Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Seal of Massachusetts
Incumbent Kim Driscoll since January 5, 2023
Government of Massachusetts
Style	His Honor/Her Honor
Member of	Governor's Council Cabinet
Reports to	Governor of Massachusetts
Residence	None official
Seat	State House, Boston, Massachusetts
Nominator	Nominating petition, Political parties
Appointer	Popular vote
Term length	Four years, no limit
Constituting instrument	Constitution of Massachusetts
Formation	Original post: April 30, 1629 Current form: October 25, 1780
Succession	First
Salary	$165,000 (2018)
Website	https://www.mass.gov/person/kim-driscoll-lieutenant-governor

The lieutenant governor of Massachusetts is like a vice-president for the state. This person is the first in line to take over if the governor of Massachusetts cannot do their job. The special title for this role is "His Honor" or "Her Honor."

The Massachusetts Constitution explains what happens if a governor leaves office. If a governor dies, resigns, or is removed, the governor's office stays empty. The lieutenant governor then acts as the acting governor. They do not become the new governor. This first happened in 1785 when Governor John Hancock resigned. Lieutenant Governor Thomas Cushing became the acting governor. More recently, Jane Swift became acting governor in 2001. This happened when Paul Cellucci resigned to become the U.S. Ambassador to Canada.

When the governor is out of Massachusetts, the lieutenant governor takes charge. In the past, this job lasted only one year. Now, the lieutenant governor serves for four years, just like the governor. The lieutenant governor is not chosen alone. They run for office on the same ballot as the governor. This means they are usually from the same political party. The original 1780 constitution had strict rules for candidates. They had to live in Massachusetts for seven years. They also had to own a certain amount of property. And they had to declare themselves Christian. Today, only the seven-year residency rule remains. Both men and women have served in this important role. The term length changed from one year to two years in 1918. Then it changed again to four years in 1966. The current lieutenant governor is Kim Driscoll. She started her term in January 2023.

Becoming Lieutenant Governor

To become the Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts, a person must meet certain rules:

• They must be at least 18 years old.
• They need to be a registered voter in Massachusetts.
• They must have lived in Massachusetts for at least seven years before the election.
• They need to collect 10,000 signatures from registered voters. These signatures are put on special nomination papers.

History of the Role

The job of lieutenant governor started a long time ago. It came from the "deputy governor" role in the early Massachusetts Bay Colony. At first, the deputy governor and governor were chosen by the colony's "freemen." These were people who had certain rights. They helped run the colony and the Company of Massachusetts Bay.

Early on, the deputy governor was elected for a one-year term. This was the same as the governor. But things changed when the colony's original charter was canceled. This led to the creation of the Dominion of New England. After this, the King and his advisors in Great Britain chose these royal officers. They had to follow the King's orders. The British government wanted more control over the New England colonies.

The new "Lieutenant Governors" often disagreed with the colonists. The colonists and their local government, called the General Court, wanted to have more power. The last royal Lieutenant Governor was Thomas Oliver. He served with General Thomas Gage.

What the Constitution Says

The Massachusetts Constitution describes the lieutenant governor's role. It says that a lieutenant governor is elected every year. Their title is "His Honor" or "Her Honor." The rules for who can be lieutenant governor are the same as for the governor. This includes rules about where they live. The way they are elected is also the same as for the governor.

The lieutenant governor is also automatically a member of the Massachusetts Governor's Council. This council helps the governor.

Other Duties

Massachusetts law gives the lieutenant governor another important job. They lead the committee that chooses who gets the Madeline Amy Sweeney Award for Civilian Bravery. This award honors brave citizens.

How They Are Elected

The lieutenant governor is usually elected with the governor. They run together as a team. This makes sure they are from the same political party. However, the primary election (where parties choose their candidates) is separate. When the state constitution was first written in 1780, the governor and lieutenant governor were elected separately. Elections were held every year.

