List of governors of Alabama

Governor of Alabama
Seal of the Governor
Standard of the Governor
Incumbent Kay Ivey since April 10, 2017
Style	Governor (informal) The Honorable (formal)
Status	Head of State Head of Government
Residence	Alabama Governor's Mansion
Term length	Four years, renewable once
Precursor	Governor of Alabama Territory
Inaugural holder	William Wyatt Bibb
Formation	December 14, 1819 (206 years ago) (1819-12-14)
Deputy	Lieutenant Governor of Alabama
Salary	$119,950 (2013)
Website	http://www.governor.state.al.us

This is a list of the governors of U.S. state Alabama.

List of governors

Governors of the State of Alabama

No.	Governor			Term in office	Party	Election	Lt. Governor
1			William Wyatt Bibb	November 9, 1819 – July 10, 1820 (died in office)	Democratic- Republican	1819	Office did not exist
2			Thomas Bibb	July 10, 1820 – November 9, 1821 (not candidate for election)	Democratic- Republican	Succeeded from President of the Senate
3			Israel Pickens	November 9, 1821 – November 25, 1825 (term limited)	Democratic- Republican	1821
						1823
4			John Murphy	November 25, 1825 – November 25, 1829 (term limited)	Jackson Democrat	1825
						1827
5			Gabriel Moore	November 25, 1829 – March 3, 1831 (resigned)	Jackson Democrat	1829
6			Samuel B. Moore	March 3, 1831 – November 26, 1831 (lost election)	Democratic	Succeeded from President of the Senate
7			John Gayle	November 26, 1831 – November 21, 1835 (term limited)	Democratic	1831
						1833
8			Clement Comer Clay	November 21, 1835 – July 17, 1837 (resigned)	Democratic	1835
9			Hugh McVay	July 17, 1837 – November 21, 1837 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	Succeeded from President of the Senate
10			Arthur P. Bagby	November 21, 1837 – November 22, 1841 (term limited)	Democratic	1837
						1839
11			Benjamin Fitzpatrick	November 22, 1841 – December 10, 1845 (term limited)	Democratic	1841
						1843
12			Joshua L. Martin	December 10, 1845 – December 16, 1847 (withdrew from election)	Independent	1845
13			Reuben Chapman	December 16, 1847 – December 17, 1849 (lost renomination)	Democratic	1847
14			Henry W. Collier	December 17, 1849 – December 20, 1853 (term limited)	Democratic	1849
						1851
15			John A. Winston	December 20, 1853 – December 1, 1857 (term limited)	Democratic	1853
						1855
16			Andrew B. Moore	December 1, 1857 – December 2, 1861 (term limited)	Democratic	1857
						1859
17			John Gill Shorter	December 2, 1861 – December 1, 1863 (lost election)	Democratic	1861
18			Thomas H. Watts	December 1, 1863 – May 3, 1865 (arrested and removed)	Whig	1863
—	Vacant			May 3, 1865 – June 21, 1865	—	Office vacated after civil war
19			Lewis E. Parsons	June 21, 1865 – December 13, 1865 (provisional term ended)	—	Provisional governor appointed by President
20			Robert M. Patton	December 13, 1865 – July 14, 1868 (not candidate for election)	Pre-War Whig	1865
—			Wager Swayne	March 2, 1867 – January 11, 1868 (removed)	—	Military occupation
21			William Hugh Smith	July 14, 1868 – November 26, 1870 (lost election)	Republican	1868
								Andrew J. Applegate (took office August 13, 1868) (died August 21, 1870)
							Vacant
22			Robert B. Lindsay	November 26, 1870 – November 25, 1872 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1870		Edward H. Moren
23			David P. Lewis	November 17, 1872 – November 24, 1874 (lost election)	Republican	1872		Alexander McKinstry
24			George S. Houston	November 24, 1874 – November 27, 1878 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1874		Robert F. Ligon
						1876	Office did not exist
25			Rufus W. Cobb	November 27, 1878 – December 1, 1882 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1878
						1880
26			Edward A. O'Neal	December 1, 1882 – December 1, 1886 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1882
						1884
27			Thomas Seay	December 1, 1886 – December 1, 1890 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1886
