The Governor of Indiana is the head of the executive branch of Indiana'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 Indiana General Assembly, to convene that body, and to grant pardons, except in cases of treason or impeachment.[1]
While a territory, Indiana had two President-appointed governors.[2] Since statehood in 1816, it has had 47 governors, serving 49 distinct terms; Isaac P. Gray and Henry F. Schricker are the only governors to have served non-consecutive terms. The longest-serving state governors are Otis R. Bowen and Evan Bayh at 8 years, 4 days; territorial governor William Henry Harrison served for over 12 years. The shortest-serving governor is Henry Smith Lane, who served two days before resigning to become a U.S. Senator.[3] The current governor is Mitch Daniels, who took office on January 10, 2005, and was reelected in 2008 to serve until January 14, 2013.
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The land that became Indiana was acquired by the United States after the American Revolutionary War. The region was originally organized as the Northwest Territory, consisting of all of the land in the United States north and west of the Ohio River. The Indiana Territory was split from the Northwest Territory in 1800.
Indiana Territory was formed on July 4, 1800, and consisted of present-day Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and parts of Michigan and Minnesota. Michigan Territory was split from the territory on June 30, 1805, and Illinois Territory followed on March 1, 1809, leaving Indiana Territory with its final borders.[4] From October 1, 1804, to July 4, 1805, the District of Louisiana was under the jurisdiction of Indiana Territory.[5]
# | Governor | Took office | Left office | Days in office | Appointed by |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | William Henry Harrison | May 13, 1800 | December 28, 1812 | 4612 | John Adams |
Thomas Jefferson | |||||
James Madison | |||||
— | John Gibson | December 28, 1812 | March 3, 1813 | 65 | acting[N 1] |
2 | Thomas Posey | March 3, 1813 | November 7, 1816 | 1345 | James Madison |
Indiana was admitted to the Union on December 11, 1816.[7] The original 1816 Constitution of Indiana provided for the election of a governor and a lieutenant governor every three years.[8] The second and current constitution of 1851 lengthened terms to four years and set the commencement of the governor's term on the second Monday in the January following the election.[9] Governors were allowed to serve for four years in any eight-year period,[9] but this was extended by a 1972 amendment permitting governors to serve for eight years in any twelve-year period.[10] Should the office of governor become vacant, the lieutenant governor becomes governor.[11] Nine lieutenant governors have succeeded to the governorship. If the office of lieutenant governor is vacant, the president pro tempore of the Indiana Senate becomes governor;[11] this has happened once, when James B. Ray succeeded William Hendricks.[12]
Democratic-Republican (3) Democratic (21) Independent (1) Republican (21) Whig (3)
# | Governor | Took office | Left office | Party | Lt. Governor[N 2] | Terms[N 3] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jonathan Jennings | November 7, 1816 | September 12, 1822 | Democratic- Republican |
Christopher Harrison[N 4] | 1 1⁄2[N 5] | |
Ratliff Boon | |||||||
2 | Ratliff Boon | September 12, 1822 | December 5, 1822 | Democratic- Republican |
vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
3 | William Hendricks | December 5, 1822 | February 12, 1825 | Democratic- Republican |
Ratliff Boon | 1⁄2[N 7] | |
4 | James B. Ray | February 12, 1825 | December 7, 1831 | Independent | John H. Thompson | 2 1⁄2[N 8][N 9] | |
Milton Stapp | |||||||
5 | Noah Noble | December 7, 1831 | December 6, 1837 | Whig | David Wallace | 2 | |
6 | David Wallace | December 6, 1837 | December 9, 1840 | Whig | David Hillis | 1 | |
7 | Samuel Bigger | December 9, 1840 | December 6, 1843 | Whig | Samuel Hall | 1 | |
8 | James Whitcomb | December 6, 1843 | December 26, 1848 | Democratic | Jesse D. Bright | 1⁄2[N 7] | |
Paris C. Dunning | |||||||
9 | Paris C. Dunning | December 26, 1848 | December 5, 1849 | Democratic | vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
10 | Joseph A. Wright | December 5, 1849 | January 12, 1857 | Democratic | James H. Lane | 2 | |
Ashbel P. Willard | |||||||
11 | Ashbel P. Willard | January 12, 1857 | October 4, 1860 | Democratic | Abram A. Hammond | 1⁄2[N 10] | |
