List of governors of Puerto Rico facts for kids

La Fortaleza in Old San Juan is the official home of the governor of Puerto Rico. It was built a very long time ago, between 1533 and 1540.

This article shares a list of all the people who have been the governor of Puerto Rico. The governor is like the main leader of Puerto Rico's government. This important job started way back in the 1500s when Spain first took control of the island.

The very first person to officially be called governor was a Spanish explorer named Juan Ponce de León in 1509. Back then, the King and Queen of Spain chose who would be governor. The first person born in Puerto Rico to hold this job was Juan Ponce de León II, who was a temporary governor in 1579. For a long time, all governors were chosen by Spain or were important church leaders.

In 1898, the United States took over Puerto Rico from Spain. For the first two years, the U.S. President chose everyone in the government. Then, in 1900, the U.S. passed a law called the Foraker Act. This law set up a civilian government on the island. Later, in 1947, a new law allowed the people of Puerto Rico to vote for their own governor. Since 1948, the governor has been elected by the people every four years. The governor is in charge of the executive branch, which means they lead many government departments and choose important officials like judges.

What the Governor Does and Who Takes Over

The flag and official seal of the governor of Puerto Rico

Juan Ponce de León II was the 28th governor of Puerto Rico. He was the grandson of the first governor and the first person born on the island to become governor.

The governor of Puerto Rico has many important jobs. They lead the island and make sure the government runs smoothly. They also choose people to head different government departments, like health, natural resources, and the economy.

If the governor is away, or if something happens and they can't do their job, the Secretary of State of Puerto Rico steps in. They become the acting governor temporarily. If the governor resigns, is removed from office, or passes away, the Secretary of State becomes the new governor. The governor's four-year term officially starts on January 2nd.

In 2019, Ricardo Rosselló became the first governor of Puerto Rico to resign from office. This happened after many protests. People were upset about some arrests related to corruption and a leaked chat that showed offensive comments made by the governor.

List of Governors of Puerto Rico

This list shows all the people who have served as governor of Puerto Rico. It's a long history, starting from the time Spain ruled the island, through the period when the United States took over, and up to today, where the people of Puerto Rico elect their own leaders.

Century 16th – 17th – 18th – 19th – 20th – 21st

Governors Under Spanish Rule

For many centuries, Spain appointed the governors of Puerto Rico. These leaders were often military officers or important officials from Spain.