						1888
28			Thomas G. Jones	December 1, 1890 – December 1, 1894 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1890
						1892
29			William C. Oates	December 1, 1894 – December 1, 1896 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1894
30			Joseph F. Johnston	December 1, 1896 – December 1, 1900 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1896
						1898
—			William D. Jelks	December 1, 1900 – December 26, 1900 (acting)	Democratic	1900
31			William J. Samford	December 1, 1900 – June 11, 1901 (died in office)	Democratic
32			William D. Jelks	June 11, 1901 – January 14, 1907 (term limited)	Democratic	Succeeded from President of the Senate
						1902		Russell McWhortor Cunningham (acted as governor April 25, 1904–March 5, 1905)
33			B. B. Comer	January 14, 1907 – January 16, 1911 (term limited)	Democratic	1906		Henry B. Gray
34			Emmet O'Neal	January 17, 1911 – January 18, 1915 (term limited)	Democratic	1910		Walter D. Seed Sr.
35			Charles Henderson	January 19, 1915 – January 20, 1919 (term limited)	Democratic	1914		Thomas Kilby
36			Thomas Kilby	January 21, 1919 – January 15, 1923 (term limited)	Democratic	1918		Nathan Lee Miller
37			William W. Brandon	January 16, 1923 – January 17, 1927 (term limited)	Democratic	1922		Charles S. McDowell (acted as governor July 10, 1924–July 11, 1924)
38			Bibb Graves	January 18, 1927 – January 19, 1931 (term limited)	Democratic	1926		William C. Davis
39			Benjamin M. Miller	January 20, 1931 – January 14, 1935 (term limited)	Democratic	1930		Hugh Davis Merrill
40			Bibb Graves	January 15, 1935 – January 16, 1939 (term limited)	Democratic	1934		Thomas E. Knight (died May 17, 1937)
							Vacant
41			Frank M. Dixon	January 17, 1939 – January 18, 1943 (term limited)	Democratic	1938		Albert A. Carmichael
42			Chauncey Sparks	January 19, 1943 – January 20, 1947 (term limited)	Democratic	1942		Leven H. Ellis
43			Jim Folsom	January 21, 1947 – January 15, 1951 (term limited)	Democratic	1946		James C. Inzer
44			Gordon Persons	January 16, 1951 – January 17, 1955 (term limited)	Democratic	1950		James Allen
45			Jim Folsom	January 18, 1955 – January 19, 1959 (term limited)	Democratic	1954		William G. Hardwick
46			John Malcolm Patterson	January 20, 1959 – January 14, 1963 (term limited)	Democratic	1958		Albert Boutwell
47			George Wallace	January 15, 1963 – January 16, 1967 (term limited)	Democratic	1962		James Allen
48			Lurleen Wallace	January 17, 1967 – May 7, 1968 (died in office)	Democratic	1966		Albert Brewer (acted as governor July 25, 1967)
49			Albert Brewer	May 7, 1968 – January 18, 1971 (lost renomination)	Democratic	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant
50			George Wallace	January 19, 1971 – January 15, 1979 (term limited)	Democratic	1970		Jere Beasley (acted as governor June 5, 1972–July 7, 1972)
						1974
51			Fob James	January 16, 1979 – January 17, 1983 (lost renomination)	Democratic	1978		George McMillan
52			George Wallace	January 18, 1983 – January 19, 1987 (not candidate for election)	Democratic	1982		Bill Baxley
53			H. Guy Hunt	January 20, 1987 – April 22, 1993 (resigned)	Republican	1986		Jim Folsom Jr.
						1990
54			Jim Folsom Jr.	April 22, 1993 – January 16, 1995 (lost election)	Democratic	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant
55			Fob James	January 17, 1995 – January 18, 1999 (lost election)	Republican	1994		Don Siegelman
56			Don Siegelman	January 19, 1999 – January 20, 2003 (lost election)	Democratic	1998		Steve Windom
57			Bob Riley	January 21, 2003 – January 17, 2011 (term limited)	Republican	2002		Lucy Baxley
						2006		Jim Folsom Jr.
58			Robert J. Bentley	January 18, 2011 – April 10, 2017 (resigned)	Republican	2010		Kay Ivey
						2014
59			Kay Ivey	April 10, 2017 – present	Republican	Succeeded from Lieutenant Governor	Vacant
						2018		Will Ainsworth

