An acting governor temporarily takes over the responsibilities of a state governor who is unable to fulfill their duties. The duties vary by state and can include administering the executive branch, passing laws, and preparing budgets. The Lieutenant Governor usually assumes the role, but in some states, another elected official takes over. If the governor cannot return to office, a special election may be held. The incumbent governor has all the powers and responsibilities of the head of the executive branch, but may not necessarily be from the same political party or have similar goals.
In the United States, an acting governor temporarily assumes the responsibilities of a state governor who is unable to fulfill his duties for some reason. Like the duties of governors themselves, the duties of an acting governor vary from state to state, but generally consist of administering the day-to-day affairs of the executive branch. This can include preparing the state budget and passing or vetoing laws.
An acting governor must be appointed if the governor of a state dies, suffers a serious illness or injury, is tried for a crime, or is unable to serve as governor for any other reason. For example, if the governor is campaigning for a national office as president or vice president, he or she may be away for several months at a time. In most states, the Lieutenant Governor assumes the role of Governor. Some states, such as West Virginia, do not have a Lieutenant Governor, so another elected official, such as the Senate President, will take over.
If the governor is unable to return to office, the incumbent governor will sometimes serve the remainder of his term. In other states, a special gubernatorial election will be held to determine the successor. The newly elected official will then be the governor, not the acting governor.
Generally, incumbent governors have all the powers, rights, and responsibilities of the head of the state’s executive branch. Depending on how long the incumbent governor has been in office, he or she may be required to fulfill some or all of these roles. A governor’s typical job includes some or all responsibility for the state’s budget, passing or vetoing laws passed by the Senate, granting pardons, appointing officials as judges, and calling special sessions of Congress. State constitutions will determine which of these actions are to be administered by incumbent governors.
The incumbent governor will not necessarily be from the same political party as the current governor or have similar political goals. Incumbent governors are usually not in power long enough to make significant changes to the state’s government, but occasionally someone causes controversy by acting in ways the governor is unlikely to do. A well-known example of this was Mike Curb, a Republican, who served periodically as governor of California while Democrat Jerry Brown campaigned for national office between 1979 and 1980. Curb polled more than 400 times and signed 30 bills, many of which were not supported by Brown. The California Supreme Court controversially upheld Curb’s decisions by ruling that the incumbent governor did, in fact, have all the authority of the governor in his absence.
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