head of government
The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...
of
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
and commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.WA Const. art. III, § 2. The officeholder has a duty to enforce state laws,WA Const. art. III, § 5. the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the
Washington Legislature
The Washington State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a bicameral body, composed of the lower Washington House of Representatives, composed of 98 Representatives, and the upper Washington State Sena ...
and
line-item veto
The line-item veto, also called the partial veto, is a special form of veto power that authorizes a chief executive to reject particular provisions of a bill enacted by a legislature without vetoing the entire bill. Many countries have differen ...
power to cancel specific provisions in spending bills. The Washington governor may also convene the legislature on "extraordinary occasions".
Washington Territory had 14 territorial governors from its organization in 1853 until the formation of the state of Washington in 1889. Territorial governors were appointed by the president of the United States. Elisha P. Ferry had the longest term of eight years and went on to become the state's first governor. William H. Wallace was appointed governor but never took office due to being elected as the territory's congressional delegate. George Edward Cole was appointed governor and took office, but his appointment was never ratified by the U.S. Senate and he was replaced as governor after four months.
Twenty-two individuals have held the office of Governor of Washington since the state's admission to the Union, with
Arthur B. Langlie
Arthur Bernard Langlie (July 25, 1900 – July 24, 1966) was an American politician who served as the mayor of Seattle, Washington and was the List of governors of Washington, 12th and 14th governor of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Wa ...
Jay Inslee
Jay Robert Inslee (; born February 9, 1951) is an American politician, lawyer, and economist who has served as the 23rd governor of Washington since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a member of the U.S. House of Represen ...
, who took office on January 16, 2013, and was reelected in 2016 and 2020; his term will expire on January 15, 2025. Washington has had the longest current streak of Democratic governors in the nation, with the last Republican to hold the office being John Spellman in 1985.
With the re-election of Inslee in 2020, Langlie,
Daniel J. Evans
Daniel Jackson Evans (born October 16, 1925) is an American politician who served as the 16th governor of Washington from 1965 to 1977, and as United States senator representing Washington State from 1983 to 1989.Washington Territory was created on March 2, 1853, from the northern half of Oregon Territory. At this point, Washington Territory also included the northern panhandle of modern
Idaho
Idaho ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Monta ...
and parts of
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...
. The southern half of Idaho was assigned to the Washington Territory in 1859 after Oregon was admitted as a state. Idaho Territory was split from Washington Territory in 1863 giving Washington Territory its final borders.
Due to the long distance between Washington, D.C., and Olympia, there was often a lengthy gap between a governor being appointed and his arrival in the territory.
Governors of the State of Washington
Washington was admitted to the Union on November 11, 1889. The term for governor is four years, commencing on the second Monday in the January following the election. If the office of governor is vacant or the governor is unable to discharge their duties, the lieutenant governor assumes the duties of governor, though still officially retains the office of lieutenant governor. If both the offices of governor and lieutenant governor are unable to fulfill their duties, the secretary of state is next in line, and then the treasurer. There is no limit to the number of terms a governor may serve. The office of
lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
is not elected on the same ticket as the governor.
; Parties
Succession
See also
*
List of Washington state legislatures
Washington most commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area cen ...