List of current United States governors facts for kids
The United States has 50 states and 5 territories that each elect a governor to serve as chief executive of the state or territorial government. The sole federal district, the District of Columbia, elects a mayor to oversee its government in a similar manner. In the event of a vacancy, the governor is succeeded by the second-highest-ranking state official; in 45 states and 4 territories, the lieutenant governor is the first in the line of succession.
As of January 25, 2025[update], there are 27 states with Republican governors and 23 states with Democratic governors. Both Republicans and Democrats control 2 territorial governorships. Jenniffer González-Colón of Puerto Rico is a member of the New Progressive Party, although she is also affiliated with the Republican Party. The federal District of Columbia is governed by a Democratic mayor.
The current gubernatorial term ends and new term begins in January for most states and territories, two months after their election; in Alaska, Hawaii, North Dakota, and Kentucky, the term begins in December. Governors serve four-year terms in most states and all territories; New Hampshire and Vermont have two-year terms for their governors. Most states and all but one territory also have term limits that generally allow for two consecutive terms to be served by a candidate. To run for governor, a candidate must generally be a U.S. citizen with prior state residence who meets the minimum age requirement—set at 30 years old in 35 states.
All 55 governors are members of the National Governors Association, a non-partisan organization which represents states and territories in discussions with the federal government. Other organizations for governors include the partisan Democratic Governors Association and Republican Governors Association; and the three regional associations: Midwestern, Northeastern, and Western.
State governors
The longest serving incumbent U.S. governor is Greg Abbott of Texas, who took office on January 20, 2015. The most recently inaugurated governor is Larry Rhoden of South Dakota, who took office on January 25, 2025. A total of 15 current governors previously served as lieutenant governor, while 11 previously served in the United States House of Representatives. The governor's office has term limits in 37 states and 4 territories; these terms are four years except in New Hampshire and Vermont, where governors serve two-year terms.
The average age of governors at the time of their inauguration was about 59 years old. Alabama governor Kay Ivey (born 1944) is the oldest current governor, and Arkansas governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders (born 1982) is the youngest. As of January 2025, there are 12 female state governors serving. Of the 50 state governors, 47 are non-Hispanic white, one is Hispanic (Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico), one is Black (Wes Moore of Maryland), and one is Native American (Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma).
The notation "(term limits)" after the year indicates that the governor is ineligible to seek re-election in that year; the notation "(retiring)" indicates that the governor has announced his or her intention not to seek re-election at the end of the term nor to run for another office.
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| State | Image | Governor | Party | Born | Prior public experience | Inauguration | End of term | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama (list) | .jpg) |
Kay Ivey | Republican | October 15, 1944 | Lieutenant Governor
State Treasurer |
April 10, 2017 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Alaska (list) | .jpg) |
Mike Dunleavy | Republican | May 5, 1961 | Alaska Senate | December 3, 2018 | 2026 (term limits) | ||
| Arizona (list) |  |
Katie Hobbs | Democratic | December 28, 1969 | Secretary of State
Minority Leader of the Arizona Senate Arizona House |
January 2, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Arkansas (list) | .jpg) |
Sarah Huckabee Sanders | Republican | August 13, 1982 | White House Press Secretary | January 10, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| California (list) | .jpg) |
Gavin Newsom | Democratic | October 10, 1967 | Lieutenant Governor
Mayor of San Francisco San Francisco Board of Supervisors |
January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Colorado (list) | .jpg) |
Jared Polis | Democratic | May 12, 1975 | U.S. House
Colorado State Board of Education |
January 8, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Connecticut (list) | .jpg) |
Ned Lamont | Democratic | January 3, 1954 | Chair of the State Investment Advisory Council
Greenwich Board of Estimate and Taxation Greenwich Board of Selectmen |
January 9, 2019 | 2027 | ||
| Delaware (list) |  |
Matt Meyer | Democratic | September 29, 1971 | Executive of New Castle County | January 21, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| Florida (list) | .jpg) |