12 | Abram A. Hammond | October 4, 1860 | January 14, 1861 | Democratic | vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
13 | Henry Smith Lane | January 14, 1861 | January 16, 1861 | Republican | Oliver P. Morton | 1⁄2[N 7] | |
14 | Oliver P. Morton | January 16, 1861 | January 23, 1867 | Republican | Conrad Baker | 3[N 6][N 7] | |
15 | Conrad Baker | January 23, 1867 | January 13, 1873 | Republican | Will Cumback | 1⁄2[N 6][N 11] | |
16 | Thomas A. Hendricks | January 13, 1873 | January 8, 1877 | Democratic | Leonidas Sexton | 1 | |
17 | James D. Williams | January 8, 1877 | November 20, 1880 | Democratic | Isaac P. Gray | 1⁄2[N 10] | |
18 | Isaac P. Gray | November 20, 1880 | January 10, 1881 | Democratic | vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
19 | Albert G. Porter | January 10, 1881 | January 12, 1885 | Republican | Thomas Hanna | 1 | |
20 | Isaac P. Gray | January 12, 1885 | January 14, 1889 | Democratic | Mahlon Dickerson Manson | 1 | |
21 | Alvin P. Hovey | January 14, 1889 | November 23, 1891 | Republican | Ira Joy Chase | 1⁄2[N 10] | |
22 | Ira Joy Chase | November 23, 1891 | January 9, 1893 | Republican | vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
23 | Claude Matthews | January 9, 1893 | January 11, 1897 | Democratic | Mortimer Nye | 1 | |
24 | James A. Mount | January 11, 1897 | January 14, 1901 | Republican | William S. Haggard | 1 | |
25 | Winfield T. Durbin | January 14, 1901 | January 9, 1905 | Republican | Newton W. Gilbert | 1 | |
26 | J. Frank Hanly | January 9, 1905 | January 11, 1909 | Republican | Hugh Thomas Miller | 1 | |
27 | Thomas R. Marshall | January 11, 1909 | January 13, 1913 | Democratic | Frank J. Hall | 1 | |
28 | Samuel M. Ralston | January 13, 1913 | January 8, 1917 | Democratic | William P. O'Neill | 1 | |
29 | James P. Goodrich | January 8, 1917 | January 10, 1921 | Republican | Edgar D. Bush | 1 | |
30 | Warren T. McCray | January 10, 1921 | April 30, 1924 | Republican | Emmett Forrest Branch | 1⁄2[N 12] | |
31 | Emmett Forrest Branch | April 30, 1924 | January 12, 1925 | Republican | vacant | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
32 | Edward L. Jackson | January 12, 1925 | January 14, 1929 | Republican | F. Harold Van Orman | 1 | |
33 | Harry G. Leslie | January 14, 1929 | January 9, 1933 | Republican | Edgar D. Bush | 1 | |
34 | Paul V. McNutt | January 9, 1933 | January 11, 1937 | Democratic | M. Clifford Townsend | 1 | |
35 | M. Clifford Townsend | January 11, 1937 | January 13, 1941 | Democratic | Henry F. Schricker | 1 | |
36 | Henry F. Schricker | January 13, 1941 | January 8, 1945 | Democratic | Charles M. Dawson | 1 | |
37 | Ralph F. Gates | January 8, 1945 | January 10, 1949 | Republican | Richard T. James | 1 | |
38 | Henry F. Schricker | January 10, 1949 | January 12, 1953 | Democratic | John A. Watkins | 1 | |
Rue J. Alexander | |||||||
39 | George N. Craig | January 12, 1953 | January 14, 1957 | Republican | Harold W. Handley | 1 | |
40 | Harold W. Handley | January 14, 1957 | January 9, 1961 | Republican | Crawford F. Parker | 1 | |
41 | Matthew E. Welsh | January 9, 1961 | January 11, 1965 | Democratic | Richard O. Ristine | 1 | |
42 | Roger D. Branigin | January 11, 1965 | January 13, 1969 | Democratic | Robert L. Rock | 1 | |
43 | Edgar Whitcomb | January 13, 1969 | January 8, 1973 | Republican | Richard E. Folz | 1 | |
44 | Otis R. Bowen | January 8, 1973 | January 12, 1981 | Republican | Robert D. Orr | 2 | |
45 | Robert D. Orr | January 12, 1981 | January 9, 1989 | Republican | John Mutz | 2 | |
46 | Evan Bayh | January 9, 1989 | January 13, 1997 | Democratic | Frank O'Bannon | 2 | |
47 | Frank O'Bannon | January 13, 1997 | September 13, 2003 | Democratic | Joe Kernan | 1 1⁄2[N 10] | |
48 | Joe Kernan | September 13, 2003 | January 10, 2005 | Democratic | Kathy Davis | 1⁄2[N 6] | |
49 | Mitch Daniels | January 10, 2005 | incumbent | Republican | Becky Skillman | 1[N 13] |
This is a table of congressional seats and other federal offices held by governors. All representatives and senators mentioned represented Indiana except where noted.
As of July 2010[update], four former governors were alive. The most recent governor to die was Robert D. Orr (1981–1989), on March 10, 2004. The most recently-serving governor to die was Frank O'Bannon (1997–2003), in office on September 13, 2003.
Name | Gubernatorial term | Date of birth |
---|---|---|
Edgar Whitcomb | 1969–1973 | November 6, 1917 |
Otis R. Bowen | 1973–1981 | February 26, 1918 |
Evan Bayh | 1989–1997 | December 26, 1955 |
Joe Kernan | 2003–2005 | April 8, 1946 |
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