2002 Governor's Chairs by State

The Green Papers: Midterm Election 2002

2002 Governor's Chairs
by State

36 Governor's Chairs up for election in 2002

36 Elected

14 Governor's Chairs not up for election in 2002

20 Open Governor's Chairs (voluntary retirement, seeking other political office, term limits)

16 Incumbents renominated by same party

196 Candidates seeking a Governor's Chair

This is a list of the current Governors' seats, the incumbents occupying them, and the candidacy status of said incumbents. Chairs up for election in the year 2002 are marked as such.

Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming

Governor Links



Alabama Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Don Siegelman • First elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Renominated - 4 June 2002 Primary

Alaska Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Tony Knowles • First elected: 1994; re-elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor. • Open Chair
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

Arizona Term Limit: The Governor can not serve for more than 8 years; 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Arkansas Term Limit: No one can serve more than 2 4-year terms in a lifetime
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

California Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Gray Davis • Re-elected 5 November 2002 • First elected: 1998; re-elected: 2002 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Renominated - 5 March 2002 Primary

Colorado Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Connecticut Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Delaware Term Limit: No one can serve more than 2 4-year terms in a lifetime
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Ruth Ann Minner • First elected: 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

Florida Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Georgia Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Roy E. Barnes • First elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Renominated - 20 August 2002 - Primary

Hawaii Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Ben Cayetano • First elected: 1994; re-elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor. • Open Chair
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

Idaho Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Illinois Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Indiana Term Limit: No more than 2 4-year terms in any 3-term period
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Frank O'Bannon • First elected: 1996; re-elected: 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor.

Iowa Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Tom Vilsack • Re-elected 5 November 2002 • First elected: 1998; re-elected: 2002 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Renominated - 4 June 2002 Primary

Kansas Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Kentucky Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Paul Patton • First elected: 1995; re-elected; 1999 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 4 November 2003 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor.

Louisiana Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Maine Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Independent

Maryland Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Parris N. Glendening • First elected: 1994; re-elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor. • Open Chair
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

Massachusetts Term Limit: None; 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Michigan Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Minnesota Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Independence

Mississippi Term Limit: No one can serve more than 2 4-year terms in a lifetime
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Ronnie Musgrove • First elected: 1999 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 4 November 2003 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

Missouri Term Limit: No one can serve more than 2 4-year terms in a lifetime
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Bob Holden • First elected: 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

Montana Term Limit: No more than 2 4-year terms in any 4-term period
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Nebraska Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Nevada Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

New Hampshire Term Limit: None; 2-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Jeanne Shaheen • First elected: 1996; re-elected: 1998, 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Open Chair - Nominee for U.S. Senate
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

New Jersey Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor James E. ["Jim"] McGreevey • First elected: 2001 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 8 November 2005 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

New Mexico Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

New York Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

North Carolina Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Mike Easley • First elected: 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

North Dakota Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Ohio Term Limit: No one can serve more than 2 4-year terms in a lifetime
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Oklahoma Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Oregon Term Limit: No more than 2 4-year terms in any 3-term period
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor John Kitzhaber • First elected: 1994; re-elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor. • Open Chair
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

Pennsylvania Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Rhode Island Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

South Carolina Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Jim Hodges • First elected: 1998 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Renominated - 11 June 2002 Primary

South Dakota Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Tennessee Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Texas Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Utah Term Limit: 3 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Vermont Term Limit: None; 2-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Howard Dean • As Lieutenant Governor, succeeded to the office upon the death of Governor Richard A. Snelling (Republican): 14 August 1991; first elected to a full term: 1992; re-elected: 1994, 1996, 1998, 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 5 November 2002 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit. • Open Chair - Voluntary Retirement
		Open Chair (no incumbent)

Virginia Term Limit: 1 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Mark Warner • First elected: 2001 (succeeding Republican James S. Gilmore) • Chair up for election: Tuesday 8 November 2005 • The current Governor is affected by a term limit and CANNOT run in the next election for Governor.

Washington Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Gary Locke • First elected: 1996, 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

West Virginia Term Limit: 2 consecutive 4-year terms
Partisan Composition: 1 Democrat

	Democrat	Governor Robert E. Wise, Jr. • First elected: 2000 • Chair up for election: Tuesday 2 November 2004 • The current Governor is NOT affected by this state's term limit.

Wisconsin Term Limit: None; 4-year term
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican

Wyoming Term Limit: No more than 2 4-year terms in any 4-term period
Partisan Composition: 1 Republican