List of governors of Iowa

The Governor of Iowa is the head of Executive Branch for the Government of Iowa, and commander in chief of military forces in the state. The governor has a term of four years. For being elected, one must be at least 30, and have been a citizen of Iowa for two years. There are no term limits on how long a governor may serve. The current governor is Kim Reynolds since May 24, 2017.

Governor of Iowa
State seal
Incumbent Kim Reynolds since May 24, 2017
Style	The Honorable
Residence	Terrace Hill
Term length	Four years, no term limits
Precursor	Governor of Iowa Territory
Inaugural holder	Ansel Briggs
Formation	December 3, 1846 (177 years ago) (1846-12-03)
Salary	$130,000 (2013)[1]
Website	Official website

The longest serving governor is Terry Branstad. He served four terms, 1983-99, and was elected again in 2010. He left office in 2017 to become an ambassador. The governors between the terms of Branstad were Tom Vilsack, who served 1999-2007, and Chet Culver.

Governors

These are the Governors who have served Iowa:

#	Name	Took Office	Left Office	Party	#	Lt. Governor	Notes
1	Ansel Briggs	December 3, 1846	December 4, 1850	Democratic		vacant
2	Stephen P. Hempstead	December 4, 1850	December 9, 1854	Democratic		vacant
3	James W. Grimes	December 9, 1854	January 13, 1858	Whig		vacant
4	Ralph P. Lowe	January 13, 1858	January 11, 1860	Republican	1	Oran Faville
5	Samuel J. Kirkwood	January 11, 1860	January 14, 1864	Republican	2	Nicholas J. Rusch
					3	John R. Needham
6	William M. Stone	January 14, 1864	January 16, 1868	Republican	4	Enoch W. Eastman
					5	Benjamin F. Gue
7	Samuel Merrill	January 16, 1868	January 11, 1872	Republican	6	John Scott
					7	Madison Miner Walden
					8	Henry C. Bulis
8	Cyrus C. Carpenter	January 11, 1872	January 13, 1876	Republican		Henry C. Bulis
					9	Joseph Dysart
9	Samuel J. Kirkwood	January 13, 1876	February 1, 1877	Republican	10	Joshua G. Newbold	[N 1]
10	Joshua G. Newbold	February 1, 1877	January 17, 1878	Republican		vacant	[N 2]
11	John H. Gear	January 17, 1878	January 12, 1882	Republican	11	Frank T. Campbell
12	Buren R. Sherman	January 12, 1882	January 14, 1886	Republican	12	Orlando H. Manning
13	William Larrabee	January 14, 1886	February 27, 1890	Republican	13	John A.T. Hull
14	Horace Boies	February 27, 1890	January 11, 1894	Democratic	14	Alfred N. Poyneer
					15	Samuel L. Bestow
15	Frank D. Jackson	January 11, 1894	January 16, 1896	Republican	16	Warren S. Dungan
16	Francis M. Drake	January 16, 1896	January 13, 1898	Republican	17	Matt Parrott
17	Leslie M. Shaw	January 13, 1898	January 16, 1902	Republican	18	James C. Milliman
18	Albert B. Cummins	January 16, 1902	November 24, 1908	Republican	19	John Herriott	[N 1][N 3]
					20	Warren Garst
19	Warren Garst	November 24, 1908	January 14, 1909	Republican		vacant	[N 2]
20	Beryl F. Carroll	January 14, 1909	January 16, 1913	Republican	21	George W. Clarke
21	George W. Clarke	January 16, 1913	January 11, 1917	Republican	22	William L. Harding
22	William L. Harding	January 11, 1917	January 13, 1921	Republican	23	Ernest Robert Moore
23	Nathan E. Kendall	January 13, 1921	January 15, 1925	Republican	24	John Hammill
24	John Hammill	January 15, 1925	January 15, 1931	Republican	25	Clem F. Kimball
					26	Arch W. McFarlane
25	Daniel Webster Turner	January 15, 1931	January 12, 1933	Republican		Arch W. McFarlane
26	Clyde L. Herring	January 12, 1933	January 14, 1937	Democratic	27	Nelson G. Kraschel
27	Nelson G. Kraschel	January 14, 1937	January 12, 1939	Democratic	28	John K. Valentine
28	George A. Wilson	January 12, 1939	January 14, 1943	Republican	29	Bourke B. Hickenlooper
29	Bourke B. Hickenlooper	January 14, 1943	January 11, 1945	Republican	30	Robert D. Blue
30	Robert D. Blue	January 11, 1945	January 13, 1949	Republican	31	Kenneth A. Evans
31	William S. Beardsley	January 13, 1949	November 21, 1954	Republican		Kenneth A. Evans	[N 4]
					32	William H. Nicholas
					33	Leo Elthon
32	Leo Elthon	November 22, 1954	January 13, 1955	Republican		vacant	[N 2]
33	Leo A. Hoegh	January 13, 1955	January 17, 1957	Republican	34	Leo Elthon
34	Herschel C. Loveless	January 17, 1957	January 12, 1961	Democratic	35	William H. Nicholas
					36	Edward J. McManus
35	Norman A. Erbe	January 12, 1961	January 17, 1963	Republican	37	W. L. Mooty
36	Harold E. Hughes	January 17, 1963	January 1, 1969	Democratic		W. L. Mooty	[N 1]
					38	Robert D. Fulton
37	Robert D. Fulton	January 1, 1969	January 16, 1969	Democratic		vacant	[N 2]
38	Robert D. Ray	January 16, 1969	January 14, 1983	Republican	39	Roger Jepsen
					40	Arthur A. Neu
					41	Terry E. Branstad
39	Terry E. Branstad	January 14, 1983	January 15, 1999	Republican	42	Robert T. Anderson
					43	Jo Ann Zimmerman
					44	Joy Corning
40	Tom Vilsack	January 15, 1999	January 12, 2007	Democratic	45	Sally Pederson
41	Chet Culver	January 12, 2007	January 14, 2011	Democratic	46	Patty Judge
42	Terry E. Branstad	January 14, 2011	May 24, 2017	Republican	47	Kim Reynolds
43	Kim Reynolds	May 24, 2017	Incumbent	Republican	48	Vacant	[N 5]

References

1. "CSG Releases 2013 Governor Salaries". The Council of State Governments. June 25, 2013. Archived from the original on October 22, 2014. Retrieved November 23, 2014.

1. Resigned to take an elected seat in the United States Senate.
2. As lieutenant governor, filled unexpired term.
3. Amendment 11 to the Iowa constitution, passed in 1904, shifted the state's election cycle forward one year, such that terms would begin on odd years. This lengthened Cummins' second term to three years (1904–1907).
4. Died in office.
5. Governor Reynolds' term expires on January 13, 2023.