No.	Portrait	Governor (Born–Died)	Took office	Left office	Reference(s)
1		Captain General Juan Ponce de León (1st time) 1474 – July 1521 (aged about 47)	June 15, 1508	October 28, 1509
2		Juan Cerón	October 28, 1509	March 2, 1510
3		Captain General Juan Ponce de León (2nd time)	March 2, 1510	November 28, 1511
4		Juan Cerón	November 28, 1511	June 2, 1512
5		Rodrigo Moscoso	June 2, 1512	1513
6		Captain General Cristóbal de Mendoza	1513	1515
7		Captain General Juan Ponce de León (3rd time)	July 15, 1515	September 12, 1519
8		Sánchez Velázquez	1514	1519
9		Antonio de la Gama	1519	1521
10		Pedro Moreno	1521	1523
11		Bishop Alonso Manso	1523	1524
12		Pedro Moreno	1524	1528
13		Antonio de la Gama	1528	1530
14		Lieutenant General Francisco Manuel de Landó	1530	1536
15		Vasco de Tiedra	1536	1537
16		Vasco de Tiedra	1537	1544
17		Jerónimo Lebrón de Quiñones	1544	1544
18		Iñigo López Cervantes y Loayza	1544	1546
19		Diego de Caraza	1546	1548
20		Diego de Caraza	1548	1550
21		Luis de Vallejo	1550	1555
22		Alonso Esteves	1555	1555
23		Diego de Caraza	1555	1561
24		Antonio de la Llama Vallejo	1561	1564
25		Francisco Bahamonde De Lugo	1564	1568
26		Francisco de Solís Osorio	1568	1574
27		Francisco de Obando y Mexia	1575	1579
28		Juan Ponce de León II	1579	1579
29		Jerónimo de Agüero Campuzano	1580	1580
30		Captain General Juan de Céspedes	1580	1581
31		Captain General Juan López Melgarejo	1581	1582
32		Captain General Diego Menéndez de Valdés	June 12, 1582	May 11, 1593
33		Colonel Pedro Suárez de Coronel (1st time)	May 11, 1593	December 18, 1597
34		Captain General Antonio de Mosquera	December 18, 1597	August 13, 1598
35		Colonel Pedro Suárez de Coronel (2nd time)	November 23, 1598	March 22, 1599
36		Captain General Alonso de Mercado	March 22, 1599	July 15, 1601
37		Captain General Sancho Ochoa de Castro	July 15, 1601	July 22, 1608
38		Gabriel de Rojas Párano	July 22, 1608	September 14, 1614
39		Captain General Felipe de Beaumont y Navarra	September 14, 1614	June 1, 1619
40		Juan de Vargas	June 1, 1619	August 29, 1625
41		Captain General Juan de Haro y Sanvítores	August 29, 1625	January 24, 1631
42		Captain General Enrique Enriquez de Sotomayor	January 24, 1631	February 23, 1635
43		Captain General Iñigo de la Mota Sarmiento	February 23, 1635	May 16, 1640
44		Captain General Agustín de Silva y Figueroa	May 16, 1640	December 2, 1641
45		Captain General Juan de Bolaños	December 2, 1641	July 9, 1643
46		Fernando de la Riva Agüero y Setien	July 9, 1643	May 24, 1649
47		Diego de Aguilera y Gamboa	May 24, 1649	1655
48		José Novoa y Moscoso Pérez y Buitron	1655	August 15, 1660
49		Captain General Juan Pérez de Guzmán y Chagoyen	August 15, 1660	November 23, 1664
50		Jerónimo de Velasco	November 23, 1664	June 23, 1670
51		Gaspar de Arteaga y Aunoavidao	June 23, 1670	March 17, 1674
52		Diego Roblandillo	March 17, 1674	August 20, 1674
53		Captain General Baltazar Figueroa y Castilla	August 20, 1674	April 6, 1675
54		Alonso de Campos y Espinosa	April 6, 1675	August 22, 1678
55		Juan de Robles Lorenzana	August 22, 1678	July 18, 1683
56		Captain General Gaspar Martínez de Andino	July 18, 1683	1685
57		Juan Francisco Medina	1685	1690
58		Gaspar de Arredondo y Valle	1690	1695
59		Juan Francisco Medina	1695	1697
60		Tomás Franco	1697	1698
61		Antonio de Robles Silva	1698	1699
62		Gabriel Suárez de Ribera	October 17, 1699	July 23, 1703
63		Diego Jiménez de Villarán	1703	1703
64		Francisco Sánchez Calderón	1703	1703
65		Pedro Arroyo y Guerrero	1704	1705
66		Juan Francisco López de Morla	1706	1706
67		Francisco Danío Granados	1706	1708
68		Colonel Juan de Ribera	July 18, 1711	February 12, 1715
69		José Francisco Carreño	February 12, 1715	May 3, 1716
70		Alfonso Bortodano	May 3, 1716	April 7, 1720
71		Francisco Danio Granados	April 7, 1720	August 22, 1724
72		Captain General José Antonio de Mendizabal y Azcue	August 22, 1724	October 11, 1730
73		Lieutenant Colonel Matías de Abadía	October 11, 1731	June 28, 1743
74		Domingo Pérez de Mandares	June 28, 1743	October 29, 1744
75		Colonel Juan José Colomo	October 29, 1744	August 11, 1750
76		Colonel Agustín de Parejas	August 11, 1750	July 8, 1751
77		Lieutenant Colonel Esteban Bravo de Rivero	July 8, 1751	May 1, 1753
78		Captain General Felipe Ramírez de Estenos	May 1, 1753	August 30, 1757
79		Esteban Bravo de Rivero	August 30, 1757	June 3, 1759
80		Mateo de Guaso Calderón	June 3, 1759	March 7, 1760
81		Esteban Bravo de Rivero	March 7, 1760	April 20, 1761
82		Lieutenant Colonel Ambrosio de Benavides	April 20, 1761	March 12, 1766
83		Colonel Marcos de Vergara	March 12, 1766	October 28, 1766
84		Lieutenant Colonel José Trentor	October 28, 1766	July 31, 1770
