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Alabama Governors
The Governor of Alabama is the chief executive of the U.S. state of Alabama. The governor is the head of the executive branch of Alabama's state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The governor has the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Alabama Legislature, to convene the legislature, and to grant pardons, except in cases of impeachment. The governor is also the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces.
There have officially been 54 governors of the state of Alabama; this official numbering skips acting and military governors. In addition, the first governor, William Wyatt Bibb, served as the only governor of Alabama Territory. Five people have served as acting governor, bringing the total number of people serving as governor to 58, spread over 63 distinct terms. Four governors have served multiple non-consecutive terms: Bibb Graves, Jim Folsom, and Fob James each served two, and George Wallace served three non-consecutive periods. Officially, these non-consecutive terms are numbered only with the number of their first term. William D. Jelks also served non-consecutive terms, but his first term was in an acting capacity. The longest-serving governor was George Wallace, who served sixteen years over four terms. The shortest term for a non-acting governor was that of Hugh McVay, who served four and a half months after replacing the resigning Clement Comer Clay. Lurleen Wallace, wife of George Wallace, was the first and so far only woman to serve as governor of Alabama, and the third woman to serve as governor of any state.
For governors prior to statehood, refer to United States Territorial Governors.
- 1st William Wyatt Bibb
- 2nd Thomas Bibb
- 3rd Israel Pickens
- 4th John Murphy
- 5th Gabriel Moore
- 6th Samuel B. Moore
- 7th John Gayle
- 8th Clement Comer Clay
- 9th Hugh McVay
- 10th Arthur P. Bagby
- 11th Benjamin Fitzpatrick
- 12th Joshua L. Martin
- 13th Reuben Chapman
- 14th Henry W. Collier
- 15th John A. Winston
- 16th Andrew B. Moore
- 17th John Gill Shorter
- 18th Thomas H. Watts
- 19th Lewis E. Parsons
- 20th Robert M. Patton
- 21st William Hugh Smith
- 22nd Robert B. Lindsay
- 23rd David P. Lewis
- 24th George S. Houston
- 25th Rufus W. Cobb
- 26th Edward A. O'Neal
- 27th Thomas Seay
- 28th Thomas G. Jones
- 29th William C. Oates
- 30th Joseph F. Johnston
- 31st William J. Samford
- 32nd William D. Jelks
- 33rd B. B. Comer
- 34th Emmet O'Neal
- 35th Charles Henderson
- 36th Thomas Kilby
- 37th William W. Brandon
- 38th Bibb Graves
- 39th Benjamin M. Miller
- (38th) Bibb Graves
- 40th Frank M. Dixon
- 41st Chauncey Sparks
- 42nd Jim Folsom Sr.
- 43rd Gordon Persons
- (42nd) Jim Folsom Sr.
- 44th John M. Patterson
- 45th George Wallace
- 46th Lurleen Wallace
- 47th Albert Brewer
- (45th) George Wallace
- 48th Fob James
- (45th) George Wallace
- 49th H. Guy Hunt
- 50th Jim Folsom Jr.
- (48th) Fob James
- 51st Don Siegelman
- 52nd Bob Riley
- 53rd Robert J. Bentley
- 54th Kay Ivey