List of governors of Michigan facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Governor of Michigan |
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Style | Her Excellency |
Residence | Michigan Governor's Mansion |
Term length | Four years, renewable once |
Precursor | Governor of Michigan Territory |
Inaugural holder | Stevens T. Mason |
Formation | November 3, 1835 |
Succession | Line of succession |
Deputy | Lieutenant Governor of Michigan |
Salary | $159,300 (2019) |
The governor of Michigan is like the chief executive officer of the state. They are the main leader of the state government. The governor is also the boss of Michigan's military forces, like the Michigan National Guard.
The governor has several important jobs. They make sure state laws are followed. They can approve or reject new laws about money that the Michigan Legislature passes. The governor can also call the legislature together for special meetings. They have the power to grant pardons, which means forgiving someone for a crime, but not in cases of impeachment. The governor can also change how the state government is organized.
For a long time, Michigan was controlled by France and then Britain. It was managed by their colonial governors. Later, parts of Michigan were part of other U.S. territories. In 1805, the Michigan Territory was created. Five people served as governors of this territory. Michigan officially became a state in 1837. Since then, 47 different people have been the state governor. The first female governor, Jennifer Granholm, served from 2003 to 2011.
When Michigan first became a state, governors served for two years. This changed to four years with the 1963 Michigan Constitution. A rule was added in 1992 that a person can only be governor for two four-year terms in their lifetime. The governor who served the longest was William Milliken. He became governor after George W. Romney left office. Milliken was then elected three more times. Only two governors, John S. Barry and Frank Fitzgerald, served terms that were not back-to-back.
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Michigan's Governors: A Historical Look
Governors of Michigan Territory
The Michigan Territory was set up on June 30, 1805. It was formed from the northern part of the Indiana Territory. Three governors were chosen by the president of the United States for this territory. Lewis Cass served the longest of any territorial governor, for 18 years!
No. | Governor | Term in office | Appointed by | |
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1 | ![]() |
William Hull (1753–1825) |
March 1, 1805 – October 29, 1813 (successor appointed) |
Thomas Jefferson |
James Madison | ||||
2 | ![]() |
Lewis Cass (1782–1866) |
October 29, 1813 – August 1, 1831 (resigned) |
James Madison |
James Monroe | ||||
John Quincy Adams | ||||
3 | ![]() |
George Bryan Porter (1791–1834) |
August 6, 1831 – July 6, 1834 (died in office) |
Andrew Jackson |
— | ![]() |
Stevens T. Mason (1811–1843) |
July 6, 1834 – September 21, 1835 (successor appointed) |
Territorial secretary acting |
— | ![]() |
John S. Horner (1802–1883) |
September 21, 1835 – July 3, 1836 (resigned) |
Territorial secretary acting |
Governors of the State of Michigan
Michigan became a state on January 26, 1837. The first state constitution in 1835 said that the governor and lieutenant governor would be elected every two years. The current constitution, from 1963, changed this to four-year terms. There was no limit on how many terms a governor could serve until 1993. That's when a new rule limited governors to two terms in total.
If the governor's office becomes empty, the lieutenant governor takes over. If they can't, then the secretary of state is next in line, followed by the attorney general. Before the 1963 constitution, the lieutenant governor would just do the governor's duties without actually becoming governor. Since 1850, a governor's term starts at noon on January 1st of the year after the election. Before that, there wasn't a set start date.
In the past, the governor and lieutenant governor were elected separately. This meant they could be from different political parties. But in 1963, this changed. Now, people vote for a governor and lieutenant governor as a team, and they must be from the same political party.
