Number of Governors of Alaska by party affiliation^[1]

Party	Governors
Democratic	5
Republican	5
Alaskan Independence	1

The Governor of Alaska is the head of the executive branch of Alaska'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 Alaska Legislature,^[A] to convene the legislature, and to grant pardons, except in cases of impeachment.^[B] There have been nine governors of the state of Alaska, though it had over thirty civilian and military governors during its long history as a United States territory.

The state constitution provides for the election of a governor and lieutenant governor every four years on the same ticket, with their terms commencing on the first Monday in the December following the election.^[C] Governors are allowed to succeed themselves once, having to wait four years after their second term in a row before being allowed to run again.^[D] Should the office of governor become vacant, the lieutenant governor assumes the title of governor.^[E] The original constitution of 1956 created the office of secretary of state, which was functionally identical to a lieutenant governor, and was renamed to "lieutenant governor" in 1970.^[F]

Two people have served as state governor twice, William A. Egan and Walter J. Hickel, the latter of which had nearly 32 years between his terms. The longest-serving governor of the state was Egan, who served nearly 12 years over two distinct terms. The longest-serving territorial governor was Ernest Gruening, who served 13+¹⁄₂ years. The current governor is Sarah Palin, who took office in 2006 as the first female governor of Alaska and is John McCain's running mate as Vice President in the 2008 Presidential election.

List of Governors

Jefferson C. Davis, first commander of the Department of Alaska

Alfred P. Swineford, second governor of the District of Alaska

Ernest Gruening, seventh governor of Alaska Territory, and one of the first two U.S. senators from Alaska

Walter J. Hickel, second and eighth governor of Alaska, and 38th United States Secretary of the Interior

Jay Hammond, fifth governor of Alaska

Frank Murkowski, tenth governor of Alaska

Sarah Palin, 11th and current governor of Alaska

Alaska was purchased by the United States from Russia in 1867, with formal transfer occurring on October 18, 1867, which is now celebrated as Alaska Day.^[G] Prior to then, it was known as Russian America or Russian Alaska, controlled by the governors and general managers of the Russian-American Company.

Commanders of the Department of Alaska

The vast region was initially designated the Department of Alaska, under the jurisdiction of the Department of War and administered by U.S. Army officers until 1877, when the Army was withdrawn from Alaska. The Department of the Treasury then took control, with the Collector of Customs as the highest ranking federal official in the territory. In 1879, the U.S. Navy was given jurisdiction over the department.^[H]

Supposedly, the first American administrator of Alaska was Polish immigrant Włodzimierz Krzyżanowski. However, the Anchorage Daily News was unable to find any conclusive information to support this claim.^[I]

Governors of the District of Alaska

On May 17, 1884, the Department of Alaska was redesignated the District of Alaska, an incorporated but unorganized territory with a civil government. The governor was appointed by the President of the United States.

Governors of Alaska Territory

The District of Alaska was organized into Alaska Territory on August 24, 1912. Governors continued to be appointed by the President of the United States.

Governors of Alaska

Alaska was admitted to the Union on January 3, 1959. Since then, it has had 9 governors, serving 11 distinct terms.

      Democratic       Republican       Alaskan Independence

Notes

Other high offices held

This is a table of congressional seats, other federal offices, and other governorships held by governors.^[N] All representatives and senators mentioned represented Alaska except where noted. * denotes those offices which the governor resigned to take. † denotes those offices from which the governor resigned to take the governorship.

Living former governors

As of August 2008, seven former governors were alive, the oldest being Michael Anthony Stepovich (1957–1958, born March 12, 1919 (1919-03-12) (age 89)). The most recent governor to die was Jay Hammond (1974–1982), on August 2, 2005.

References

General

• "Governors of Alaska". National Governors Association. Retrieved on 2007-08-01.
• Gates, Nancy (2006). The Alaska Almanac: Facts about Alaska. Graphic Arts Center Publishing Co., 85-87. ISBN 0882406523. 

Constitutions

• "Constitution of the State of Alaska". Office of the Lieutenant Governor of Alaska (1956). Retrieved on 2008-08-13.

Specific

External links

• Office of the Governor of Alaska
• Past Governors of Alaska