In 1918, changes to the constitution made the terms two years long. Elections were held every two years in even-numbered years. In 1964, the terms became four years long. Then, in 1966, a new rule allowed the governor and lieutenant governor to be grouped together on the ballot. This made it easier for voters to choose a team from one political party. Elections are held in even-numbered years. These are years when there is no presidential election.

List of Lieutenant Governors

This table shows the people who have served as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. Those marked with an asterisk (*) became acting governor. This happened when the governor's seat became empty because of death or resignation.

No.	Lieutenant Governor			Term in office	Political party	Governor(s)
Parties       Democratic (15)       Democratic-Republican (7)       Federalist (4)       Independent (2)       Know Nothing (1)       Republican (39)       Whig (5)
1			Thomas Cushing*	1780–1788	Independent	John Hancock (I) James Bowdoin (I)
2			Benjamin Lincoln	1788–1789	Federalist	John Hancock (I)
3			Samuel Adams	1789–1794	Democratic-Republican	John Hancock (I)
4			Moses Gill*	1794–1800	Independent	Samuel Adams (DR) Increase Sumner (F)
Office vacant from May 20, 1800 – [?], 1801						Governor's Council Caleb Strong (F)
5			Samuel Phillips Jr.	1801–1802	Federalist	Caleb Strong (F)
6			Edward Robbins	1802–1806	Democratic-Republican	Caleb Strong (F)
Office vacant from [?], 1806 – May 29, 1807						Caleb Strong (F)
7			Levi Lincoln Sr.*	1807–1809	Democratic-Republican	James Sullivan (DR)
8			David Cobb	1809–1810	Federalist	Christopher Gore (F)
9			William Gray	1810–1812	Democratic-Republican	Elbridge Gerry (DR)
10			William Phillips Jr.	1812–1823	Federalist	Caleb Strong (F) John Brooks (F)
11			Levi Lincoln Jr.	1823–1824	Democratic-Republican	William Eustis (DR)
12			Marcus Morton*	1824–1825	Democratic-Republican	William Eustis (DR)
13			Thomas L. Winthrop	1825–1833	Democratic-Republican	Levi Lincoln Jr. (NR, W)
14			Samuel T. Armstrong*	1833–1835	Whig	John Davis (W)
15			George Hull	1836–1843	Whig	Edward Everett (W) Marcus Morton (D) John Davis (W)
16			Henry H. Childs	1843–1844	Democratic	Marcus Morton (D)
17			John Reed Jr.	1844–1851	Whig	George N. Briggs (W)
18			Henry W. Cushman	1851–1853	Democratic	George S. Boutwell (D)
19			Elisha Huntington	1853–1854	Whig	John H. Clifford (W)
20			William C. Plunkett	1854–1855	Whig	Emory Washburn (W)
21			Simon Brown	1855–1856	Know Nothing	Henry Gardner (KN)
22			Henry W. Benchley	1856–1858	Republican	Henry Gardner (KN)
23			Eliphalet Trask	1858–1861	Republican	Nathaniel Prentice Banks (R)
24			John Z. Goodrich	1861	Republican	John Albion Andrew (R)
25			John Nesmith	1862	Republican	John Albion Andrew (R)
26			Joel Hayden	1863–1866	Republican	John Albion Andrew (R)
27			William Claflin	1866–1869	Republican	Alexander H. Bullock (R)
28			Joseph Tucker	1869–1873	Republican	William Claflin (R) William B. Washburn (R)
29			Thomas Talbot*	1873–1875	Republican	William B. Washburn (R)
30			Horatio G. Knight	1875–1879	Republican	William Gaston (D) Alexander H. Rice (R)
