List of Governors of Idaho

Governor of Idaho
Seal of the State of Idaho
Incumbent C. L. "Butch" Otter since January 1, 2007
Residence	The Idaho House
Term length	Four years, no term limit
Inaugural holder	George L. Shoup
Formation	July 3, 1890
Deputy	Brad Little
Salary	$117,000 (2013)[1]
Website	gov.idaho.gov

The Governor of Idaho is the head of the executive branch of Idaho's state government^[2] and commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.^[3] The governor has the duty to see state laws are executed, power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Idaho Legislature.^[3]

Idaho Territory had 16 territorial governors appointed by the President of the United States from the territory's organization in 1863 until the formation of the state of Idaho in 1890. Four of these never took office, resigning before reaching the territory.

Thirty individuals have held the office of governor of Idaho since the state's admission to the Union in 1890, two of whom—C. A. Bottolfsen and Cecil D. Andrus—served non-consecutive terms. The state's first governor, George Laird Shoup, had the shortest term of three months, and Cecil D. Andrus served as governor the longest at 14 years. Four governors resigned, but none has died while in office. There have been 20 Republican and 12 Democratic governors. The current governor is C. L. "Butch" Otter, who took office on January 1, 2007.^[4]

Governors

Governors of the Territory of Idaho

Idaho Territory was created from Dakota Territory, Nebraska Territory, and Washington Territory on March 4, 1863. Initially, the territory included all of modern-day Idaho and Montana, and most of Wyoming. On May 26, 1864, Montana Territory was split from Idaho Territory, and most of the Wyoming portion was reassigned to Dakota Territory. The portion east of the 111th meridian was split off as part of the new Wyoming Territory on July 25, 1868, giving Idaho Territory its final borders.^[5]

Due to the long distance between Washington, D.C. and Boise, there was often a lengthy gap between a governor being appointed and his arrival in the territory; four resigned before even arriving.

Image	Governor	Term in office	Appointed by	Notes
	William H. Wallace	July 1863[6][7] – December 1863[6]	Abraham Lincoln	[lower-alpha 1]
	Caleb Lyon	August 1, 1864[6][7] – April 1866[9]
	David W. Ballard	June 14, 1866[10] – July 1870[11]	Andrew Johnson
	Samuel Bard	Appointed March 30, 1870[12]	Ulysses S. Grant	[lower-alpha 2]
	Gilman Marston	Appointed June 7, 1870[12]		[lower-alpha 3]
	Alexander H. Conner	Appointed January 12, 1871[12]		[lower-alpha 4]
	Thomas M. Bowen	July 1871[13] – August 15, 1871[13]		[lower-alpha 5]
	Thomas W. Bennett	December 1871[14] – December 4, 1875[15]		[lower-alpha 6]
	David P. Thompson	April 1876[17] – May 1876[17]		[lower-alpha 7]
	Mason Brayman	July 1876[18] – July 24, 1880[19]		[lower-alpha 8]
	John P. Hoyt	Appointed June 8, 1878[21] Appointed August 7, 1878[22]	Rutherford B. Hayes	[lower-alpha 9]
	John Baldwin Neil	August 3, 1880[23] – March 2, 1883[24]
	John N. Irwin	April 1883[25] – December 20, 1883[25]	Chester A. Arthur	[lower-alpha 10]
	William M. Bunn	June 26, 1884[27] – July 3, 1885[28]		[lower-alpha 11]
	Edward A. Stevenson	September 29, 1885[29] – April 1, 1889[30]	Grover Cleveland
	George Laird Shoup	April 30, 1889[31] – July 3, 1890	Benjamin Harrison

Governors of the State of Idaho

Idaho was admitted to the Union on July 3, 1890. Since then, the state has had 30 governors, two of whom served non-consecutive terms. The terms for governor and lieutenant governor are four years, commencing on the first Monday in the January following the election. Prior to 1946, the offices were elected to terms of two years.^[32] If the office of governor is vacant or the governor is out of state or unable to discharge his duties, the lieutenant governor acts as governor until such time as the disability is removed.^[33] If both the offices of governor and lieutenant governor are vacant or both those officers are unable to fulfill their duties, the President pro tempore of the Idaho Senate is next in line, and then the Speaker of the Idaho House of Representatives.^[34] After the change to four-year terms, self-succession (re-election) was not initially allowed; newly elected Governor Robert E. Smylie, formerly the state's attorney general, successfully lobbied the 1955 legislature to propose an amendment to the state constitution to allow gubernatorial re-election, which was approved by voters in the 1956 general election.^[35][36] There is no limit to the number of terms a governor may serve.^[37]

  Democratic (12)   Republican (20)

