Chief Governmental Officials
Filed Under:
Government
Filed Under:
History Following are lists of Texas' principal administrative officials with dates of their tenures of office. In a few instances, there are disputes as to the exact dates of tenures. Dates listed here are those that appear the most authentic.
Spanish Royal Governors*
| Governor | Began office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| Domingo Terán de los Rios | 1691 | 1692 |
| Gregorio de Salinas Varona | 1692 | 1697 |
| Francisco Cuerbo y Valdés | 1698 | 1702 |
| Mathías de Aguirre | 1703 | 1705 |
| Martín de Alarcón | 1705 | 1708 |
| Simón Padilla y Córdova | 1708 | 1712 |
| Pedro Fermin de Echevers y Subisa | 1712 | 1714 |
| Juan Valdéz | 1714 | 1716 |
| Martín de Alarcón | 1716 | 1719 |
| José de Azlor y Virto de Vera, Marqués de San Miguel de Aguayo | 1719 | 1722 |
| Fernando Pérez de Almazán | 1722 | 1727 |
| Melchor de Mediavilla y Azcona | 1727 | 1731 |
| Juan Antonio Bustillo y Ceballos | 1731 | 1734 |
| Manuel de Sandoval | 1734 | 1736 |
| Carlos Benites Franquis de Lugo | 1736 | 1737 |
| Joseph Fernández de Jáuregui y Urrutia | 1737 | 1737 |
| Prudencio de Orobio y Basterra | 1737 | 1741 |
| Tomás Felipe Winthuisen (or Winthuysen) | 1741 | 1743 |
| Justo Boneo y Morales | 1743 | 1744 |
| Francisco García Larios | 1744 | 1748 |
| Pedro del Barrio Junco y Espriella | 1748 | 1750 |
| Jacinto de Barrios y Jáuregui | 1751 | 1759 |
| Angel de Martos y Navarrete | 1759 | 1767 |
| Hugo Oconór | 1767 | 1770 |
| Juan María Vicencio, Barón de Ripperdá | 1770 | 1778 |
| Domingo Cabello y Robles | 1778 | 1786 |
| Rafael Martínez Pacheco | 1787 | 1790 |
| Manuel Muñoz | 1790 | 1799 |
| Juan Bautista de Elguezábal | 1799 | 1805 |
| Antonio Cordero y Bustamante | 1805 | 1808 |
| Manuel María de Salcedo | 1808 | 1813 |
(Mexico's War of Independence 1810–1821 created governmental instabliity.)
| Juan Bautista de las Casas (revolutionary gov.) | 1811 | 1811 |
| Cristóbal Domínguez, Benito de Armiñan, Mariano Varela, Juan Ignacio Pérez, Manuel Pardo (ad interim) | 1813 | 1817 |
| Antonio María Martínez | 1817 | 1821 |
*Some authorities would include Texas under administrations of several earlier Spanish governors. The late Dr. Carlos E. Castañeda, Latin American librarian of the University of Texas and authority on the history of Texas and the Southwest, would include the following four: Francisco de Garay, 1523–1526; Pánfilo de Narváez, 1526–1528; Nuño de Guzmán, 1528–1530; Hernando de Soto, 1538–1543.
Governors under Mexican Rule
The first two governors under Mexican rule, Trespalacios and García, were of Texas only as Texas was then constituted. Beginning with Gonzáles, 1824, the governors were for the joint State of Coahuila y Texas.
| Governor | Began office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| José Felix Trespalacios | 1822 | 1823 |
| Luciano García | 1823 | 1824 |
| Rafael Gonzáles | 1824 | 1826 |
| Victor Blanco | 1826 | 1827 |
| José María Viesca | 1827 | 1830 |
| Ramón Eca y Músquiz | 1830 | 1831 |
| José María Letona | 1831 | 1832 |
| Ramón Eca y Músquiz | 1832 | 1832 |
| Juan Martín de Veramendi | 1832 | 1833 |
| Juan José de Vidáurri y Villasenor | 1833 | 1834 |
| Juan José Elguezábal | 1834 | 1835 |
| José María Cantú | 1835 | 1835 |
| Agustín M. Viesca | 1835 | 1835 |
| Marciel Borrego | 1835 | 1835 |
| Ramón Eca y Músquiz | 1835 | 1835 |
Provisional Colonial Governor, before Independence
| Governor | Began office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| Henry Smith | 1835 | Jan. 1836 |
| (James W. Robinson served as acting governor just prior to March 2, 1836, after Smith was impeached.) |
Presidents of the Republic of Texas
| President | Began office | Left office |
|---|---|---|
| David G. Burnet (provisional) | March 16, 1836 | Oct. 22, 1836 |
| Sam Houston | Oct. 22, 1836 | Dec. 10, 1838 |
| Mirabeau B. Lamar | Dec. 10, 1838 | Dec. 13, 1841 |
| Sam Houston | Dec. 13, 1841 | Dec. 9, 1844 |
| Anson Jones | Dec. 9, 1844 | Feb. 19, 1844 |
Governors since Annexation
| Governor | Began office | Left office | Party |
|---|---|---|---|
| J. Pinckney Henderson | Feb. 19, 1846 | Dec. 21, 1847 | |
| (Albert C. Horton served as acting governor while Henderson was away in the Mexican War.) | |||
