Governor of West Virginia

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The Governor of the State of West Virginia is an elected Constitutional officer, the head of the Executive branch, and the highest state office in West Virginia. The Governor is popularly elected every four years by a plurality and is limited to two consecutive terms.

Current officeholder

The 35th and current governor is Earl Ray Tomblin a Democrat who succeeded to the office when Joe Manchin won a U.S. Senate seat in 2010. He then won the October 4, 2011 West Virginia special gubernatorial election.

Authority

The state Constitution addresses the office of the governor in Article VII, West Virginia Constitution.

Under Article VII, Section 5:

The chief executive power shall be vested in the governor...

Qualifications

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A candidate for governor must be:

• a citizen of the United States
• a resident of West Virginia for at least give years preceding the election
• a duly qualified elector of West Virgina
• at least 30 years old

Additionally, the Governor may hold no federal office and no state office aide from the governorship.

Under Article IV, Section 10, which governors Elections and Officers, no individual who has fought a duel with deadly weapons, sent a challenge for such a duel, or knowingly acted as a second in such a duel in West Virginia or in any other state may hold any office in West Virginia.

Elections

West Virginia elects governors in the midterm elections, that is, even years that are not Presidential election years. For West Virginia, 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018 are all gubernatorial election years. Legally, the gubernatorial inauguration is always set for the first Monday after the second Wednesday in January following the election. Thus, January 14, 2013 and January 14, 2019 are inaugural days.

Vacancies

See also: How gubernatorial vacancies are filled

Details of vacancy appointments are addressed under Article VII, Section 16.

If a sitting Governor dies, resigns, is removed or impeached, is absent, or is unable to discharge the office, temporarily or permanently, the President of the Senate shall succeed to the office as Acting Governor.

After the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Delegates is the next in line. If the governorship if vacant and neither of the two aforementioned officers are able to serve, a joint session of the legislature shall vote on an Acting Governor.

The Acting Governor only completes the term when less than one year remains; otherwise a special election is held at the next general election.

Duties

The Governor is the chief executive of West Virginia. She is the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces (§ 12) and is charged by the West Virginia Constitution with carrying out the state's laws (§ 5).

Other duties and privileges of the office include:

• Addressing the General Assembly at the commencement of each regular legislative session on the state of the state, making recommendation for legislation, and giving an accounting of the budget to the legislature (§ 6)

• Convening the legislature in extraordinary session by proclamation (§ 7)

• Nominating and, with the advice and the consent of the Senate, appointing all officers not otherwise provided for (§ 8)

• Making recess appointments to fill vacancies for all non-elective offices when the Senate is not meeting (§ 9)

• Removing any appointed officer for "...incompetency, neglect of duty, gross immorality, or malfeasance in office..." (§ 10)

• Remitting fines and forfeitures, remitting capital sentences unless the conviction was made by the House of Delegates, and granting pardons and commutations (§ 11)

• Requiring additional security from state officers required to execute bonds at her discretion and declaring the office vacant if the officeholder does not make the additional security (§ 13)

• Vetoing bills (§ 14), including appropriations (§ 15), subject to a majority override of the legislature

• Filling vacancies in the offices of the Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, Commissioner of Agriculture and Attorney General (§ 17)

• Requiring a semiannual report, under oath or affirmation, from the subordinate officers of all executive departments and public institutions, concerning each office's collection and disbursement of public moneys (§ 17)

• Requiring reports from the heads of each executive department and state institution concerning each office's "condition, management, and expenses", not to be made less than ten days before the start of the regular legislative session. The governor shall communicate the findings of such reports to the legislature in her address (§ 18)

Compensation

See also: Comparison of gubernatorial salaries

The governor's salary is set by law and may not be raised or diminished effective during the current term. Constitutionally, no Governor, after leaving office, may receive any additional compensation or reimbursement.

As of 2010, the Governor of Washington is paid $95,000 a year, the 46th highest gubernatorial salary in America.

Contact information

1900 Kanawha Boulevard, E.
Charleston, WV 25305
Toll-Free: 1-888-438-2731
Email: Governor@WVGov.org

See also

• West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin
• West Virginia Attorney General
• West Virginia Secretary of State

External links

• Office of the West Virginia Governor