No. | Governor | Term in office | Party | Election | Lt. Governor | |||
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1 | ![]() |
Stevens T. Mason (1811–1843) |
November 3, 1835 – January 7, 1840 (retired) |
Democratic | 1835 | Edward Mundy | ||
1837 | ||||||||
2 | ![]() |
William Woodbridge (1780–1861) |
January 7, 1840 – February 24, 1841 (resigned) |
Whig | 1839 | James Wright Gordon | ||
3 | James Wright Gordon (1809–1853) |
February 24, 1841 – January 3, 1842 (retired) |
Whig | Succeeded from lieutenant governor |
Thomas J. Drake | |||
4 | ![]() |
John S. Barry (1802–1870) |
January 3, 1842 – January 5, 1846 (retired) |
Democratic | 1841 | Origen D. Richardson | ||
1843 | ||||||||
5 | ![]() |
Alpheus Felch (1804–1896) |
January 5, 1846 – March 3, 1847 (resigned) |
Democratic | 1845 | William L. Greenly | ||
6 | ![]() |
William L. Greenly (1813–1883) |
March 3, 1847 – January 3, 1848 (retired) |
Democratic | Succeeded from lieutenant governor |
Charles P. Bush | ||
7 | ![]() |
Epaphroditus Ransom (1798–1859) |
January 3, 1848 – January 7, 1850 (lost re-nomination) |
Democratic | 1847 | William M. Fenton | ||
8 | ![]() |
John S. Barry (1802–1870) |
January 7, 1850 – January 1, 1852 (retired) |
Democratic | 1849 | |||
9 | ![]() |
Robert McClelland (1807–1880) |
January 1, 1852 – March 7, 1853 (resigned) |
Democratic | 1851 | Calvin Britain | ||
1852 | Andrew Parsons | |||||||
10 | ![]() |
Andrew Parsons (1817–1855) |
March 7, 1853 – January 3, 1855 (retired) |
Democratic | Succeeded from lieutenant governor |
George Griswold | ||
11 | ![]() |
Kinsley S. Bingham (1808–1861) |
January 3, 1855 – January 5, 1859 (retired) |
Republican | 1854 | George Coe | ||
1856 | ||||||||
12 | ![]() |
Moses Wisner (1815–1863) |
January 5, 1859 – January 2, 1861 (retired) |
Republican | 1858 | Edmund Burke Fairfield | ||
13 | ![]() |
Austin Blair (1818–1894) |
January 2, 1861 – January 4, 1865 (retired) |
Republican | 1860 | James M. Birney (resigned April 3, 1861) |
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Joseph R. Williams (died June 15, 1861) |
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Henry T. Backus | ||||||||
1862 | Charles S. May | |||||||
14 | ![]() |
Henry H. Crapo (1804–1869) |
January 4, 1865 – January 1, 1869 (retired) |
Republican | 1864 | Ebenezer O. Grosvenor | ||
1866 | Dwight May | |||||||
15 | ![]() |
Henry P. Baldwin (1814–1892) |
January 1, 1869 – January 1, 1873 (retired) |
Republican | 1868 | Morgan Bates | ||
1870 | ||||||||
16 | ![]() |
John J. Bagley (1832–1881) |
January 1, 1873 – January 3, 1877 (retired) |
Republican | 1872 | Henry H. Holt | ||
1874 | ||||||||
17 | ![]() |
Charles Croswell (1825–1886) |
January 3, 1877 – January 1, 1881 (retired) |
Republican | 1876 | Alonzo Sessions | ||
1878 | ||||||||
18 | ![]() |
David Jerome (1829–1896) |
January 1, 1881 – January 1, 1883 (lost re-election) |
Republican | 1880 | Moreau S. Crosby | ||
19 | ![]() |
Josiah Begole (1815–1896) |
January 1, 1883 – January 1, 1885 (lost re-election) |
Democratic | 1882 | |||
20 | ![]() |
Russell A. Alger (1836–1907) |
January 1, 1885 – January 1, 1887 (retired) |
Republican | 1884 | Archibald Buttars | ||
21 | ![]() |
Cyrus G. Luce (1824–1905) |
January 1, 1887 – January 1, 1891 (retired) |
Republican | 1886 | James H. MacDonald | ||
1888 | William Ball | |||||||
22 | ![]() |
Edwin B. Winans (1826–1894) |
January 1, 1891 – January 1, 1893 (retired) |
Democratic | 1890 | John Strong | ||
23 | ![]() |
John Treadway Rich (1841–1926) |
January 1, 1893 – January 1, 1897 (retired) |
Republican | 1892 | J. Wight Giddings | ||
1894 | Alfred Milnes (resigned June 1, 1895) |
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Joseph R. McLaughlin | ||||||||
24 | ![]() |
Hazen S. Pingree (1840–1901) |
January 1, 1897 – January 1, 1901 (retired) |
Republican | 1896 | Thomas B. Dunstan | ||
1898 | Orrin W. Robinson | |||||||
25 | ![]() |
Aaron T. Bliss (1837–1906) |
January 1, 1901 – January 2, 1905 (retired) |
