List of governors of the United States Virgin Islands

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Governor of Virgin Islands
Seal of the U.S. Virgin Islands
Incumbent
Albert Bryan
since January 7, 2019
Style
Type
ResidenceU.S. Virgin Islands Governor's Mansions
Term lengthFour-year term,
renewable once
Constituting instrumentRevised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands
Elective Governor Acts of 1968
Formation1917 (as Naval Governor)
1931 (as Civilian Governor)
1970 (as elected Governor)
First holderMelvin Herbert Evans
DeputyTregenza Roach
Salary$150,690
Websitewww.vi.gov
Politics of the United States Virgin Islands
Constitution
Executive
Legislature
Judiciary
Elections
Divisions
Federal relations

The governor of the United States Virgin Islands is the head of government of the United States Virgin Islands whose responsibilities also include making the annual State of the Territory addresses to the Virgin Islands Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that territory public laws are enforced. The position was created through the passage of the Elective Governor Acts of 1968 which took effect in 1970. Melvin Herbert Evans was the first elected governor.

The following is a list of governors of the United States Virgin Islands. For governors of the territory that is now the U.S. Virgin Islands prior to United States administration (while it was ruled by Denmark as the Danish West Indies), see List of governors of the Danish West Indies.

Appointed governors (1917–1970)

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No. Portrait Name
(Birth–Death) 		Term of office Appointed by
Took office Left office Time in office
– Captain
Edwin Taylor Pollock
(1870–1943)
Acting 		March 31, 1917 April 20, 1917 20 days Woodrow Wilson
1 Rear Admiral
James Harrison Oliver
(1857–1928) 		April 20, 1917 April 8, 1919 1 year, 353 days Woodrow Wilson
2 Rear Admiral
Joseph Wallace Oman
(1864–1941) 		April 8, 1919 April 26, 1921 2 years, 18 days Woodrow Wilson
3 Rear Admiral
Sumner Ely Wetmore Kittelle
(1867–1950) 		April 26, 1921 September 16, 1922 1 year, 143 days Warren G. Harding
4 Captain
Henry Hughes Hough
(1871–1943) 		September 16, 1922 December 3, 1923 1 year, 78 days Warren G. Harding
5 Captain
Philip Williams
(1869–1942) 		December 3, 1923 September 11, 1925 1 year, 282 days Calvin Coolidge
6 Captain
Martin Edward Trench
(1869–1927) 		September 12, 1925 January 6, 1927 † 1 year, 116 days Calvin Coolidge
7 Captain
Waldo A. Evans
(1869–1936) 		January 19, 1927 March 18, 1931 4 years, 58 days Calvin Coolidge

Civilian governors (1931–1970)

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No. Portrait Name
(Birth–Death) 		Term of office Party Appointed by
Took office Left office Time in office
1 Paul Martin Pearson
(1871–1938) 		March 18, 1931 July 23, 1935 4 years, 127 days   Republican Herbert Hoover
– Robert Herrick
(1868–1938)
Acting 		July 23, 1935 August 21, 1935 29 days   Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt
2 Lawrence William Cramer
(1897–1978) 		August 21, 1935 December 14, 1940 5 years, 115 days   Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt
– Robert Morss Lovett
(1870–1956)
Acting 		December 14, 1940 February 3, 1941 51 days   Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt
3 Charles Harwood
(1880–1950) 		February 3, 1941 May 17, 1946 5 years, 103 days   Democratic Franklin D. Roosevelt
4 William H. Hastie
(1904–1976) 		May 17, 1946 October 21, 1949 3 years, 157 days   Democratic Harry S. Truman
– Morris Fidanque de Castro
(1902–1966) 		October 21, 1949 March 4, 1950 134 days   Democratic Harry S. Truman
5 March 4, 1950 April 9, 1954 4 years, 36 days
6 Archie Alexander
(1888–1958) 		April 9, 1954 August 18, 1955 1 year, 131 days   Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower
– Charles Kenneth Claunch
(1899–1978)
Acting 		August 18, 1955 October 17, 1955 60 days   Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower
7 Walter A. Gordon
(1894–1976) 		October 17, 1955 September 25, 1958 2 years, 343 days   Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower
8 John David Merwin
(1921–2013) 		September 25, 1958 April 5, 1961 2 years, 192 days   Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower
9 Ralph Moses Paiewonsky
(1907–1991) 		April 5, 1961 February 12, 1969 8 years, 42 days   Democratic John F. Kennedy
– Cyril King
(1921–1978)
Acting 		February 12, 1969 July 1, 1969 139 days   Independent Citizens Movement Richard Nixon
10 Melvin H. Evans
(1917–1984) 		July 1, 1969 November 1, 1970 1 year, 123 days   Republican Richard Nixon

Elected governors (1970–present)

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Parties

  Republican (1)   Independent Citizens Movement (1)   Democratic (4)   Independent (3)

No. Portrait Name
(Birth–Death) 		Term of office Party Election
Took office Left office Time in office
1 Melvin H. Evans
(1917–1984) 		November 1, 1970 January 6, 1975 4 years, 66 days Republican 1970
2 Cyril King
(1921–1978) 		January 6, 1975 January 2, 1978 2 years, 361 days Independent Citizens Movement 1974
3 Juan Francisco Luis
(1940–2011) 		January 2, 1978 January 5, 1987 9 years, 3 days Independent Citizens Movement
(until 1979) 		1978
1982
Independent
(1979 onward)
4 Alexander Farrelly
(1923–2002) 		January 5, 1987 January 2, 1995 7 years, 362 days Democratic 1986
1990
5 Roy Schneider
(1939–2022) 		January 2, 1995 January 4, 1999 4 years, 2 days Independent[1] 1994
6 Charles Wesley Turnbull
(1935–2022) 		January 4, 1999 January 1, 2007 7 years, 362 days Democratic 1998
2002
7 John de Jongh
(born 1957) 		January 1, 2007 January 5, 2015 8 years, 4 days Democratic 2006
2010
8 Kenneth Mapp
(born 1955) 		January 5, 2015 January 7, 2019 4 years, 2 days Independent 2014
9 Albert Bryan
(born 1968) 		January 7, 2019 Incumbent 5 years, 311 days Democratic 2018
2022

Succession

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Main article: Gubernatorial lines of succession in the United States § U.S. Virgin Islands

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "A Report on the State of the Islands 1997: Chapter 5 Virgin Islands". United States Department of the Interior Office of Insular Affairs. 1997. Archived from the original on 2011-07-21. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
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