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List of Governors of New York explained

The Governor of New York is the head of the executive branch of New York's government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the New York legislature, to convene the legislature, and to grant pardons, except in cases of treason and impeachment. The current governor is David Paterson, who became governor on March 17, 2008 upon the resignation of Eliot Spitzer.

The office of governor was established by the first New York State Constitution in 1777. The governor was originally for a term of three years, though the constitution did not specify when the term began. A 1787 law set the start of the term at July 1.. The New York State Constitutional Convention of 1821 amended the state constitution, reducing the term of office to two years, moving the election to November,, and moving the beginning and the end of the term to coincide with the calendar year. An 1874 amendment extended the term of office back to three years,, but the 1894 constitution again reduced it to two years.. The most recent constitution of 1938 extended the term to the current four years.

The state constitution has provided since 1777 for the election of a lieutenant governor, who also acts as president of the state senate, to the same term (keeping the same term lengths as the governor throughout all the constitutional revisions). Originally, in the event of the death, resignation or impeachment of the governor, or absence from the state, the lieutenant governor would take on the governor's duties and powers. Since the 1938 constitution, the lieutenant governor explicitly becomes governor upon such vacancy in the office. Should the office of lieutenant governor become vacant, the president pro tempore of the state senate[1] performs the duties of a lieutenant governor until the governor can take back the duties of the office, or the next election; likewise, should both offices become vacant, the president pro tempore acts as governor, with the office of lieutenant governor remaining vacant. Should the president pro tempore be unable to fulfill the duties, the speaker of the assembly is next in the line of succession. The lieutenant governor is elected on the same ticket as the governor, but nominated separately.

Number of Governors of New York by party affiliation[2] !Party!Governors
Democratic25
Republican18
Democratic-Republican9
Whig5
Federalist1

Fifty-five individuals have served as governor, four of whom served non-consecutive terms, totaling 59 distinct terms; the official numbering only lists each governor once, so there have officially been fifty-five governors. This numbering includes acting governors that filled an entire term. The list does not include people who have acted as governor when the governor was out of state, such as Speaker of the New York State Assembly Moses M. Weinstein, who acted as governor for ten days in 1968 while the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the senate majority leader were out of the state, attending the Republican National Convention in Miami, Florida.

The longest-serving governor was the first, George Clinton, who first took office on July 30, 1777, and served seven terms in two different periods, totaling just under 21 years in office. Charles Poletti had the shortest term, serving 29 days following the resignation of the previous governor.

Governors

New York was one of the original thirteen colonies, and was admitted as a state on July 26, 1788. Prior to declaring its independence, New York was a colony of the Kingdom of Great Britain, which it in turn obtained from the Dutch as the colony of New Netherland; see the lists of colonial governors and of directors-general of New Netherland for the pre-statehood period.

