeeded from
Lieutenant
Governor
Fourth
Lieutenant Governor of Utah
(1993–2003)
  Gayle McKeachnie
16 Ambassador Jon Huntsman.jpg   Jon Huntsman Jr.
(1960-03-26) March 26, 1960 (age 63)
January 3, 2005

August 11, 2009
Republican 2004 Eleventh
United States Ambassador
to Singapore
(1992–1993)
  Gary Herbert
2008
17 2013-05-23 Gary R Herbert.JPG   Gary Herbert
(1947-05-07) May 7, 1947 (age 76)
August 11, 2009

January 4, 2021
Republican Succeeded from
Lieutenant
Governor
Sixth
Lieutenant Governor of Utah
(2005–2009)
  Greg Bell
(Sept. 1, 2009 – Oct. 16, 2013)
2010§
2012
Spencer Cox
(Oct. 16, 2013 – Jan. 4, 2021)
2016
18 Spencer Cox 1 (cropped).jpg   Spencer Cox
(1975-07-11) July 11, 1975 (age 48)
January 4, 2021

Incumbent
Republican 2020 Eighth
Lieutenant Governor of Utah
(2013–2021)
  Deidre Henderson
Gary HerbertJon Huntsman, Jr.Olene WalkerMichael LeavittNorman Howard BangerterScott Milne MathesonCalvin L. RamptonGeorge Dewey ClydeJoseph Bracken LeeHerbert Brown MawHenry Hooper BloodGeorge Henry DernCharles Rendell MabeySimon BambergerWilliam SpryJohn Christopher CutlerHerbert Manning Wells

Succession

Governors by time of service

Cal Rampton, Gary Herbert, and Mike Leavitt are the only Governors of Utah ever to serve more than two terms. Rampton served three full terms (12 years), while Herbert served most of Jon Huntsman's second term before being elected to two full terms of his own (11 years), and Leavitt resigned during his third term (10 years) to become Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Olene Walker is the shortest-tenured governor, and the only one to serve less than one full term. She served for 425 days to complete the remainder of Leavitt's third term.

# in office Governor Days Rank
11
Cal Rampton
4,382
1
17
Gary Herbert
4,164
2
14
Mike Leavitt
3,957
3
1
Heber Manning Wells
3,283
4
7
Henry H. Blood
2,926
5
9
J. Bracken Lee
2,926
5
12
Scott M. Matheson
2,926
5
3
William Spry
2,919
8
6
George Dern
2,919
8
8
Herbert B. Maw
2,919
8
10
George Dewey Clyde
2,919
8
13
Norman H. Bangerter
2,919
8
16
Jon Huntsman, Jr.
1,681
13
2
John Christopher Cutler
1,463
14
4
Simon Bamberger
1,463
14
5
Charles R. Mabey
1,463
14
18
Spencer Cox
1,170
17
15
Olene S. Walker
425
18

Other high offices held

This is a table of congressional seats, other federal offices, and other governorships held by governors.

Denotes those offices that the governor resigned to take.
Governor Gubernatorial term Other offices held Source
James Duane Doty 1863–1865 Delegate from Wisconsin Territory, U.S. Representative from Wisconsin,
Governor of Wisconsin Territory
Charles Durkee 1865–1869 U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Wisconsin
George Lemuel Woods 1871–1875 Governor of Oregon
Samuel Beach Axtell 1875 U.S. Representative from California, Governor of New Mexico Territory*
George Dern 1925–1933 U.S. Secretary of War
Mike Leavitt 1993–2003 Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency*,
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
Jon Huntsman, Jr. 2005–2009 Ambassador to Singapore, Ambassador to China*, Ambassador to Russia

See also

  • List of Utah state legislatures
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List of governors of Utah Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.