Lieutenant governor (United States)

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A lieutenant governor is an official in state governments of 45 out of 50 of the United States. In most cases, the lieutenant governor is the highest officer of state after the governor, standing in for that officer when they are absent from the state or temporarily incapacitated. In the event a governor dies, resigns or is removed from office, the lieutenant governor typically becomes governor.

In 26 states, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ticket, ensuring that they come from the same political party. In 17 states, they are elected separately and, thus, may come from different parties. Among the seven states without a separate, full-time office of lieutenant governor, two states have a post of lieutenant governor that is filled by the highest officer of the state senate. In Tennessee, the full title of the leader of the Tennessee Senate is "lieutenant governor and speaker of the Senate. In West Virginia, the title of lieutenant governor is assigned by statute to the Senate president.

With the exception of Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and West Virginia, every state has had a female lieutenant governor or equivalent.

The positions have been criticized in news publications such as the San Francisco Chronicle as "get up, read the paper, see if the governor is dead, if not, go back to sleep".^[1] In the 2010 election for the Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island, 40% of the vote was won by Robert J. Healey, a perennial candidate who wanted to abolish the office.^[2]