Governor of South Dakota

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M. Michael Rounds is the current Governor of South Dakota.

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The Governor of South Dakota is the highest-ranking elected official in South Dakota. The current governor is M. Michael Rounds, a Republican elected in 2002.

1 Powers and duties
2 History
3 List of Governors of South Dakota
4 See also

[edit] Powers and duties

The governor holds numerous powers and duties, which in many ways are analogous to those held by the President of the United States:

The governor serves as a spokesman for the state, promoting business and economic development interests.
The governor is actively involved in the legislative process; he may introduce legislation, and has the power to veto bills passed by the legislature (though vetoes may be overridden by a two-thirds vote of each house).
The governor oversees the executive branch, and appoints the members of his cabinet. The governor also appoints the members of a wide array of state boards and commissions.
The governor is the commander-in-chief of the South Dakota National Guard.
The governor may grant pardons to those convicted of criminal offenses under state law.
The governor fills vacancies that occur in the state legislature, the state judiciary, and other state constitutional offices. In addition, the Constitution of the United States vests the governor with the power to fill vacanies in South Dakota's seats in the United States Senate.
The governor is the titular head of his political party.

[edit] History

From 1889 until 1974, the governor served a two-year term. Until the 1940's, the governor was allowed to serve unlimited terms; since that time, governors have been limited to two consecutive terms. Beginning in 1974, the governor is elected to a four-year term, and may serve two consecutive terms. The governor is elected on a ticket with the Lieutenant Governor.

The first governor of South Dakota was Arthur C. Mellette, who was also the last governor of the Dakota Territory.

Two of South Dakota's governors have left office before their term expired. In 1978, Richard F. Kneip resigned office six months before the expiration of his term to accept an appointment as United States Ambassador to Singapore. On April 19, 1993, George S. Mickelson was killed in a plane crash near Dubuque, Iowa; Mickelson is the only South Dakota governor to die in office. Mickelson and his father, George T. Mickelson, are the only father-son duo to serve as governor.

South Dakota's longest serving governor was Bill Janklow. Janklow is the only person to complete two four-year terms, and he did it twice, serving from 1979 to 1987 and again from 1995 to 2003. Janklow is also the only person to serve non-consecutive terms as governor.

Several governors have gone on to serve in other high offices. Coe I. Crawford, Peter Norbeck, William H. McMaster, William J. Bulow, and Harlan J. Bushfield followed their tenures as governor by serving in the United States Senate. Bill Janklow served briefly in the United States House of Representatives following his second stint as governor.

[edit] List of Governors of South Dakota

#	Name	Term	Party	Life	City elected from
1	Arthur C. Mellette¹	1889–1893	Republican	1842–1896	Watertown
2	Charles H. Sheldon	1893–1897	Republican	1840–1898	Pierpont
3	Andrew E. Lee	1897–1901	Populist	1847–1934	Vermillion
4	Charles N. Herreid	1901–1905	Republican	1857–1928	Eureka
5	Samuel H. Elrod	1905–1907	Republican	1856–1935	Clark
6	Coe I. Crawford	1907–1909	Republican	1858–1944	Huron
7	Robert S. Vessey	1909–1913	Republican	1858–1929	Wessington Springs
8	Frank M. Byrne	1913–1917	Republican	1858–1927	Faulkton
9	Peter Norbeck	1917–1921	Republican	1870–1936	Redfield
10	William H. McMaster	1921–1925	Republican	1877–1968	Yankton
11	Carl Gunderson	1925–1927	Republican	1864–1933	Mitchell
12	William J. Bulow	1927–1931	Democratic	1869–1960	Beresford
13	Warren Green	1931–1933	Republican	1870–1945	Hazel
14	Tom Berry	1933–1937	Democratic	1879–1951	Belvidere
15	Leslie Jensen	1937–1939	Republican	1892–1964	Hot Springs
16	Harlan J. Bushfield	1939–1943	Republican	1882–1948	Miller
17	Merrill Q. Sharpe	1943–1947	Republican	1883–1962	Kennebec
18	George T. Mickelson	1947–1951	Republican	1903–1965	Selby
19	Sigurd Anderson	1951–1955	Republican	1904–1990	Webster
20	Joe Foss	1955–1959	Republican	1915–2003	Sioux Falls
21	Ralph Herseth	1959–1961	Democratic	1909–1969	Houghton
22	Archie M. Gubbrud	1961–1965	Republican	1910–1987	Alcester
23	Nils Boe	1965–1969	Republican	1913–1992	Sioux Falls
24	Frank Farrar	1969–1971	Republican	1929—	Britton
25	Richard F. Kneip²	1971–1978	Democratic	1933–1987	Salem
26	Harvey L. Wollman	1978–1979	Democratic	1935—	Hitchcock
27	William J. Janklow	1979–1987	Republican	1939—	Flandreau
28	George S. Mickelson³	1987–1993	Republican	1941–1993	Brookings
29	Walter Dale Miller	1993–1995	Republican	1925—	New Underwood
30	William J. Janklow	1995–2003	Republican	1939—	Brandon
31	M. Michael Rounds	2003—	Republican	1954—	Pierre

Notes
¹Mellette was the final governor of the Dakota Territory prior to his election as the first Governor of South Dakota.
²Kneip resigned to become Ambassador to Singapore on July 24, 1978; he was succeeded by Harvey L. Wollman.
³Mickelson was killed in a plane crash on April 19, 1993; he was succeeded by Walter Dale Miller.