List of governors of West Virginia

The governor of West Virginia is the head of government of West Virginia<ref name="wvc7-5">WV Constitution article VII, § 5.</ref> and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.<ref name="wvc7-12">WV Constitution article VII, § 12.</ref> The governor has a duty to enforce state laws,<ref name="wvc7-5" /> and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the West Virginia Legislature,<ref>WV Constitution article VII, § 14.</ref> to convene the legislature at any time,<ref>WV Constitution article VI, § 18–19.</ref> and, except when prosecution has been carried out by the House of Delegates, to grant pardons and reprieves.<ref>WV Constitution article VII, § 11.</ref>

Since West Virginia was admitted to the Union on June 20, 1863, during the American Civil War, 37 men have served as governor.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Two, Arch A. Moore Jr. (West Virginia's 28th and 30th governor) and Cecil H. Underwood (West Virginia's 25th and 32nd governor), served two nonconsecutive terms in office. The longest-serving governor was Moore, who served for three terms over twelve years. The state's first governor after admission into the Union, Arthur I. Boreman, served the most consecutive terms, resigning a week before the end of his third term. Before the state's admission, Francis Harrison Pierpont, the "Father of West Virginia,"<ref name="theintelligencer.net">Template:Cite news</ref> was elected governor during the Wheeling Convention of 1861. Daniel D.T. Farnsworth was senate president at the time; he filled the last seven days of Boreman's term and remains the shortest-serving governor. Underwood has the unusual distinction of being both the youngest person to be elected as governor (age 34 upon his first term in 1957) and the oldest to both be elected and serve (age 74 upon his second term in 1997; age 78 at the end of his second term in 2001). The current governor is Republican Patrick Morrisey, who assumed office on January 13, 2025.

To serve as governor, a person must be at least 30 years old, and must have been a citizen of West Virginia for at least five years at the time of inauguration.<ref name="wvc7-1">WV Constitution article VII, § 1.</ref> Under the current Constitution of West Virginia, ratified in 1872, the governor serves a four-year term commencing on the Monday after the second Wednesday in January, following an election.<ref name="wvc7-1" /> The original constitution of 1863 only called for a two-year term.<ref>WV 1863 Constitution article V, § 1.</ref> Since 1968, a governor may be reelected any number of times, but not more than twice in a row.<ref name="wvc7-4">WV Constitution, Article VII, section 4.</ref> Any partial term served counts toward the limit of two consecutive terms.<ref name=wvc7-4/>

The constitution makes no mention of a lieutenant governor; if the governorship becomes vacant, the senate president stands first in the line of succession. If more than one year remains in the governor's term at the time of vacancy, a new election is held for the balance of the term. If less than a year remains, the senate president acts as governor for the remainder of the term.<ref name="const 7-16">WV Constitution article VII, § 16.</ref> A bill passed in 2000 grants the senate president the honorary title of lieutenant governor,<ref name="legis.state.wv.us">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> but this title is rarely used in practice and the terms of the senate president do not correspond with governorships. The same bill states that the line of succession after the senate president will be the speaker of the House of Delegates, followed by the state attorney general, the state auditor and former governors, in inverse order of term, that are in residence in the state at the time of the vacancy.<ref name="legis.state.wv.us" />

Qualifications

Anyone who seeks to be elected Governor of West Virginia must meet the following qualifications:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

• Be a citizen of the United States
• Be a resident of West Virginia for at least five years preceding the election
• Be a duly qualified elector of West Virginia
• Be at least 30 years old

