Lieutenant Governor of Delaware
Elected state official
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The lieutenant governor of Delaware is the second-ranking executive officer of the U.S. state of Delaware. Lieutenant governors are elected for a term of four years in the same general election as the U.S. president, and assume the office on the third Tuesday in January following their election.
| Lieutenant Governor of Delaware | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Government of Delaware | |
| Style | Madam Lieutenant Governor |
| Term length | Four years, renewable once |
| Inaugural holder | Philip L. Cannon |
| Succession | First |
| Website | Official website |
Among the primary responsibilities of the lieutenant governor is to assume the governorship in the event it becomes vacant. Lieutenant governors serve as the president of the Delaware Senate, where they are tasked with casting tie-breaking votes. They also hold a seat on the Delaware Board of Pardons.
Lieutenant governors are elected separately from governors in Delaware, though historically nominees of the same party have run as a unified ticket. The office's current occupant, Kyle Evans Gay, was sworn in on January 21, 2025.
History
The position of lieutenant governor was established by the Constitution of Delaware in 1897. The first election for the office took place in 1900, when it was won by Philip L. Cannon. Since then, a total of 27 individuals (15 Democrats and 12 Republicans) have held the lieutenant governorship.
On December 30, 1960, Lieutenant Governor David P. Buckson became the first occupant of the office to ascend to the governorship. He served the remaining two weeks of the term of J. Caleb Boggs, who resigned from office ahead of his inauguration as a United States senator.
Though lieutenant governors are permitted to serve two terms, none sought reelection until Eugene Bookhammer in 1972. No lieutenant governor who has pursued a second term has ever lost reelection of renomination to the office.
Despite being separately elected positions, Delaware has historically chosen governors and lieutenant governors of the same party. The last time voters split their tickets for the two offices was in 1984, when Democrat S. B. Woo won the lieutenant governorship at the same time as Mike Castle won the governorship.
Reflecting Delaware's increasingly Democratic political lean, no Republican has won the office since 1988.
Kyle Evans Gay is the current lieutenant governor, having taken office January 21, 2025.[1][2]
The offices of the lieutenant governor are at the state capital of Dover. Lieutenant governors receive an annual salary of $83,884.
List
Democratic (15) Republican (12)
| No. | Lieutenant Governor | Term in office | Party | Election | Governor | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ,_first_Lieutenant_Governor_of_Delaware.png) |
Philip L. Cannon (1850–1929) |
January 15, 1901 – January 17, 1905 (did not run) |
Republican | 1900 | John Hunn | ||
| 2 |  |
Isaac T. Parker (1849–1911) |
January 15, 1905 – January 19, 1909 (did not run) |
Republican | 1904 | Preston Lea | ||
| 3 | |
John M. Mendinhall (1861–1938) |
January 19, 1909 – January 21, 1913 (did not run) |
Republican | 1908 | Simeon S. Pennewill | ||
| 4 | |
Colen Ferguson (1835–1917) |
January 21, 1913 – January 16, 1917 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1912 | Charles R. Miller | ||
| 5 |  |
Lewis E. Eliason (1850–1919) |
January 16, 1917 – May 2, 1919 (died in office) |
Democratic | 1916 | John G. Townsend Jr. | ||
| — | Office vacant May 2, 1919 – January 18, 1921 | |||||||
| 6 | |
J. Danforth Bush (1868–1926) |
