Governor | Term Start | Term End | Party |
---|---|---|---|
Ansel Briggs | Dec 3, 1846 | Dec 4, 1850 | Democratic |
Stephen P. Hempstead | Dec 4, 1850 | Dec 9, 1854 | Democratic |
James W. Grimes | Dec 9, 1854 | Jan 13, 1858 | Whig |
Ralph P. Lowe | Jan 13, 1858 | Jan 11, 1860 | Republican |
Samuel J. Kirkwood | Jan 11, 1860 | Jan 14, 1864 | Republican |
William M. Stone | Jan 14, 1864 | Jan 16, 1868 | Republican |
Samuel Merrill | Jan 16, 1868 | Jan 11, 1872 | Republican |
Cyrus C. Carpenter | Jan 11, 1872 | Jan 13, 1876 | Republican |
Samuel J. Kirkwood | Jan 13, 1876 | Feb 1, 1877 | Republican |
Joshua G. Newbold | Feb 1, 1877 | Jan 17, 1878 | Republican |
John H. Gear | Jan 17, 1878 | Jan 12, 1882 | Republican |
Buren R. Sherman | Jan 12, 1882 | Jan 14, 1886 | Republican |
William Larrabee | Jan 14, 1886 | Feb 27, 1890 | Republican |
Horace Boies | Feb 27, 1890 | Jan 11, 1894 | Democratic |
Frank D. Jackson | Jan 11, 1894 | Jan 16, 1896 | Republican |
Francis M. Drake | Jan 16, 1896 | Jan 13, 1898 | Republican |
L. M. Shaw | Jan 13, 1898 | Jan 16, 1902 | Republican |
Albert B. Cummins | Jan 16, 1902 | Nov 24, 1908 | Republican |
Warren Garst | Nov 24, 1908 | Jan 14, 1909 | Republican |
Beryl F. Carroll | Jan 14, 1909 | Jan 16, 1913 | Republican |
George W. Clarke | Jan 16, 1913 | Jan 11, 1917 | Republican |
William L. Harding | Jan 11, 1917 | Jan 13, 1921 | Republican |
Nathan E. Kendall | Jan 13, 1921 | Jan 15, 1925 | Republican |
John Hammill | Jan 15, 1925 | Jan 15, 1931 | Republican |
Dan W. Turner | Jan 15, 1931 | Jan 12, 1933 | Republican |
Clyde L. Herring | Jan 12, 1933 | Jan 14, 1937 | Democratic |
Nelson G. Kraschel | Jan 14, 1937 | Jan 12, 1939 | Democratic |
George A. Wilson | Jan 12, 1939 | Jan 14, 1943 | Republican |
Bourke B. Hickenlooper | Jan 14, 1943 | Jan 11, 1945 | Republican |
Robert D. Blue | Jan 11, 1945 | Jan 13, 1949 | Republican |
William S. Beardsley | Jan 13, 1949 | Nov 21, 1954 | Republican |
Leo Elthon | Nov 21, 1954 | Jan 13, 1955 | Republican |
Leo Hoegh | Jan 13, 1955 | Jan 17, 1957 | Republican |
Herschel C. Loveless | Jan 17, 1957 | Jan 12, 1961 | Democratic |
Norman A. Erbe | Jan 12, 1961 | Jan 17, 1963 | Republican |
Harold Hughes | Jan 17, 1963 | Jan 1, 1969 | Democratic |
Robert D. Fulton | Jan 1, 1969 | Jan 16, 1969 | Democratic |
Robert D. Ray | Jan 16, 1969 | Jan 14, 1983 | Republican |
Terry Branstad | Jan 14, 1983 | Jan 15, 1999 | Republican |
Tom Vilsack | Jan 15, 1999 | Jan 12, 2007 | Democratic |
Chet Culver | Jan 12, 2007 | Jan 14, 2011 | Democratic |
Terry Branstad | Jan 14, 2011 | May 24, 2017 | Republican |
Kim Reynolds | May 24, 2017 | - | Republican |
The first governor of Iowa was Ansel Briggs, who was elected to the position in 1846. Briggs served for four years and was a representative of the Democratic Party. Following Briggs, Iowa saw some shifting political parties, changing between the Democratic Party and Whig Party.
Beginning in 1858, a robust line of Republican governors held office, continuing through the modern-day. Between 1858 and today, there have only been eight Democratic governors. The most recent Democrat to represent Iowa was Chet Culver, who served as governor between 2007 and 2011. Since then, Republicans have continued to hold office, even to the present-day governor.
The Current Iowa governor is Kim Reynolds, who began serving as governor in 2017. Previously, Reynolds served as the Lieutenant Governor of Iowa. She represented the Republican Party and replaced the former governor, Terry Brandstad. The former governor, Brandstad, stepped down from his position as governor to serve as the US Ambassador to China. Reynolds is the first woman elected as the governor of Iowa but won her full-term election narrowly. She beat the Democratic competitor by just 2.5% of the vote, which made a much closer election than anticipated by political experts.
The current governor of Iowa is Kim Reynolds, a Republican.
There have been 41 governors of Iowa, 10 Democrats, 30 Republicans, and 1 from other parties.
The last Republican governor in Iowa is Kim Reynolds, who has served from 2017 to the present day.
The last Democrat governor in Iowa was Chet Culver, who served from 2007 to 2011.