List of Governors of Pennsylvania facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania |
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![]() Seal of the Governor
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Residence | Governor's Residence |
Term length | Four years renewable once |
Inaugural holder | Thomas Mifflin |
Formation | December 21, 1790 |
Deputy | Michael J. Stack III |
Salary | $187,256 (2013) |
Website | governor.pa.gov |
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is the head of the executive branch of Pennsylvania's state government and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.
The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to approve or veto bills passed by the Pennsylvania Legislature and to convene the legislature. The governor may grant pardons except in cases of impeachment, but only when recommended by the Board of Pardons.
There have been seven presidents and 46 governors of Pennsylvania, with two governors serving non-consecutive terms, totaling 55 terms in both offices. The longest term was that of the first governor, Thomas Mifflin, who served three full terms as governor in addition to two years as president. The shortest term belonged to John Bell, who served only 19 days as acting governor after his predecessor resigned. The current governor is Tom Wolf, whose term began on January 20, 2015.
Other high offices held
This is a table of other governorships, congressional and other federal offices, and ranking diplomatic positions in foreign countries held by Pennsylvania governors. All representatives and senators mentioned represented Pennsylvania except where noted.
- † Denotes those offices from which the governor resigned to take the governorship.
Governor | Gubernatorial term | U.S. Congress | Other offices held | Source | |
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House | Senate | ||||
Joseph Reed | 1778–1781 | Delegate to the Continental Congress; elected to the U.S. House but declined his seat. | |||
John Dickinson | 1782–1785 | President of Delaware, Delegate to the Continental Congress from Delaware, Delegate to the Continental Congress from Pennsylvania | |||
Benjamin Franklin | 1785–1788 | Minister to France, Minister to Sweden | |||
Thomas Mifflin | 1790–1799 | President of the Continental Congress | |||
Thomas McKean | 1799–1808 | President of Delaware, President of the Continental Congress | |||
Simon Snyder | 1808–1817 | Some records say he was elected to the U.S. Senate, but some only say state senate. The Biographical Directory of the United States Congress has no record of a U.S. Senate term. | |||
William Findlay | 1817–1820 | S | |||
Joseph Hiester | 1820–1823 | H† | |||
George Wolf | 1829–1835 | H† | |||
William Bigler | 1852–1855 | S | |||
James Pollock | 1855–1858 | H | |||
Andrew Gregg Curtin | 1861–1867 | H | Ambassador to Russia | ||
John W. Geary | 1867–1876 | Governor of Kansas Territory | |||
William A. Stone | 1899–1903 | H† | |||
John K. Tener | 1911–1915 | H† | |||
George Howard Earle III | 1935–1939 | Ambassador to Austria† | |||
Edward Martin | 1943–1947 | S | |||
James H. Duff | 1947–1951 | S | |||
William Scranton | 1963–1967 | H | Ambassador to the United Nations | ||
Dick Thornburgh | 1979–1987 | U.S. Attorney General | |||
Tom Ridge | 1995–2001 | H | U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security |
Images for kids
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Five governors since 1995 (left to right): Mark Schweiker, Tom Ridge, Tom Wolf, Tom Corbett and Ed Rendell (January 2015)