85		Colonel Miguel de Muesas	July 31, 1770	June 2, 1776
86		Colonel José Dufresne	June 2, 1776	April 6, 1783
87		Field Marshal Don Juan Andrés Daban y Busterino	April 6, 1783	March 27, 1789
88		Coronel Francisco Torralbo y Robles	March 27, 1789	July 8, 1789
89		Brigadier General Miguel Antonio de Ustáriz	July 8, 1789	May 19, 1792
90		Coronel Francisco Torralbo y Robles	May 19, 1792	March 10, 1793
91		Brigadier General Enrique Grimarest	March 10, 1793	March 21, 1795
92		Field Marshal Don Ramón de Castro y Gutiérrez	March 21, 1795	November 12, 1804
93		Toribio Montes	November 12, 1804	June 3, 1809
94		Salvador Meléndez Bruna	June 30, 1809	March 22, 1820
95		Brigadier General Juan Vasco y Pascual	March 24, 1820	August 7, 1820
96		Brigadier General Gonzalo Arostegui y Herrera	August 7, 1820	February 12, 1822
97		Coronel José de Navarro	February 12, 1822	May 30, 1822
98		Francisco González de Linares	May 30, 1822	December 4, 1821
99		Lieutenant General Miguel Luciano de La Torre y Pando	December 4, 1821	January 16, 1836
100		Francisco Javier de Moreda y Prieto	January 14, 1837	December 15, 1837
101		Field Marshal Miguel López de Baños	December 15, 1837	October 2, 1840
102		Lieutenant General Santiago Méndez de Vigo	October 2, 1840	March 11, 1844
103		Lieutenant General Rafael de Aristegui y Vélez	March 11, 1844	December 15, 1847
104		Field Marshal Don Juan Prim de Prats y Gonzalez	December 15, 1847	September 12, 1848
105		Lieutenant General Juan de la Pezuela y Cevallos	September 12, 1848	April 23, 1851
106		Enrique de España y Taberner	April 23, 1851	August 23, 1852
107		Lieutenant General Fernándo Norzagaray y Escudero	August 23, 1852	January 31, 1855
108		Lieutenant General Andrés García Camba	January 31, 1855	August 23, 1855
109		Lieutenant General José Lemery Ibrarrola Ney y Gonzalez	August 23, 1855	January 28, 1857
110		Lieutenant General Fernando Cotoner y Chacon	January 28, 1857	July 31, 1860
111		Sabino Gamir Maladen	July 31, 1860	August 19, 1860
112		Lieutenant General Rafael Echague y Bermingham	August 19, 1860	February 17, 1862
113		Brigadier General Rafael Izquierdo y Gutierrez	February 17, 1862	April 29, 1862
114		Lieutenant General Félix María de Messina Iglesias	April 29, 1862	November 18, 1865
115		Lieutenant General José María Marchessi y Oleaga	November 18, 1865	November 17, 1867
116		General Julián Juan Pavia Lacy	November 17, 1867	December 30, 1868
117		General José Laureano Sanz y Posse	December 30, 1868	May 21, 1870
118		Lieutenant General Gabriel Baldrich	April 4, 1870	September 13, 1871
119		General Ramón Gómez Pulido	September 13, 1871	July 30, 1872
120		General Simón de la Torre Ormaza	July 30, 1872	November 5, 1872
121		Brigadier General Joaquín Eurile Hernan	November 5, 1872	February 14, 1873
122		Lieutenant General Juan Martínez Plowes	February 14, 1873	March 25, 1873
123		General Rafael Primo de Rivera y Sobremonte	March 25, 1873	February 2, 1874
124		General José Laureano Sanz y Posse	February 2, 1874	December 16, 1875
125		General Segundo de la Portilla Gutierrez	December 16, 1875	January 24, 1877
126		General Manuel de la Serna Hernandez y Pinzón	January 24, 1877	April 26, 1878
127		General José Gamir Maladen	April 26, 1878	June 24, 1878
128		General Eulogio Despujols y Dussay	June 24, 1878	July 7, 1881
129		General Segundo de la Portilla Gutierrez	July 7, 1881	November 23, 1883
130		General Miguel de la Vega Inclán y Palma	November 23, 1883	July 31, 1884
131		General Don Carlos Suances Campos	July 31, 1884	September 19, 1884
132		General Ramón Fajardo Izquierdo	September 19, 1884	November 25, 1884
133		General Luis Daban y Ramírez de Arellanó	November 25, 1884	March 23, 1887
134		General Romualdo Palacios Gonzalez	March 23, 1887	November 9, 1887
135		General Juan Contreras Martinez	November 9, 1887	February 25, 1888
136		General Pedro Ruiz Dana	February 25, 1888	April 18, 1890
137		Brigadier General José Pascual Bonanza	1890	1890
138		General José Lasso y Pérez	1890	1893
139		General Antonio Daban y Ramírez de Arrellanó	January 10, 1893	June 22, 1895
140		General José Gamir Maladen	June 22, 1895	January 17, 1896
141		General Emilio March	January 17, 1896	February 15, 1896
142		General Sabas Marín González	February 15, 1896	January 4, 1898
143		General Ricardo de Ortega y Diez	January 4, 1898	January 11, 1898
144		General Andrés González Muñoz	January 11, 1898	January 11, 1898
145		General Ricardo de Ortega y Diez	January 11, 1898	February 2, 1898
146		General Manuel Macías Casado	February 2, 1898	October 14, 1898
147		General Ricardo de Ortega y Diez	October 14, 1898	October 16, 1898
148		Captain Ángel Rivero Méndez	October 16, 1898	October 18, 1898