Republican | 1900 | |||
1902 | Alexander Maitland | |||||||
26 | ![]() |
Fred M. Warner (1865–1923) |
January 2, 1905 – January 1, 1911 (retired) |
Republican | 1904 | |||
1906 | Patrick H. Kelley | |||||||
1908 | ||||||||
27 | ![]() |
Chase Osborn (1860–1949) |
January 1, 1911 – January 1, 1913 (retired) |
Republican | 1910 | John Q. Ross | ||
28 | ![]() |
Woodbridge N. Ferris (1853–1928) |
January 1, 1913 – January 1, 1917 (retired) |
Democratic | 1912 | |||
1914 | Luren Dickinson | |||||||
29 | ![]() |
Albert Sleeper (1862–1934) |
January 1, 1917 – January 1, 1921 (retired) |
Republican | 1916 | |||
1918 | ||||||||
30 | ![]() |
Alex J. Groesbeck (1873–1953) |
January 1, 1921 – January 1, 1927 (retired) |
Republican | 1920 | Thomas Read | ||
1922 | ||||||||
1924 | George W. Welsh | |||||||
31 | ![]() |
Fred W. Green (1871–1936) |
January 1, 1927 – January 1, 1931 (retired) |
Republican | 1926 | Luren Dickinson | ||
1928 | ||||||||
32 | ![]() |
Wilber M. Brucker (1894–1968) |
January 1, 1931 – January 1, 1933 (lost re-election) |
Republican | 1930 | |||
33 | ![]() |
William Comstock (1877–1949) |
January 1, 1933 – January 1, 1935 (lost re-nomination) |
Democratic | 1932 | Allen E. Stebbins | ||
34 | ![]() |
Frank Fitzgerald (1885–1939) |
January 1, 1935 – January 1, 1937 (lost re-election) |
Republican | 1934 | Thomas Read | ||
35 | ![]() |
Frank Murphy (1890–1949) |
January 1, 1937 – January 1, 1939 (lost re-election) |
Democratic | 1936 | Leo J. Nowicki | ||
36 | ![]() |
Frank Fitzgerald (1885–1939) |
January 1, 1939 – March 16, 1939 (died in office) |
Republican | 1938 | Luren Dickinson | ||
37 | ![]() |
Luren Dickinson (1859–1943) |
March 16, 1939 – January 1, 1941 (lost election) |
Republican | Succeeded from lieutenant governor |
Matilda Dodge Wilson | ||
38 | ![]() |
Murray Van Wagoner (1898–1986) |
January 1, 1941 – January 1, 1943 (lost re-election) |
Democratic | 1940 | Frank Murphy | ||
39 | ![]() |
Harry Kelly (1895–1971) |
January 1, 1943 – January 1, 1947 (retired) |
Republican | 1942 | Eugene C. Keyes | ||
1944 | Vernon J. Brown | |||||||
40 | ![]() |
Kim Sigler (1894–1953) |
January 1, 1947 – January 1, 1949 (lost re-election) |
Republican | 1946 | Eugene C. Keyes | ||
41 | ![]() |
G. Mennen Williams (1911–1988) |
January 1, 1949 – January 1, 1961 (retired) |
Democratic | 1948 | John W. Connolly | ||
1950 | William C. Vandenberg | |||||||
1952 | Clarence A. Reid | |||||||
1954 | Philip Hart | |||||||
1956 | ||||||||
1958 | John Swainson | |||||||
42 | ![]() |
John Swainson (1925–1994) |
January 1, 1961 – January 1, 1963 (lost re-election) |
Democratic | 1960 | T. John Lesinski | ||
43 | ![]() |
George W. Romney (1907–1995) |
January 1, 1963 – January 22, 1969 (resigned) |
Republican | 1962 | |||
1964 | William Milliken | |||||||
1966 | ||||||||
44 | ![]() |
William Milliken (1922–2019) |
January 22, 1969 – January 1, 1983 (retired) |
Republican | Succeeded from lieutenant governor |
Thomas F. Schweigert | ||
1970 | James H. Brickley | |||||||
1974 | James Damman | |||||||
1978 | James H. Brickley | |||||||
45 | ![]() |
James Blanchard (b. 1942) |
January 1, 1983 – January 1, 1991 (lost re-election) |
Democratic | 1982 | Martha Griffiths | ||
1986 | ||||||||
46 | ![]() |
John Engler (b. 1948) |
January 1, 1991 – January 1, 2003 (term-limited) |
Republican | 1990 | Connie Binsfeld | ||
1994 | ||||||||
1998 | Dick Posthumus | |||||||
47 | ![]() |
Jennifer Granholm (b. 1959) |
January 1, 2003 – January 1, 2011 (term-limited) |
Democratic | 2002 | John D. Cherry | ||
2006 | ||||||||
48 | ![]() |
Rick Snyder (b. 1958) |
January 1, 2011 – January 1, 2019 (term-limited) |
Republican | 2010 | Brian Calley | ||
2014 | ||||||||
49 | ![]() |
Gretchen Whitmer (b. 1971) |
January 1, 2019 – Incumbent |
Democratic | 2018 | Garlin Gilchrist | ||
2022 |
More About Michigan Government
- Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States#Michigan
- List of Michigan state legislatures