Living former Governors of Alabama

As of March 2026, there are seven living former Governors of Alabama, the oldest being Fob James, who served as the 48th and 51st Governor of Alabama (served 1979-1983, 1995-1999), at 91. The most recent death of a former governor was that of John M. Patterson (served 1959-1963) on June 4, 2021.

References

Notes

1. ↑ Data is sourced from the Alabama Department of Archives and History, unless supplemental references are required.
2. ↑ Repeat governors are officially numbered only once; subsequent terms are marked with their original number italicized.
3. ↑ The office of Lieutenant Governor was created in the 1868 constitution, abolished in the 1875 Constitution, and recreated in the 1901 Constitution.
4. ↑ Lieutenant governors represented the same party as their governor unless noted.
5. ↑ Bibb was inaugurated on November 9, even though Alabama did not formally become a state until December 14.
6. ↑ Multiple sources state that Thomas Bibb did not succeed William Wyatt Bibb until either July 15 or July 25. It is unknown if this was the formal inauguration, or if a vacancy existed in the office; it is assumed that succession was automatic, as per the constitution, and that Thomas Bibb's term began on July 10.
7. ↑ Moore resigned to take office in the United States Senate.
8. 1 2 Sources disagree on the exact date McVay succeeded Clay, with the Alabama Department of Archives and History and National Governors Association mentioning both July 16 and July 17, though July 17 is used more prominently. Further confusing matters, the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress says that Clay's term in the United States Senate began on June 19.
9. ↑ Clay resigned to take office in the United States Senate.
10. ↑ Martin withdrew in the final days of the election. It is unknown if his name still appeared on the ballot, but no sources list any votes recorded for him.
11. ↑ Martin was a Democrat who opposed party leaders and ran as an independent.
12. ↑ Chapman lost the Democratic nomination to Henry W. Collier.
13. 1 2 Though modern sources say Watts was captured on May 1, contemporary news sources report he was arrested on May 3.
14. ↑ Watts was arrested by Union forces soon after the American Civil War ended; he was released a few weeks later.
15. ↑ Sources disagree on Watts' party; the Alabama Department of Archives and History says Democratic, but most others say Whig.
16. ↑ Parsons was appointed and therefore did not run for office under a party; he was a member of the Democratic Party.
17. ↑ Parsons was appointed provisional governor by the Union occupation.
18. 1 2 Some sources say Patton left office on July 24, after Smith was sworn in on July 14; it is unknown what would cause this discrepancy.
19. ↑ Patton later switched to the Republican Party, but ran as a Whig.
20. 1 2 The United States Congress stripped Patton of most of his authority in March 1867, after which time the state was effectively under the control of Major General Swayne.
21. ↑ The date given for Swayne is the date of the first Reconstruction Act, which placed Alabama into the Third Military District; all references only say "March 1867" and "when the Reconstruction Acts were passed".
22. ↑ In December 1867, President Andrew Johnson ordered the removal of Major General Swayne, and he was replaced on January 11, 1868, by Major General Julius Hayden.
23. 1 2 Lindsay was sworn into office on November 26, 1870, but Smith refused to leave his seat for two weeks, claiming Lindsay was fraudulently elected; he finally left office on December 8, 1870, when a court so ordered.
24. 1 2 All modern sources say Lewis took office on November 17; however, all contemporary news sources say it was on November 25.
25. 1 2 All modern sources say Cobb took office on November 28; however, all contemporary news sources say it was on November 27.
26. ↑ Houston instead successfully ran for United States Senate.
27. ↑ Seay instead unsuccessfully ran for United States Senate.
28. ↑ Oates instead unsuccessfully ran for United States Senate.
29. ↑ Johnston instead unsuccessfully ran for United States Senate.
30. ↑ At the start of Samford's term, he was out of state seeking medical treatment; as president of the senate, Jelks acted as governor in his absence. Samford later died in office, and Jelks succeeded him.
31. ↑ First term under the 1901 constitution, which lengthened terms to four years.
32. ↑ Jelks was out of state for medical treatment for nearly a year; as lieutenant governor, Cunningham acted as governor in his absence.
33. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 The constitutional start date for 1911 was January 16. However, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in the case of Oberhaus v. State ex rel. McNamara that, regardless of when the swearing in took place, B. B. Comer's term did not end until the end of Monday, and Emmet O'Neal's term did not begin until the first minute of the next day. This precedent appears to have quietly continued, as contemporary news coverage of Robert J. Bentley's inauguration noted he would not officially take office until midnight. Therefore, governors since 1911 that served to the end of their term are noted as leaving office on Monday, and their successor taking office on Tuesday. It is assumed this did not apply ex post facto to terms between when the constitutional date was established in 1901, and the court ruling in 1911.
34. ↑ Brandon was out of state for 21 days as a delegate to the 1924 Democratic National Convention; as lieutenant governor, McDowell acted as governor for two days.
35. ↑ Wallace was out of state for 20 days for medical treatment; as lieutenant governor, Brewer became acting governor on July 25, 1967; Wallace returned to the state later that day.
36. ↑ Brewer lost the Democratic Party nomination to George Wallace.
37. ↑ Wallace was out of state for 52 days for medical treatment following an assassination attempt while campaigning for President of the United States; as lieutenant governor, Beasley acted as governor for 32 days.
38. ↑ James lost the Democratic nomination to George Wallace.
39. ↑ Hunt was forced to resign upon being convicted of illegally using campaign and inaugural funds to pay personal debts; he was later pardoned by the state parole board.
40. 1 2 3 4 Represented the Democratic Party
41. ↑ Represented the Republican Party
42. ↑ Bentley resigned from office as part of a plea deal involving campaign violations.
43. ↑ Ivey's first full term began on January 15, 2019, and will expire on January 16, 2023.
44. ↑ Beasley had served as acting Governor from June 5 to July 7, 1972 while Governor George Wallace was incapacitated after an assassination attempt on May 15, 1972.