Governors Under U.S. Rule

After the Spanish-American War in 1898, Puerto Rico became a territory of the United States. At first, military generals governed the island.

Military Government

No.	Image	Name	Took office	Left office	Reference
149		Commanding General Nelson A. Miles	July 25, 1898	October 18, 1898
150		Major General John R. Brooke	October 18, 1898	December 6, 1898
151		Major General Guy Vernor Henry	December 6, 1898	May 9, 1899
152		Major General George Whitefield Davis	May 9, 1899	May 1, 1900

Civilian Governors Appointed by the U.S.

After the military rule, the U.S. government started appointing civilian governors. These governors were chosen by the U.S. President.

No.	Image	Name	Took office	Left office	Notes	Reference
153		Charles Herbert Allen	May 1, 1900	September 15, 1901	First U.S. civilian governor, chosen by President William McKinley
154		William Henry Hunt	September 15, 1901	July 4, 1904
155		Beekman Winthrop	July 4, 1904	April 17, 1907
156		Regis Henri Post	April 17, 1907	November 6, 1909
157		George Radcliffe Colton	November 6, 1909	November 15, 1913
158		Arthur Yager	November 15, 1913	May 15, 1921	A friend of President Woodrow Wilson. With his help, the U.S. Congress passed the Jones-Shafroth Act
159		José E. Benedicto	May 15, 1921	July 30, 1921	Temporary governor
160		Emmet Montgomery Reily	July 30, 1921	February 16, 1923
161		Juan Bernardo Huyke	February 16, 1923	April 1, 1923	Temporary governor
162		Horace Mann Towner	April 1, 1923	September 29, 1929
163		James R. Beverley	September 29, 1929	September 9, 1929	The only non-Puerto Rican governor from 1900 to 1952 who could speak Spanish before coming to Puerto Rico.
164		Theodore Roosevelt Jr.	September 9, 1929	January 30, 1932
165		James R. Beverley 2nd Term	January 30, 1932	July 3, 1933
166		Robert Hayes Gore	July 3, 1933	January 11, 1934
167		Benjamin Jason Horton	January 11, 1934	February 5, 1934
168		Blanton C. Winship	February 5, 1934	June 25, 1939	Removed by President Roosevelt on May 12, 1939.
169		José E. Colón	June 25, 1939	September 11, 1939	Temporary governor
170		William D. Leahy	September 11, 1939	November 28, 1940
171		José Miguel Gallardo	November 28, 1940	February 3, 1941	Temporary governor
172		Guy J. Swope	February 3, 1941	July 24, 1941
173		José Miguel Gallardo	July 24, 1941	September 19, 1941	Temporary governor
174		Rexford Tugwell	September 19, 1941	September 2, 1946
175		Jesús T. Piñero	September 2, 1946	January 2, 1949	The only governor born in Puerto Rico appointed under U.S. rule