31			John D. Long	1879–1880	Republican	Thomas Talbot (R)
32			Byron Weston	1880–1883	Republican	John Davis Long (R)
33			Oliver Ames	1883–1887	Republican	Benjamin F. Butler (D, Greenback) George D. Robinson (R)
34			John Q. A. Brackett	1887–1890	Republican	Oliver Ames (R)
35			William H. Haile	1890–1893	Republican	John Q. A. Brackett (R) William Russell (D)
36			Roger Wolcott*	1893–1896	Republican	William Russell (D) Frederic T. Greenhalge (R)
37			Winthrop M. Crane	1897–1900	Republican	Roger Wolcott (R)
38			John L. Bates	1900–1903	Republican	Winthrop Murray Crane (R)
39			Curtis Guild Jr.	1903–1906	Republican	John L. Bates (R) William Lewis Douglas (D)
40			Eben S. Draper	1906–1909	Republican	Curtis Guild Jr. (R)
41			Louis A. Frothingham	1909–1912	Republican	Eben S. Draper (R) Eugene Noble Foss (D)
42			Robert Luce	1912–1913	Republican	Eugene Noble Foss (D)
43			David I. Walsh	1913–1914	Democratic	Eugene Noble Foss (D)
44			Edward P. Barry	1914–1915	Democratic	David I. Walsh (D)
45			Grafton D. Cushing	1915–1916	Republican	David I. Walsh (D)
46			Calvin Coolidge	1916–1919	Republican	Samuel W. McCall (R)
47			Channing H. Cox	1919–1921	Republican	Calvin Coolidge (R)
48			Alvan T. Fuller	1921–1925	Republican	Channing H. Cox (R)
49			Frank G. Allen	1925–1929	Republican	Alvan T. Fuller (R)
50			William S. Youngman	1929–1933	Republican	Frank G. Allen (R)
51			Gaspar G. Bacon	1933–1935	Republican	Joseph B. Ely (D)
52			Joseph L. Hurley	1935–1937	Democratic	James Michael Curley (D)
53			Francis E. Kelly	1937–1939	Democratic	Charles F. Hurley (D)
54			Horace T. Cahill	1939–1945	Republican	Leverett Saltonstall (R)
55			Robert F. Bradford	1945–1947	Republican	Maurice J. Tobin (D)
56			Arthur W. Coolidge	1947–1949	Republican	Robert F. Bradford (R)
57			Charles F. Sullivan	1949–1953	Democratic	Paul A. Dever (D)
58			Sumner G. Whittier	1953–1957	Republican	Christian Herter (R)
59			Robert F. Murphy	1957–1960	Democratic	Foster Furcolo (D)
Office vacant from October 6, 1960 – January 5, 1961						Foster Furcolo (D)
60			Edward F. McLaughlin Jr.	1961–1963	Democratic	John A. Volpe (R)
61			Francis Bellotti	1963–1965	Democratic	Endicott Peabody (D)
62			Elliot Richardson	1965–1967	Republican	John A. Volpe (R)
63			Francis Sargent*	1967–1971	Republican	John A. Volpe (R)
64			Donald Dwight	1971–1975	Republican	Francis W. Sargent (R)
65			Thomas P. O'Neill III	1975–1983	Democratic	Michael Dukakis (D) Edward J. King (D)
66			John Kerry	1983–1985	Democratic	Michael Dukakis (D)
Office vacant from January 2, 1985 – January 8, 1987						Michael Dukakis (D)
67			Evelyn Murphy	1987–1991	Democratic	Michael Dukakis (D)
68			Paul Cellucci*	1991–1999	Republican	William Weld (R)
69			Jane Swift*	1999–2003	Republican	Paul Cellucci (R)
70			Kerry Healey	2003–2007	Republican	Mitt Romney (R)
71			Tim Murray	2007–2013	Democratic	Deval Patrick (D)
Office vacant from June 2, 2013 – January 8, 2015						Deval Patrick (D)
72			Karyn Polito	2015–2023	Republican	Charlie Baker (R)
73			Kim Driscoll	2023–present	Democratic	Maura Healey (D)

See also

• List of governors of Massachusetts
• Government of Massachusetts