The lieutenant governor of Delaware is the second-ranking executive officer of the U.S. state of Delaware. Lieutenant governors are elected for a term of four years in the same general election as the U.S. president, and assume the office on the third Tuesday in January following their election.
Among the primary responsibilities of the lieutenant governor is to assume the governorship in the event it becomes vacant. Lieutenant governors serve as the president of the Delaware Senate, where they are tasked with casting tie-breaking votes. They also hold a seat on the Delaware Board of Pardons.
Lieutenant governors are elected separately from governors in Delaware, though historically nominees of the same party have run as a unified ticket. The office's current occupant, Kyle Evans Gay, was sworn in on January 21, 2025.
History
The position of lieutenant governor was established by the Constitution of Delaware in 1897. The first election for the office took place in 1900, when it was won by Philip L. Cannon. Since then, a total of 27 individuals (15 Democrats and 12 Republicans) have held the lieutenant governorship.
On December 30, 1960, Lieutenant Governor David P. Buckson became the first occupant of the office to ascend to the governorship. He served the remaining two weeks of the term of J. Caleb Boggs, who resigned from office ahead of his inauguration as a United States senator.
Though lieutenant governors are permitted to serve two terms, none sought reelection until Eugene Bookhammer in 1972. No lieutenant governor who has pursued a second term has ever lost reelection of renomination to the office.
Despite being separately elected positions, Delaware has historically chosen governors and lieutenant governors of the same party. The last time voters split their tickets for the two offices was in 1984, when Democrat S. B. Woo won the lieutenant governorship at the same time as Mike Castle won the governorship.
Reflecting Delaware's increasingly Democratic political lean, no Republican has won the office since 1988.
Kyle Evans Gay is the current lieutenant governor, having taken office January 21, 2025.
The offices of the lieutenant governor are at the state capital of Dover. Lieutenant governors receive an annual salary of $83,884.
List
+ Lieutenant governors of DelawareLieutenant GovernorTerm in officePartyElectionGovernor1 Philip L. Cannon–January 17, 1905(did not run) Republican 1900 2 Isaac T. Parker–January 19, 1909(did not run) Republican 1904 3 John M. Mendinhall –January 21, 1913(did not run) Republican 1908 4 Colen Ferguson –January 16, 1917(did not run) Democratic 1912 5 Lewis E. Eliason –May 2, 1919(died in office) Democratic 1916 data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 6 J. Danforth Bush –January 20, 1925(did not run) Republican 1920 7 James H. Anderson –January 15, 1929(did not run) Republican 1924 8 James H. Hazel –January 17, 1933(did not run) Republican 1928 9 Roy F. Corley –January 19, 1937(did not run) Republican 193210 Edward W. Cooch –January 21, 1941(did not run) Democratic 1936 11 Isaac J. MacCollum –January 16, 1945(did not run) Democratic 1940 12 Elbert N. Carvel –January 18, 1949(did not run) Democratic 194413 Alexis I. du Pont Bayard –January 20, 1953(did not run) Democratic 1948 14 John W. Rollins –January 15, 1957(did not run) Republican 1952 15 David P. Buckson –December 30, 1960(succeeded to governor) Republican 1956data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 16 Eugene Lammot –January 19, 1965(did not run) Democratic 1960 17 Sherman W. Tribbitt –January 21, 1969(did not run) Democratic 1964 18 Eugene Bookhammer –January 18, 1977(term-limited) Republican 1968 1972 19 James D. McGinnis –January 20, 1981(did not run) Democratic 1976 20 Mike Castle –January 15, 1985(did not run) Republican 198021 S. B. Woo –January 20, 1989(did not run) Democratic 1984 22 Dale E. Wolf –December 31, 1992(succeeded to governor) Republican 1988data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 23 Ruth Ann Minner –January 3, 2001(succeeded to governor) Democratic 1992 1996data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 24 John Carney –January 20, 2009(term-limited) Democratic 2000 200425 Matthew Denn –January 6, 2015(resigned) Democratic 2008 2012data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 26 Bethany Hall-Long –January 7, 2025(succeeded to governor) Democratic 2016 2020data-sort-value="4.5" —colspan=6 data-sort-value="Zz, A" 27 Kyle Evans Gay –Incumbent Democratic 2024
References
Pickett, Russell S. (2006). Delaware and U.S.History. Retrieved January 1, 2006. Kestenbaum, Lawrence (2006). The Political Graveyard. Retrieved January 1, 2006.