| George T. Wood | Dec. 21, 1847 | Dec. 21, 1849 | |
| Peter Hansbrough Bell | Dec. 21, 1849 | Nov. 23, 1853 | |
| (Resigned to enter the U.S. House of Representatives.) | |||
| J.W. Henderson | Nov. 23, 1853 | Dec. 21, 1853 | |
| Elisha M. Pease | Dec. 21, 1853 | Dec. 21, 1857 | |
| Hardin R. Runnels | Dec. 21, 1857 | Dec. 21, 1859 | Democrat |
| Sam Houston | Dec. 21, 1859 | March 16, 1861 | |
| (Resigned because of state's secession from the Union.) | |||
| Edward Clark | March 16, 1861 | Nov. 7, 1861 | |
| Francis R. Lubbock | Nov. 7, 1861 | Nov. 5, 1863 | |
| (Resigned to enter the Confederate Army.) | |||
| Pendleton Murrah | Nov. 5, 1863 | June 17, 1865 | |
| (Administration terminated by fall of the Confederacy.) | |||
| Fletcher S. Stockdale | |||
| (Lt. gov. performed some duties of the office on Murrah's departure, but is sometimes included in list of governors. Hamilton's appointment was for immediate succession, as shown by dates.) | |||
| Andrew J. Hamilton | June 17, 1865 | Aug. 9, 1866 | |
| (provisional, appointed by President Andrew Johnson.) | |||
| James W. Throckmorton | Aug. 9, 1866 | Aug. 8, 1867 | |
| Elisha M. Pease | Aug. 8, 1867 | Sept. 30, 1869 | Republican |
| (Appointed under martial law after Throckmorton was ordered removed on July 30 by Gen. Philip Sheridan. Pease formally took possession of the office Aug. 8. He resigned and vacated office Sept. 30, 1869, but no successor was named until Jan. 8, 1870. Some historians extend Pease's term to that date, but in reality Texas was without a head of its civil government for that period.) | |||
| Edmund J. Davis | Jan. 8, 1870 | Jan. 15, 1874 | Republican |
| (Appointed provisional governor after being elected.) | |||
| Richard Coke | Jan. 15, 1874 | Dec. 1, 1876 | Democrat |
| (Resigned to enter U.S. Senate.) | |||
| Richard B. Hubbard | Dec. 1, 1876 | Jan. 21, 1879 | Democrat |
| Oran M. Roberts | Jan. 21, 1879 | Jan. 16, 1883 | Democrat |
| John Ireland | Jan. 16, 1883 | Jan. 18, 1887 | Democrat |
| Lawrence Sullivan (Sul) Ross | Jan. 18, 1887 | Jan. 20, 1891 | Democrat |
| James Stephen Hogg | Jan. 20, 1891 | Jan. 15, 1895 | Democrat |
| Charles A. Culberson | Jan. 15, 1895 | Jan. 17, 1899 | Democrat |
| Joseph D. Sayers | Jan. 17, 1899 | Jan. 20, 1903 | Democrat |
| S.W.T. Lanham | Jan. 20, 1903 | Jan. 15, 1907 | Democrat |
| Thos. Mitchell Campbell | Jan. 15, 1907 | Jan. 17, 1911 | Democrat |
| Oscar Branch Colquitt | Jan. 17, 1911 | Jan. 19, 1915 | Democrat |
| James E. Ferguson (impeached) | Jan. 19, 1915 | Aug. 25, 1917 | Democrat |
| William P. Hobby | Aug. 25, 1917 | Jan. 18, 1921 | Democrat |
| Pat M. Neff | Jan. 18, 1921 | Jan. 20, 1925 | Democrat |
| Miriam A. Ferguson | Jan. 20, 1925 | Jan. 17, 1927 | Democrat |
| Dan Moody | Jan. 17, 1927 | Jan. 20, 1931 | Democrat |
| Ross S. Sterling | Jan. 20, 1931 | Jan. 17, 1933 | Democrat |
| Miriam A. Ferguson | Jan. 17, 1933 | Jan. 15, 1935 | Democrat |
| James A. Allred | Jan. 15, 1935 | Jan. 17, 1939 | Democrat |
| W. Lee O'Daniel | Jan. 17, 1939 | Aug. 4, 1941 | Democrat |
| (Resigned to enter U.S. Senate.) | |||
| Coke R. Stevenson | Aug. 4, 1941 | Jan. 21, 1947 | Democrat |
| Beauford H. Jester (died in office) | Jan. 21, 1947 | July 11, 1949 | Democrat |
| Allan Shivers | July 11, 1949 | Jan. 15, 1957 | Democrat |
| Price Daniel | Jan. 15, 1957 | Jan. 15, 1963 | Democrat |
| John Connally | Jan. 15, 1963 | Jan. 21, 1969 | Democrat |
| Preston Smith | Jan. 21, 1969 | Jan. 16, 1973 | Democrat |
| Dolph Briscoe | Jan. 16, 1973 | Jan. 16, 1979 | Democrat |
| (Effective in 1975, the term of office was raised to 4 years.) | |||
| William P. Clements | Jan. 16, 1979 | Jan. 18, 1983 | Republican |
| Mark White | Jan. 18, 1983 | Jan. 20, 1987 | Democrat |
| William P. Clements | Jan. 20, 1987 | Jan. 15, 1991 | Republican |
| Ann W. Richards | Jan. 15, 1991 | Jan. 17, 1995 | Democrat |
| George W. Bush | Jan. 17, 1995 | Dec. 21, 2000 | Republican |
| (Resigned to become U.S. president.) | |||
| Rick Perry | Dec. 21, 2000 | present | Republican |
Elections of Texas Governors since 1845, click.
Sources: Texas State Library and Archives Commission, Legislative Reference Library of Texas, the Handbook of Texas Online, Texas Almanac archive, the Dallas Morning News, and Journals of the House of Representatives.
