Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky

Lieutenant Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
Seal of Kentucky
Incumbent Jenean Hampton since December 8, 2015
Style	The Honorable
Residence	Private
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Inaugural holder	Alexander Scott Bullitt (1800)
Formation	Kentucky Constitution
Website	http://ltgovernor.ky.gov

The office of lieutenant governor of Kentucky was created under the state's second constitution, which was ratified in 1799. The inaugural officeholder was Alexander Scott Bullitt, who took office in 1800 following his election to serve under James Garrard in 1799. The lieutenant governor serves as governor of Kentucky under circumstances similar to the Vice President of the United States assuming the powers of the presidency. The current Lieutenant Governor is Republican Jenean Hampton.

Duties of the Kentucky Lt. Governor

as specified in Kentucky Revised Statute 11.400

11.400 Duties of Lieutenant Governor. (1) In addition to the duties prescribed for the office by the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the duties of the Lieutenant Governor shall be as follows: (a) To serve as vice chairman of the State Property and Buildings Commission as prescribed by KRS 56.450; (b) To serve as vice chairman of the Kentucky Turnpike Authority as prescribed in KRS 175.430; (c) To serve as a member of the Kentucky Council on Agriculture in accordance with KRS 247.417; (d) To appoint one (1) member of the Public Officials' Compensation Commission as provided in KRS 64.742; (e) To serve as a member of the Board of the Kentucky Housing Corporation in accordance with KRS 198A.030; and (f) To serve as a member of Kentucky delegations on the following interstate compact commissions or boards: 1. The Southern Growth Policies Board as prescribed by KRS 147.585; 2. The Breaks Interstate Park Commission as provided in KRS 148.225; 3. The Falls of the Ohio Interstate Park Commission pursuant to KRS 148.242; 4. The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Development Authority pursuant to KRS 182.305; 5. The Interstate Water Sanitation Control Commissions as prescribed by KRS 224.18-710; and 6. The Kentucky Mining Advisory Council for the Interstate Mining Compact as provided by KRS 350.310. (2) Nothing in this section shall prohibit the Governor and Lieutenant Governor from agreeing upon additional duties within the executive branch of the state government to be performed by the Lieutenant Governor. Effective: June 26, 2007

Changes by 1992 amendment

The role and powers of the Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky were altered by a 1992 amendment to the Constitution of Kentucky. Prior to that 1992 amendment to the Constitution of Kentucky the lieutenant governor became acting governor at any time that the governor was outside of the commonwealth. Lieutenant governors Thelma Stovall (1975–1979) and Happy Chandler (1931–1935) engaged in high profile use of their powers as acting governor when the elected governor was out of the commonwealth.

Kentucky's first governor's mansion served as the lieutenant governor's official residence for many years.

Also prior to the 1992 amendment of the Constitution of Kentucky, the lieutenant governor of Kentucky presided over the Kentucky Senate, casting a vote only in the event of a tie. The 1992 constitutional amendment supplanted the office of President pro tempore of the Kentucky Senate with the new office of President of the Kentucky Senate as presiding officer and abolished the lieutenant governor's duties involving the Senate. As a result, the lieutenant governor has no ongoing constitutional duties, and his or her traditional use of the Old Governor's Mansion as an official residence has been phased out.

Candidates for governor and lieutenant governor in Kentucky run together on party slates. This is the result of the same 1992 constitutional amendment; prior to that the candidates for both offices ran separately and, as a result, sometimes the two elected to those offices were not allies and did not work together. This was famously highlighted when then-Lt. Gov. A. B. "Happy" Chandler in 1935 and then-Lt. Gov. Thelma Stovall in 1978 called the Kentucky General Assembly into session to enact legislation that was not advocated by the governors at the time (Ruby Laffoon and Julian Carroll, respectively). In 1967 a Republican, Louie Nunn, was elected governor and a Democrat, Wendell H. Ford, was elected lieutenant governor; they served together in that way for four years.