Governors Elected by the People of Puerto Rico

Since 1948, the people of Puerto Rico have been able to vote for their own governor. This section lists the governors chosen by the people.

      New Progressive Party (8)
      Popular Democratic Party (7)

U.S. Party Connection

      Democratic Party (10)
      Republican Party (4)
      Independent (1)

No.	Portrait	Name (Born–Died)	Term	Duration	Party	Election	U.S. Party Connection
176		Luis Muñoz Marín (1898–1980)	January 2, 1949 – January 2, 1965	16 years	Popular Democratic	1948		Independent
						1952
						1956
						1960
177		Roberto Sánchez Vilella (1913–1997)	January 2, 1965 – January 2, 1969	4 years	Popular Democratic	1964		Democratic
178		Luis A. Ferré (1904–2003)	January 2, 1969 – January 2, 1973	4 years	New Progressive	1968		Republican
179		Rafael Hernández Colón (1936–2019)	January 2, 1973 – January 2, 1977	4 years	Popular Democratic	1972		Democratic
180		Carlos Romero Barceló (1932–2021)	January 2, 1977 – January 2, 1985	8 years	New Progressive	1976		Democratic
						1980
181		Rafael Hernández Colón (1936–2019)	January 2, 1985 – January 2, 1993	8 years	Popular Democratic	1984		Democratic
						1988
182		Pedro Rosselló (b. 1944)	January 2, 1993 – January 2, 2001	8 years	New Progressive	1992		Democratic
						1996
183		Sila María Calderón (b. 1942)	January 2, 2001 – January 2, 2005	4 years	Popular Democratic	2000		Democratic
184		Aníbal Acevedo Vilá (b. 1962)	January 2, 2005 – January 2, 2009	4 years	Popular Democratic	2004		Democratic
185		Luis Fortuño (b. 1960)	January 2, 2009 – January 2, 2013	4 years	New Progressive	2008		Republican
186		Alejandro García Padilla (b. 1971)	January 2, 2013 – January 2, 2017	4 years	Popular Democratic	2012		Democratic
187		Ricardo Rosselló (b. 1979)	January 2, 2017 – August 2, 2019	2 years, 212 days	New Progressive	2016		Democratic
–		Pedro Pierluisi (b. 1959) De facto	August 2, 2019 – August 7, 2019	5 days	New Progressive	None		Democratic
188		Wanda Vázquez Garced (b. 1960) Constitutional appointment	August 7, 2019 – January 2, 2021	1 year, 148 days	New Progressive	None		Republican
189		Pedro Pierluisi (b. 1959)	January 2, 2021 – January 2, 2025	4 years	New Progressive	2020		Democratic
190		Jenniffer González-Colón (b. 1976)	January 2, 2025 –	170 days	New Progressive	2024		Republican

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Gobernantes de Puerto Rico para niños

• First ladies and gentlemen of Puerto Rico
• Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico
• History of Puerto Rico
• Politics of Puerto Rico
• List of Legislative Assemblies of Puerto Rico