#[lower-alpha 12]	Governor			Term in office	Party	Term[lower-alpha 13]	Lt. Governor
1			George Laird Shoup	October 1, 1890 – December 18, 1890	Republican	1890 [lower-alpha 14]		N. B. Willey
2			N. B. Willey	December 18, 1890 – January 2, 1893	Republican			John S. Gray
3			William J. McConnell	January 2, 1893 – January 4, 1897	Republican	1892		F. B. Willis
						1894		F. J. Mills
4			Frank Steunenberg	January 4, 1897 – January 7, 1901	Democratic[lower-alpha 15]	1896		George F. Moore[lower-alpha 16]
						1898		J. H. Hutchinson[lower-alpha 17]
5			Frank W. Hunt	January 7, 1901 – January 5, 1903	Democratic	1900		Thomas F. Terrell
6			John T. Morrison	January 5, 1903 – January 2, 1905	Republican	1902		James M. Stevens
7			Frank R. Gooding	January 2, 1905 – January 4, 1909	Republican	1904		Burpee L. Steeves
						1906		Ezra A. Burrell
8			James H. Brady	January 4, 1909 – January 2, 1911	Republican	1908		Lewis H. Sweetser
9			James H. Hawley	January 2, 1911 – January 6, 1913	Democratic	1910
10			John M. Haines	January 6, 1913 – January 4, 1915	Republican	1912		Herman H. Taylor[lower-alpha 18]
11			Moses Alexander	January 4, 1915 – January 6, 1919	Democratic	1914
						1916		Ernest L. Parker
12			D. W. Davis	January 6, 1919 – January 1, 1923	Republican	1918		Charles C. Moore
						1920
13			Charles C. Moore	January 1, 1923 – January 3, 1927	Republican	1922		H. C. Baldridge
						1924
14			H. C. Baldridge	January 3, 1927 – January 5, 1931	Republican	1926		O. E. Hailey
						1928		W. B. Kinne (died October 1, 1929)
							Vacant
								O. E. Hailey (appointed October 25, 1929)
15			C. Ben Ross	January 5, 1931 – January 4, 1937	Democratic	1930		G. P. Mix
						1932		George E. Hill
						1934		G. P. Mix
16			Barzilla W. Clark	January 4, 1937 – January 2, 1939	Democratic	1936		Charles C. Gossett
17			C. A. Bottolfsen	January 2, 1939 – January 6, 1941	Republican	1938		Donald S. Whitehead
18			Chase A. Clark	January 6, 1941 – January 4, 1943	Democratic	1940		Charles C. Gossett
19			C. A. Bottolfsen	January 4, 1943 – January 1, 1945	Republican	1942		Edwin Nelson
20			Charles C. Gossett	January 1, 1945 – November 17, 1945	Democratic	1944 [lower-alpha 19]		Arnold Williams
21			Arnold Williams	November 17, 1945 – January 6, 1947	Democratic		Vacant
								A. R. McCabe (appointed March 20, 1946)
22			C. A. Robins	January 6, 1947 – January 1, 1951	Republican	1946 [lower-alpha 20]		Donald S. Whitehead
23			Leonard B. Jordan	January 1, 1951 – January 3, 1955	Republican	1950		Edson H. Deal
24			Robert E. Smylie	January 3, 1955 – January 2, 1967	Republican	1954		J. Berkeley Larsen
						1958		W. E. Drevlow[lower-alpha 21]
						1962
25			Don Samuelson	January 2, 1967 – January 4, 1971	Republican	1968		Jack M. Murphy[lower-alpha 18]
26			Cecil D. Andrus	January 4, 1971 – January 24, 1977	Democratic	1970
						1974 [lower-alpha 22]		John V. Evans
27			John V. Evans	January 24, 1977 – January 5, 1987	Democratic		Vacant
								William J. Murphy (appointed January 28, 1977)
						1978		Phil Batt[lower-alpha 18]
						1982		David H. Leroy[lower-alpha 18]
28			Cecil D. Andrus	January 5, 1987 – January 2, 1995	Democratic	1986		C.L. "Butch" Otter[lower-alpha 18] (resigned January 3, 2001)
						1990
29			Phil Batt	January 2, 1995 – January 4, 1999	Republican	1994
30			Dirk Kempthorne	January 4, 1999 – May 26, 2006	Republican	1998
							Vacant
								Jack Riggs (appointed January 30, 2001)
						2002 [lower-alpha 23]		Jim Risch
31			Jim Risch	May 26, 2006 – January 1, 2007	Republican		Vacant
								Mark Ricks (appointed June 15, 2006)
32			C.L. "Butch" Otter	January 1, 2007 – Incumbent	Republican	2006		Jim Risch (resigned January 3, 2009)
							Vacant
								Brad Little
						2010
						2014 [lower-alpha 24]

Other high offices held

Sixteen of Idaho's governors have served higher federal offices or as governors of other states. Nine have served in the U.S. Senate, eight of those representing Idaho, and three have served in the U.S. House, one representing Idaho, one New York, and one the territories of Idaho and Washington. Idaho shares a governor with Arizona Territory, and one was appointed to Washington Territory but never took office. Two governors have been U.S. Secretaries of the Interior, and one served as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Six governors (marked with *) resigned to take a new office, including both territorial delegates, both Secretaries of the Interior, and two senators.

In addition, two people who were appointed governor of Idaho Territory but never took office held other high offices. Gilman Marston, appointed governor in 1870, was a representative and senator from New Hampshire,^[40] and John Philo Hoyt, appointed in 1878, was Governor of Arizona Territory.^[41]

All representatives and senators mentioned represented Idaho except where noted.

Living former governors

There are four living former governors of Idaho, the oldest being Phil Batt (served 1995–1999, born 1927). The most recent death of a former governor was that of John V. Evans (served 1977–1987, born 1925), at age 89 on July 8, 2014.

Notes

References

General

Constitution

Specific

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Governors of Idaho.

• Office of the Governor of Idaho

Governors of Idaho
Territorial (1863–90)	Wallace Lyon Ballard Bowen Bennett Thompson Brayman Neil Irwin Bunn Stevenson Shoup
State (since 1890)	Shoup Willey McConnell Steunenberg Hunt Morrison Gooding Brady Hawley Haines Alexander Davis Moore Baldridge Ross B. Clark Bottolfsen C. Clark Bottolfsen Gossett Williams Robins Jordan Smylie Samuelson Andrus Evans Andrus Batt Kempthorne Risch Otter

Years in Idaho (1890–present)
1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Idaho statewide elected officials
Governor Lieutenant Governor Secretary of State Attorney General Treasurer Controller Superintendent of Public Instruction

State of Idaho
Boise (capital)
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