January 18, 1921 – January 20, 1925 (did not run) |
Republican | 1920 | William D. Denney | ||
| 7 | |
James H. Anderson (1878–1936) |
January 20, 1925 – January 15, 1929 (did not run) |
Republican | 1924 | Robert P. Robinson | ||
| 8 | |
James H. Hazel (1888–1965) |
January 15, 1929 – January 17, 1933 (did not run) |
Republican | 1928 | C. Douglass Buck | ||
| 9 | |
Roy F. Corley (1874–1953) |
January 17, 1933 – January 19, 1937 (did not run) |
Republican | 1932 | |||
| 10 | |
Edward W. Cooch (1876–1964) |
January 19, 1937 – January 21, 1941 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1936 | Richard McMullen | ||
| 11 | |
Isaac J. MacCollum (1889–1968) |
January 21, 1941 – January 16, 1945 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1940 | Walter W. Bacon | ||
| 12 | .png) |
Elbert N. Carvel (1910–2005) |
January 16, 1945 – January 18, 1949 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1944 | |||
| 13 | ,_Lieutenant_Governor_of_Delaware.jpg) |
Alexis I. du Pont Bayard (1918–1985) |
January 18, 1949 – January 20, 1953 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1948 | Elbert N. Carvel | ||
| 14 | ,_Lieutenant_Governor_of_Delaware.jpg) |
John W. Rollins (1916–2000) |
January 20, 1953 – January 15, 1957 (did not run) |
Republican | 1952 | J. Caleb Boggs | ||
| 15 | .png) |
David P. Buckson (1920–2017) |
January 15, 1957 – December 30, 1960 (succeeded to governor) |
Republican | 1956 | |||
| — | Office vacant December 30, 1960 – January 17, 1961 | David P. Buckson | ||||||
| 16 |  |
Eugene Lammot (1899–1987) |
January 17, 1961 – January 19, 1965 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1960 | Elbert N. Carvel | ||
| 17 | ,_Governor_and_Lieutenant_Governor_of_Delaware.jpg) |
Sherman W. Tribbitt (1922–2010) |
January 19, 1965 – January 21, 1969 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1964 | Charles L. Terry Jr. | ||
| 18 | ,_Lieutenant_Governor_of_Delaware.jpg) |
Eugene Bookhammer (1918–2013) |
January 21, 1969 – January 18, 1977 (term-limited) |
Republican | 1968 | Russell W. Peterson | ||
| 1972 | Sherman W. Tribbitt | |||||||
| 19 | James D. McGinnis (1932–2009) |
January 18, 1977 – January 20, 1981 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1976 | Pete du Pont | |||
| 20 |  |
Mike Castle (1939–2025) |
January 20, 1981 – January 15, 1985 (did not run) |
Republican | 1980 | |||
| 21 |  |
S. B. Woo (born 1937) |
January 15, 1985 – January 20, 1989 (did not run) |
Democratic | 1984 | Mike Castle | ||
| 22 |  |
Dale E. Wolf (1924–2021) |
January 20, 1989 – December 31, 1992 (succeeded to governor) |
Republican | 1988 | |||
| — | Office vacant December 31, 1992 – January 19, 1993 | Dale E. Wolf | ||||||
| 23 | _(cropped).jpg) |
Ruth Ann Minner (1935–2021) |
January 19, 1993 – January 3, 2001 (succeeded to governor) |
Democratic | 1992 | Tom Carper | ||
| 1996 | ||||||||
| — | Office vacant January 3, 2001 – January 16, 2001 | Ruth Ann Minner | ||||||
| 24 | .jpg) |
John Carney (born 1956) |
January 16, 2001 – January 20, 2009 (term-limited) |
Democratic | 2000 | |||
| 2004 | ||||||||
| 25 | .JPG) |
Matthew Denn (born 1966) [3] |
January 20, 2009 – January 6, 2015 (resigned) |
Democratic | 2008 | Jack Markell | ||
| 2012 | ||||||||
| — | Office vacant January 6, 2015 – January 17, 2017 | |||||||
| 26 |  |
Bethany Hall-Long (born 1963) [4] |
January 17, 2017 – January 7, 2025 (succeeded to governor) |
Democratic | 2016 | John Carney | ||
| 2020 | ||||||||
| — | Office vacant January 7, 2025 – January 21, 2025 | Bethany Hall-Long | ||||||
| 27 |
_Kyle_Evans_Gay.jpg) |
Kyle Evans Gay (born 1986) [5] |
January 21, 2025 – Incumbent |
Democratic | 2024 | Matt Meyer | ||