List of lieutenant governors

      Democratic       Democratic-Republican       National Republican       Free Soil       Republican       Whig

#	Name	Political Party	Term
1	Alexander Scott Bullitt		1800–1804
2	John Caldwell		1804
3	Thomas Posey	Democratic-Republican	1806–1808
4	Gabriel Slaughter	Democratic-Republican	1808–1812
5	Richard Hickman		1812–1816
6	Gabriel Slaughter	Democratic-Republican	1816
Vacant 1816–1820
7	William T. Barry	Democratic-Republican	1820–1824
8	Robert B. McAfee	Democratic-Republican	1824–1828
9	John Breathitt	Democratic	1828–1832
10	James T. Morehead	National Republican, Whig	1832–1834
Vacant 1834–1836
11	Charles A. Wickliffe	Whig	1836–1839
12	Manlius Valerius Thomson		1840–1844
13	Archibald Dixon	Whig	1844–1848
14	John LaRue Helm	Whig	1848–1850
Vacant 1850–1851
15	John Burton Thompson	Whig, Know Nothing	1851–1853
16	James Greene Hardy	Know Nothing	1855–1856
Vacant 1856–1859
17	Linn Boyd	Democratic	1859
18	Richard Taylor Jacob	Democratic	1863–1864
Vacant 1864–1867
19	John W. Stevenson	Democratic	1867
Vacant 1867–1871
20	John G. Carlisle	Democratic	1871–1875
21	John C. Underwood		1875–1879
22	James E. Cantrill		1879–1883
23	James R. Hindman	Democratic	1883–1887
24	James W. Bryan	Democratic	1887–1891
25	Mitchell C. Alford	Democratic	1891–1895
26	William J. Worthington		1895–1899
27	John Marshall	Republican	1899–1900
28	J. C. W. Beckham	Democratic	1900
Vacant 1900–1903
29	William P. Thorne		1903–1907
30	William H. Cox	Republican	1907–1911
31	Edward J. McDermott	Democratic	1911–1915
32	James D. Black	Democratic	1915–1919
33	S. Thruston Ballard		1919–1923
34	Henry Denhardt		1923–1927
35	James Breathitt, Jr.		1927–1931
36	Happy Chandler	Democratic	1931–1935
37	Keen Johnson	Democratic	1935–1939
38	Rodes K. Myers		1939–1943
39	Kenneth H. Tuggle	Republican	1943–1947
40	Lawrence Wetherby	Democratic	1947–1950
41	Emerson "Doc" Beauchamp		1951–1955
42	Harry Lee Waterfield	Democratic	1955–1959
43	Wilson W. Wyatt	Democratic	1959–1963
44	Harry Lee Waterfield	Democratic	1963–1967
45	Wendell H. Ford	Democratic	1967–1971
46	Julian M. Carroll	Democratic	1971–1974
Vacant 1974–1975
47	Thelma Stovall	Democratic	1975–1979
48	Martha Layne Collins	Democratic	1979–1983
49	Steve Beshear	Democraic	1983–1987
50	Brereton C. Jones	Democratic	1987–1991
51	Paul E. Patton	Democratic	1991–1995
52	Steve Henry	Democratic	1995–2003
53	Steve Pence	Republican	2003–2007
54	Daniel Mongiardo	Democratic	2007–2011
55	Jerry Abramson	Democratic	2011–2014
56	Crit Luallen	Democratic	2014–2015
57	Jenean Hampton	Republican	2015-

Some accounts also indicate that Kentucky's Confederate government had one lieutenant governor, Horatio F. Simrall, who was elected at the Russellville Convention in 1861. Simrall fled to Mississippi shortly thereafter.

Living former lieutenant governors

As of December 2015, ten former lieutenant governors were alive, the oldest being Julian Carroll (1971–1974, born 1931). The most recent death of a former lieutenant governor was that of Wendell H. Ford (1967–1971), on January 22, 2015.

Lt. Governor	Lt. Gubernatorial term	Date of birth (and age)
Julian M. Carroll	1971–1974	(1931-04-16) April 16, 1931
Martha Layne Collins	1979–1983	(1936-12-07) December 7, 1936
Steve Beshear	1983–1987	(1944-09-21) September 21, 1944
Brereton C. Jones	1987–1991	(1939-06-27) June 27, 1939
Paul E. Patton	1991–1995	(1937-05-26) May 26, 1937
Steve Henry	1995–2003	(1953-10-08) October 8, 1953
Steve Pence	2003–2007	(1953-12-22) December 22, 1953
Daniel Mongiardo	2007–2011	(1960-07-04) July 4, 1960
Jerry Abramson	2011–2014	(1946-09-12) September 12, 1946
Crit Luallen	2014–2015	(1952-07-21) July 21, 1952

See also

• Governor of Kentucky