NameTook officeLeft officePartyLt. GovernorTerms[3]
1George ClintonJuly 30, 1777July 1, 1795Democratic-RepublicanPierre Van Cortlandt6[4] [5]
2John JayJuly 1, 1795July 1, 1801FederalistStephen Van Rensselaer III2
1George ClintonJuly 1, 1801July 1, 1804Democratic-RepublicanJeremiah Van Rensselaer1
3Morgan LewisJuly 1, 1804July 1, 1807Democratic-RepublicanJohn Broome1
4Daniel D. TompkinsJuly 1, 1807February 24, 1817Democratic-RepublicanJohn Broome3½[6]
John Tayler (acting)
DeWitt Clinton
John Tayler
5John TaylerFebruary 24, 1817July 1, 1817Democratic-RepublicanPhiletus Swift (acting)½[7]
6DeWitt ClintonJuly 1, 1817December 31, 1822Democratic-RepublicanJohn Tayler2[8]
7Joseph C. YatesJanuary 1, 1823December 31, 1824Democratic-RepublicanErastus Root1[9]
6DeWitt ClintonJanuary 1, 1825February 11, 1828Clinton RepublicanJames Tallmadge, Jr.1½[10]
Nathaniel Pitcher
8Nathaniel PitcherFebruary 11, 1828December 31, 1828Democratic-RepublicanPeter R. Livingston (acting)½[11]
Charles Dayan (acting)
9Martin Van BurenJanuary 1, 1829March 5, 1829Jacksonian DemocraticEnos T. Throop½[12]
10Enos T. ThroopMarch 5, 1829December 31, 1832Jacksonian DemocraticCharles Stebbins (acting)1½[13]
William M. Oliver (acting)
Edward Philip Livingston
11William L. MarcyJanuary 1, 1833December 31, 1838DemocraticJohn Tracy3
12William H. SewardJanuary 1, 1839December 31, 1842WhigLuther Bradish2
13William C. BouckJanuary 1, 1843December 31, 1844DemocraticDaniel S. Dickinson1
14Silas WrightJanuary 1, 1845December 31, 1846DemocraticAddison Gardiner1
15John YoungJanuary 1, 1847December 31, 1848WhigAddison Gardiner1
Hamilton Fish
16Hamilton FishJanuary 1, 1849December 31, 1850WhigGeorge Washington Patterson1
17Washington HuntJanuary 1, 1851December 31, 1852WhigSanford E. Church1
18Horatio SeymourJanuary 1, 1853December 31, 1854DemocraticSanford E. Church1
19Myron H. ClarkJanuary 1, 1855December 31, 1856Whig (fusion)Henry Jarvis Raymond1
20John Alsop KingJanuary 1, 1857December 31, 1858RepublicanHenry R. Selden1
21Edwin D. MorganJanuary 1, 1859December 31, 1862RepublicanRobert Campbell2
18Horatio SeymourJanuary 1, 1863December 31, 1864DemocraticDavid R. Floyd-Jones1
22Reuben FentonJanuary 1, 1865December 31, 1868UnionThomas G. Alvord2
Stewart L. Woodford
23John Thompson HoffmanJanuary 1, 1869December 31, 1872DemocraticAllen C. Beach2
24John Adams DixJanuary 1, 1873December 31, 1874RepublicanJohn C. Robinson1
25Samuel J. TildenJanuary 1, 1875December 31, 1876DemocraticWilliam Dorsheimer1
26Lucius RobinsonJanuary 1, 1877December 31, 1879DemocraticWilliam Dorsheimer1[14]
27Alonzo B. CornellJanuary 1, 1880December 31, 1882RepublicanGeorge Gilbert Hoskins1
28Grover ClevelandJanuary 1, 1883January 6, 1885DemocraticDavid B. Hill½[15]
29David B. HillJanuary 6, 1885December 31, 1891DemocraticDennis McCarthy (acting)2½
Edward F. Jones
30Roswell P. FlowerJanuary 1, 1892December 31, 1894DemocraticWilliam F. Sheehan1
31Levi P. MortonJanuary 1, 1895December 31, 1896RepublicanCharles T. Saxton1[16]
32Frank S. BlackJanuary 1, 1897December 31, 1898RepublicanTimothy L. Woodruff1
33Theodore RooseveltJanuary 1, 1899December 31, 1900RepublicanTimothy L. Woodruff1
34Benjamin Barker Odell, Jr.January 1, 1901December 31, 1904RepublicanTimothy L. Woodruff2
Frank W. Higgins
35Frank W. HigginsJanuary 1, 1905December 31, 1906RepublicanM. Linn Bruce1
John Raines (acting)
36Charles Evans HughesJanuary 1, 1907October 6, 1910RepublicanLewis Stuyvesant Chanler1½[17]
Horace White
37Horace WhiteOctober 6, 1910December 31, 1910RepublicanGeorge H. Cobb (acting)½
38John Alden DixJanuary 1, 1911December 31, 1912DemocraticThomas F. Conway1
39William SulzerJanuary 1, 1913October 17, 1913DemocraticMartin H. Glynn½[18]
40Martin H. GlynnOctober 17, 1913December 31, 1914DemocraticRobert F. Wagner (acting)½
41Charles S. WhitmanJanuary 1, 1915December 31, 1918RepublicanEdward Schoeneck2
42Al SmithJanuary 1, 1919December 31, 1920DemocraticHarry C. Walker1
43Nathan Lewis MillerJanuary 1, 1921December 31, 1922RepublicanJeremiah Wood1
Clayton R. Lusk (acting)
42Al SmithJanuary 1, 1923December 31, 1928DemocraticGeorge R. Lunn3
Seymour Lowman
Edwin Corning
44Franklin D. RooseveltJanuary 1, 1929December 31, 1932DemocraticHerbert H. Lehman2
45Herbert H. LehmanJanuary 1, 1933December 3, 1942DemocraticM. William Bray3½[19] [20]
Charles Poletti
46Charles PolettiDecember 3, 1942December 31, 1942DemocraticJoe R. Hanley
(Acting)		½
47Thomas DeweyJanuary 1, 1943December 31, 1954RepublicanThomas W. Wallace3
Joe R. Hanley
Frank C. Moore
Arthur H. Wicks
(Acting)
Walter J. Mahoney
(Acting)
48W. Averell HarrimanJanuary 1, 1955December 31, 1958DemocraticGeorge DeLuca1
49Nelson RockefellerJanuary 1, 1959December 18, 1973RepublicanMalcolm Wilson3½[21]
50Malcolm WilsonDecember 18, 1973December 31, 1974RepublicanWarren M. Anderson
(Acting)		½
51Hugh CareyJanuary 1, 1975December 31, 1982DemocraticMary Anne Krupsak2
Mario Cuomo
52Mario CuomoJanuary 1, 1983December 31, 1994DemocraticAlfred DelBello3
Warren M. Anderson
(Acting)
Stan Lundine
53George PatakiJanuary 1, 1995December 31, 2006RepublicanBetsy McCaughey Ross3
Mary O. Donohue
54Eliot SpitzerJanuary 1, 2007March 17, 2008DemocraticDavid Paterson½[22]
55David PatersonMarch 17, 2008IncumbentDemocraticJoseph Bruno
(Acting)		½[23]
Dean Skelos
(Acting)
Malcolm Smith
(Acting)

Notes

Other high offices held

This is a table of congressional and other federal offices, and ranking diplomatic positions in foreign countries held by New York governors. All representatives and senators mentioned represented New York. * denotes those offices which the governor resigned to take. † denotes those offices from which the governor resigned to take the governorship.