Ron DeSantis | Republican | September 14, 1978 | U.S. House | January 8, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Georgia (list) |  |
Brian Kemp | Republican | November 2, 1963 | Secretary of State
Georgia Senate |
January 14, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Hawaii (list) | _(cropped).jpg) |
Josh Green | Democratic | February 11, 1970 | Lieutenant Governor
Hawaii Senate Hawaii House |
December 5, 2022 | 2026 | ||
| Idaho (list) | .jpg) |
Brad Little | Republican | February 15, 1954 | Lieutenant Governor
Idaho Senate |
January 7, 2019 | 2027 | ||
| Illinois (list) | .jpg) |
J. B. Pritzker | Democratic | January 19, 1965 | Chair of the Illinois Human Rights Commission | January 14, 2019 | 2027 | ||
| Indiana (list) |  |
Mike Braun | Republican | March 24, 1954 | U.S. Senate
Indiana House |
January 13, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| Iowa (list) | _(cropped).jpg) |
Kim Reynolds | Republican | August 4, 1959 | Lieutenant Governor
Iowa Senate Clarke County Treasurer |
May 24, 2017 | 2027 | ||
| Kansas (list) | .jpg) |
Laura Kelly | Democratic | January 24, 1950 | Kansas Senate | January 14, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Kentucky (list) | .jpg) |
Andy Beshear | Democratic | November 29, 1977 | State Attorney General | December 10, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Louisiana (list) | .jpg) |
Jeff Landry | Republican | December 23, 1970 | State Attorney General
U.S. House |
January 8, 2024 | 2028 | ||
| Maine (list) | .jpg) |
Janet Mills | Democratic | December 30, 1947 | State Attorney General
Maine House |
January 2, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Maryland (list) | .jpg) |
Wes Moore | Democratic | October 15, 1978 | No prior public experience | January 18, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Massachusetts (list) | .jpg) |
Maura Healey | Democratic | February 8, 1971 | State Attorney General | January 5, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Michigan (list) |  |
Gretchen Whitmer | Democratic | August 23, 1971 | Minority Leader of the Michigan Senate
Michigan House |
January 1, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Minnesota (list) | _(2).jpg) |
Tim Walz | Democratic–Farmer–Labor | April 6, 1964 | U.S. House | January 7, 2019 | 2027 | ||
| Mississippi (list) | .jpg) |
Tate Reeves | Republican | June 5, 1974 | Lieutenant Governor
State Treasurer |
January 14, 2020 | 2028 (term limits) | ||
| Missouri (list) |  |
Mike Kehoe | Republican | January 17, 1962 | Lieutenant Governor
Majority Leader of the Missouri Senate |
January 13, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| Montana (list) |  |
Greg Gianforte | Republican | April 17, 1961 | U.S. House | January 4, 2021 | 2029 (term limits) | ||
| Nebraska (list) | .jpg) |
Jim Pillen | Republican | December 31, 1955 | No prior public experience | January 5, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Nevada (list) |  |
Joe Lombardo | Republican | November 8, 1962 | Clark County Sheriff | January 2, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| New Hampshire (list) | .jpg) |
Kelly Ayotte | Republican | June 27, 1968 | U.S. Senate
Attorney General |
January 9, 2025 | 2027 | ||
| New Jersey (list) | .jpg) |
Phil Murphy | Democratic | August 16, 1957 | U.S. Ambassador to Germany | January 16, 2018 | 2026 (term limits) | ||
| New Mexico (list) |  |
Michelle Lujan Grisham | Democratic | October 24, 1959 | U.S. House
Bernalillo County Commission State Secretary of Health |
January 1, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| New York (list) |  |
Kathy Hochul | Democratic | August 27, 1958 | Lieutenant Governor
U.S. House Erie County Clerk |
August 24, 2021 | 2026 | ||
| North Carolina (list) | .jpg) |
Josh Stein | Democratic | September 13, 1966 | State Attorney General
North Carolina Senate |
January 1, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| North Dakota (list) | .jpg) |
Kelly Armstrong | Republican | October 6, 1976 | U.S. House
North Dakota Senate |
December 15, 2024 | 2028 | ||
| Ohio (list) | .jpg) |
Mike DeWine | Republican | January 5, 1947 | State Attorney General
U.S. Senate Lieutenant Governor U.S. House Ohio Senate Greene County Prosecutor |
January 14, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Oklahoma (list) | _(cropped).jpg) |
Kevin Stitt | Republican | December 28, 1972 | No prior public experience | January 14, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Oregon (list) | .jpg) |
Tina Kotek | Democratic | September 30, 1966 | Speaker of the Oregon House | January 9, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Pennsylvania (list) | .jpg) |
Josh Shapiro | Democratic | June 20, 1973 | State Attorney General
Montgomery County Board of Commissioners Pennsylvania House |
January 17, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Rhode Island (list) |  |