Governors

Governors of the State of West Virginia

Template:Abbr	Governor			Term in office	Party	Election
1		rowspan="5" style="background:Template:Party color;"|	Arthur I. Boreman Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-boreman">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – February 26, 1869 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1863
		1864
		1866
2		Daniel D. T. Farnsworth Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-farnsworth">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1869 Template:Small	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	Template:Small
3		William E. Stevenson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-stevenson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1871 Template:Small	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1868
4		style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	John J. Jacob Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-jacob">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1877 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1870
		style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|		People's IndependentTemplate:Sfn		1872
5		rowspan="5" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Henry M. Mathews Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-mathews">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:DtsTemplate:Efn – March 4, 1881 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1876
6		Jacob B. Jackson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-jackson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1885 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1880
7		Emanuel Willis Wilson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-wilson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – February 6, 1890 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1884
8		Aretas B. Fleming Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-fleming">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1893 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1888
9		William A. MacCorkle Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-maccorkle">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1897 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1892
10		rowspan="5" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	George W. Atkinson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-atkinson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1901 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1896
11		Albert B. White Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-white">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1905 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1900
12		William M. O. Dawson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-dawson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1909 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1904
13		William E. Glasscock Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-glasscock">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1913 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1908
14		Henry D. Hatfield Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-hatfield">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1917 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1912
15		style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	John J. Cornwell Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-cornwell">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1921 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1916
16		rowspan="3" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Ephraim F. Morgan Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-morgan">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1925 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1920
17		Howard Mason Gore Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-gore">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1929 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1924
18		William G. Conley Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-conley">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – March 4, 1933 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1928
19		rowspan="6" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Herman G. Kump Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-kump">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 18, 1937 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1932
20		Homer A. Holt Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-holt">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 13, 1941 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1936
21	File:Matthewneely.jpg	Matthew M. Neely Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-neely">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 15, 1945 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1940
22	File:Clarence W. Meadows.jpg	Clarence W. Meadows Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-meadows">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 17, 1949 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1944
23	File:Okey Patteson.jpg	Okey Patteson Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-patteson">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 19, 1953 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1948
24	File:William C. Marland.jpg	William C. Marland Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-marland">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 14, 1957 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1952
25	File:Cecil Underwood.jpg	style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Cecil H. Underwood Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-underwood">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 16, 1961 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1956
26	File:William Wallace Barron.jpg	rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Wally Barron Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-barron">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 18, 1965 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1960
27	File:Hulett C. Smith.jpg	Hulett C. Smith Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-smith">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 13, 1969 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Sfn	1964
28	File:Arch Moore 1976.jpg	rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Arch A. Moore Jr. Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-moore">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 17, 1977 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	RepublicanTemplate:Sfn	1968
		1972
29	File:Jay Rockefeller 1977 crop.png	rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Jay Rockefeller Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-rockefeller">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 14, 1985 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	Democratic<ref name="nga-rockefeller" />	1976
		1980
30	File:Arch Moore.jpg	style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Arch A. Moore Jr. Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-moore" />	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 16, 1989 Template:Small	Republican<ref name="nga-moore" />	1984
31	File:Gaston Caperton crop.jpg	rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Gaston Caperton Template:Small <ref name="nga-caperton">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 13, 1997 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	Democratic<ref name="nga-caperton" />	1988
		1992
32	File:Cecil Underwood 1998 (cropped).jpg	style="background:Template:Party color;"|	Cecil H. Underwood Template:Small Template:Sfn<ref name="nga-underwood" />	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 15, 2001 Template:Small	Republican<ref name="nga-underwood" />	1996
33	File:Bob Wise.jpg	rowspan="7" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|	Bob Wise Template:Small <ref name="nga-wise">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 17, 2005 Template:Small	Democratic<ref name="nga-wise" />	2000
34	File:Joe Manchin, Official Senate Portrait.jpg	Joe Manchin Template:Small <ref name="nga-manchin">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – November 15, 2010 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	Democratic<ref name="nga-manchin" />	2004
			2008
35	File:Earl Ray Tomblin 2 (cropped).jpg	Earl Ray Tomblin Template:Small <ref name="nga-tomblin">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – January 16, 2017 Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	Democratic<ref name="nga-tomblin" />	Template:Small
			2011 Template:Small
			2012
36	File:Jim Justice West Virginia Chamber Business Summit 2024.jpg	Jim Justice Template:Small <ref name="nga-justice">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – Template:Dts Template:SmallTemplate:Efn	DemocraticTemplate:Efn	2016
			rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background:Template:Party color;"|		Republican<ref name="nga-justice" />	2020
37	File:Patrick Morrisey by Gage Skidmore.jpg	Patrick Morrisey Template:Small <ref name="nga-morrisey">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	Template:Dts<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> – IncumbentTemplate:Efn	Republican<ref name="nga-morrisey" />	2024

Timeline

Timeline of West Virginia governors

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from:1863.47 till:1869.16 color:rep text:"Arthur I. Boreman"
from:1869.16 till:1869.17 color:rep text:"Daniel D. T. Farnsworth"
from:1869.17 till:1871.17 color:rep text:"William E. Stevenson"
from:1872 till:1877.17 color:indrep text:"John J. Jacob"
from:1877.17 till:1881.17 color:dem text:"Henry M. Mathews"
from:1881.17 till:1885.17 color:dem text:"Jacob B. Jackson"
from:1885.17 till:1890.1 color:dem text:"Emanuel Willis Wilson"
from:1890.1 till:1893.17 color:dem text:"Aretas B. Fleming"
from:1893.17 till:1897.17 color:dem text:"William A. MacCorkle"
from:1897.17 till:1901.17 color:rep text:"George W. Atkinson"
from:1901.17 till:1905.17 color:rep text:"Albert B. White"
from:1905.17 till:1909.17 color:rep text:"William M. O. Dawson"
from:1909.17 till:1913.17 color:rep text:"William E. Glasscock"
from:1913.17 till:1917.17 color:rep text:"Henry D. Hatfield"
from:1917.17 till:1921.17 color:dem text:"John J. Cornwell"
from:1921.17 till:1925.17 color:rep text:"Ephraim F. Morgan"
from:1925.17 till:1929.17 color:rep text:"Howard Mason Gore"
from:1929.17 till:1933.17 color:rep text:"William G. Conley"
from:1933.17 till:1937.05 color:dem text:"Herman G. Kump"
from:1937.05 till:1941.04 color:dem text:"Homer A. Holt"
from:1941.04 till:1945.04 color:dem text:"Matthew M. Neely"
from:1945.04 till:1949.05 color:dem text:"Clarence W. Meadows"
from:1949.05 till:1953.05 color:dem text:"Okey Patteson"
from:1953.05 till:1957.04 color:dem text:"William C. Marland"
from:1997.04 till:2001.04 color:rep text:"Cecil H. Underwood"
from:1961.04 till:1965.05 color:dem text:"Wally Barron"
from:1965.05 till:1969.04 color:dem text:"Hulett C. Smith"
from:1985.04 till:1989.04 color:rep text:"Arch A. Moore Jr."
from:1977.05 till:1985.04 color:dem text:"Jay Rockefeller"
from:1989.04 till:1997.04 color:dem text:"Gaston Caperton"
from:2001.04 till:2005.05 color:dem text:"Bob Wise"
from:2005.05 till:2010.87 color:dem text:"Joe Manchin"
from:2010.87 till:2017.05 color:dem text:"Earl Ray Tomblin"
from:2017.59 till:2025.04 color:rep text:"Jim Justice"
from:2025.04 till:$now color:rep text:"Patrick Morrisey"

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See also

• Template:Section link
• List of West Virginia state legislatures

References

General

• Morgan, John G. West Virginia Governors 1863-1980 (2nd ed. 1980)

• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}

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• {{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }} Template:Refend

Specific

External links

• Office of the Governor of West Virginia