NameGubernatorial termU.S. CongressOther offices held
HouseSenate
George Clinton1777 - 1795, 1801 - 1804Delegate to the Continental Congress, Vice President of the United States
John Jay1795 - 1801President of the Continental Congress, U.S. Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Minister to Spain, Chief Justice of the United States†
Daniel D. Tompkins1807 - 1817HVice President of the United States*
DeWitt Clinton1817 - 1822, 1825 - 1828S
Nathaniel Pitcher1828H
Martin Van Buren1829S†U.S. Secretary of State
Enos T. Throop1829 - 1832H
William L. Marcy1833 - 1838S†U.S. Secretary of War, U.S. Secretary of State
William H. Seward1839 - 1842SU.S. Secretary of State
Silas Wright1845 - 1845HS†
John Young1847 - 1848H
Hamilton Fish1849 - 1850HSU.S. Secretary of State
Washington Hunt1851 - 1852H
John Alsop King1857 - 1858H
Edwin D. Morgan1859 - 1862S
Reuben Fenton1865 - 1868H†S
John Adams Dix1873 - 1874SMinister to France, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
Grover Cleveland1883 - 1884President of the United States*
David B. Hill1885 - 1891S
Roswell P. Flower1892 - 1894H
Levi P. Morton1895 - 1896HMinister to France, Vice President of the United States
Frank S. Black1897 - 1898H†
Theodore Roosevelt1899 - 1900Vice President of the United States, President of the United States
Benjamin B. Odell, Jr.1901 - 1904H
Charles Evans Hughes1907 - 1910U.S. Secretary of State, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court*, Chief Justice of the United States.
William Sulzer1913H†
Martin H. Glynn1913 - 1914H
Franklin D. Roosevelt1929 - 1932President of the United States
Herbert H. Lehman1933 - 1942S
W. Averell Harriman1955 - 1958U.S. Secretary of Commerce, Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Ambassador to the Soviet Union
Nelson Rockefeller1959 - 1973Vice President of the United States
Hugh Carey1975 - 1982H†

Living former governors

, four former governors were alive, the oldest being Hugh Carey (1975 - 1982, born 1919). The most recent governor to die was Charles Poletti (1942), on August 8, 2002. The most recently-serving governor to die was Malcolm Wilson (1973 - 1974), on March 13, 2000.

NameGubernatorial termDate of birth
Hugh Carey1975 - 1982April 11, 1919
Mario Cuomo1983 - 1994June 15, 1932
George Pataki1995 - 2006June 24, 1945
Eliot Spitzer2007 - 2008June 10, 1959

See also

References

General
Specific

Notes and References

  1. The state constitutions refer to this position as the "temporary president of the senate"
  2. 55 people have served as governor, four twice; the table includes these non-consecutive terms as well.
  3. The fractional terms of some governors are not to be understood absolutely literally; rather, they are meant to show single terms during which multiple governors served, due to resignations, deaths and the like.
  4. There was no codified start for terms when Clinton took office; the date was set at July 1 in 1787, starting presumably in 1789.
  5. Most sources state the early governors took office on April 1; however, more contemporary sources note the elections were held on April 1, with the oath of office being delivered on July 1.
  6. Resigned to be Vice President of the United States.
  7. As lieutenant governor, acted as governor for unexpired term.
  8. The length and dates of terms were changed in 1821, during DeWitt Clinton's second term, which then ended on December 31, 1822 instead of July 1, 1823.
  9. As per the 1821 constitution, Yates' term was the first to last two years instead of three.
  10. Died in office.
  11. As lieutenant governor, filled unexpired term.
  12. Resigned to be United States Secretary of State.
  13. As lieutenant governor, became governor for unexpired term, and was later elected in their own right.
  14. As per an 1874 amendment to the constitution (taking effect January 1, 1875), Robinson's term was the first to last three years instead of two. As Tilden had been elected prior to the amendment taking effect, he served the old two-year term.
  15. Resigned to be President of the United States.
  16. As per the 1894 constitution, Morton's term was the first to last two years instead of three.
  17. Resigned to take seat as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court.
  18. Impeached and removed from office for campaign contribution fraud.
  19. As per the 1938 constitution, Lehman's fourth term, commencing January 1, 1939, was the first scheduled to last four years instead of two.
  20. Resigned to be Director of Foreign Relief and Rehabilitation Operations at the U.S. Department of State.
  21. Resigned to devote himself to his Commission on Critical Choices for Americans.
  22. Resigned due to a prostitution scandal.
  23. Governor Paterson's first term expires on December 31, 2010; he is not term limited.

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