Dan McKee | Democratic | June 16, 1951 | Lieutenant Governor | March 2, 2021 | 2027 | ||
| South Carolina (list) | .jpg) |
Henry McMaster | Republican | May 27, 1947 | Lieutenant Governor
State Attorney General |
January 24, 2017 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| South Dakota (list) | .jpg) |
Larry Rhoden | Republican | February 5, 1959 | Lieutenant Governor
Secretary of Agriculture South Dakota House South Dakota Senate |
January 25, 2025 | 2027 | ||
| Tennessee (list) | _(cropped).jpg) |
Bill Lee | Republican | October 9, 1959 | No prior public experience | January 19, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Texas (list) |  |
Greg Abbott | Republican | November 13, 1957 | State Attorney General
Associate Justice of the Texas Supreme Court |
January 20, 2015 | 2027 | ||
| Utah (list) | .jpg) |
Spencer Cox | Republican | July 11, 1975 | Lieutenant Governor
Utah House Sanpete County Commission |
January 4, 2021 | 2029 | ||
| Vermont (list) | .png) |
Phil Scott | Republican | August 4, 1958 | Lieutenant Governor
Vermont Senate |
January 5, 2017 | 2027 | ||
| Virginia (list) | .jpg) |
Glenn Youngkin | Republican | December 9, 1966 | No prior public experience | January 15, 2022 | 2026 (term limits) | ||
| Washington (list) | .jpg) |
Bob Ferguson | Democratic | February 23, 1965 | State Attorney General
Chair of the King County Council |
January 15, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| West Virginia (list) |  |
Patrick Morrisey | Republican | December 21, 1967 | State Attorney General | January 13, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| Wisconsin (list) | .jpg) |
Tony Evers | Democratic | November 5, 1951 | State Superintendent of Public Instruction | January 7, 2019 | 2027 | ||
| Wyoming (list) |  |
Mark Gordon | Republican | March 14, 1957 | State Treasurer | January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
Territory governors
| Territory | Image | Governor | Party | Born | Prior public experience | Inauguration | End of term | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Samoa (list) |  |
Pula Nikolao Pula | Republican | December 31, 1955 | No prior public experience | January 3, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| Guam (list) |  |
Lou Leon Guerrero | Democratic | November 8, 1950 | Guam Legislature | January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
| Northern Mariana Islands (list) | .jpg) |
Arnold Palacios | Republican | August 22, 1955 | Lieutenant Governor
President of the CNMI Senate Speaker of the CNMI House |
January 9, 2023 | 2027 | ||
| Puerto Rico (list) | .jpg) |
Jenniffer González-Colón | New Progressive | August 5, 1976 | U.S. House
Speaker of the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico |
January 2, 2025 | 2029 | ||
| U.S. Virgin Islands (list) |  |
Albert Bryan | Democratic | February 21, 1968 | Commissioner of the Virgin Islands Department of Labor | January 7, 2019 | 2027 (term limits) | ||
Federal district mayor
The District of Columbia is a federal district that elects a mayor that has similar powers to those of a state or territorial governor. The cities of Washington and Georgetown within the district elected their own mayors until 1871, when their governments were consolidated into a reorganized District of Columbia by a Congressional act. The district's chief executive from 1871 to 1874 was a governor appointed by the president of the United States; the office was replaced by a board of commissioners with three members appointed by the president—two residents and a representative from the United States Army Corps of Engineers. The Board of Commissioners was originally a temporary body but was made permanent in 1878 with one member selected to serve as the Board President, in effect the city's chief executive. The system was replaced in 1967 by a single mayor–commissioner and home rule in the District of Columbia was fully restored in 1975 under a reorganized government led by an elected mayor.
| Federal district | Image | Mayor | Party | Born | Prior public experience | Inauguration | End of term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia (list) | .jpg) |
Muriel Bowser | Democratic | August 2, 1972 | D.C. Council
Advisory Neighborhood Commission |
January 2, 2015 | 2027 | |
See also
In Spanish: Anexo:Gobernadores de los estados de Estados Unidos y sus territorios para niños
- Flags of governors of the U.S. states
- List of current United States first spouses
- List of current United States governors by age
- List of current United States lieutenant governors
- List of female governors in the United States
- List of minority governors and lieutenant governors in the United States
- List of United States state legislatures
- List of U.S. state governors born outside the United States
- Seals of governors of the U.S. states
 | Valerie Thomas |
 | Frederick McKinley Jones |
 | George Edward Alcorn Jr. |
 | Thomas Mensah |
