List of governors of Florida
The governor of Florida is the head of government of the U.S. state of Florida and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Florida Legislature, to convene the legislature and grant pardons, except in cases of impeachment. When Florida was first acquired by the United States, future president Andrew Jackson served as its military governor. Florida Territory was established in 1822 and five people served as governor over 6 distinct terms . The first territorial governor, William Pope Duval, served 12 years, the longest of any Florida governor to date. Since statehood in 1845, there have been 45 people who have served as governor, one of whom served two distinct terms. Four state governors have served two full four-year terms: William D. Bloxham, in two stints, as well as Reubin Askew, Jeb Bush and Rick Scott who each served their terms consecutively. Bob Graham almost served two terms, as he resigned with only three days left. The shortest term in office belongs to Wayne Mixson, who served three days following the  resignation of his predecessor, Bob Graham. The current officeholder is Ron DeSantis, a member of the Republican Party who took office on January 8, 2019. History. Florida had been a French and then a Spanish colony. It came under British control and then returned to Spanish control again after the American Revolution. It had various governors during these colonial periods. The British divided Florida into East Florida and West Florida, each with its own governor. Governors. Federal military commissioner. Spanish Florida was acquired from Spain in the Adams–Onís Treaty, which took effect July 10, 1821. Parts of West Florida  had already been assigned to Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi; the remainder and East Florida were governed by a military commissioner with the powers of governor until the territory was organized and incorporated. Governors of the Territory of Florida. Florida Territory was organized on March 30, 1822, combining East and West Florida. Governors of the State of Florida. The State of Florida was admitted to the Union on March 3, 1845. It seceded from the Union on January 10, 1861, and joined the Confederate States of America on February 8, 1861, as a founding member. Following the end of the American  Civil War, it was part of the Third Military District. Florida was readmitted to the Union on June 25, 1868. The Florida Constitution of 1838 provided that a governor be elected every 4 years, who was not allowed to serve consecutive terms. The secessionist constitution of 1861 would have reduced this to two years and removed the term limit, but the state fell to the Union before the first election under that constitution. The rejected constitution of 1865 and the ratified constitution of 1868 maintained the four-year term, though without the earlier term limit, which was reintroduced in the  1885 constitution. The current constitution of 1968 states that should the governor serve, or would have served had he not resigned, more than six years in two consecutive terms, he cannot be elected to the succeeding term. The start of a term was set in 1885 at the first Tuesday after the first Monday in the January following the election, where it has remained. Originally, the president of the state senate acted as governor should that office be vacant. The 1865 and 1868 constitutions created the office of lieutenant governor, who would similarly act as governor. This office was  abolished in 1885, with the president of the senate again taking on that duty. The 1968 constitution recreated the office of lieutenant governor, who now becomes governor in the absence of the governor. The governor and lieutenant governor are elected on the same ticket. Florida was a strongly Democratic state before the Civil War, electing only one candidate from the Whig party (the Democrat's chief opposition at the time). It elected three Republican governors following Reconstruction, but after the Democratic Party re-established control, 90 years passed before voters chose another Republican. Living former governors of Florida. There are  six living former governors of Florida, the oldest being Buddy MacKay (served 1998–1999, born 1933). The most recent death of a former governor was that of Wayne Mixson (served 1987, born 1922), on July 8, 2020. The most recently serving governor to die was Lawton Chiles (served 1991–1998, born 1930), who died in office on December 12, 1998. The living former governors, in order of service, are: Federal offices held. Eighteen of Florida's governors have served higher federal offices: five have represented Florida in the U.S. House of Representatives, while three represented other states; five have represented Florida in  the U.S. Senate, while two represented other states; eight have served in federal appointed office, with three serving in the Cabinet, two serving as ambassadors, one serving as a federal judge, and three serving as the heads of government agencies. Line of succession. Since 2003, the line of succession to the office of governor has been as follows: Whenever the governor is unable or unwilling to discharge the office, either temporarily or permanently, the lieutenant governor takes over all the duties of the governorship either until the governor is able to resume the office or until the next election. At  any time that the governor is on trial for impeachment, the lieutenant governor becomes the acting governor. Additionally, at any time that three members of the cabinet and the chief justice of the Supreme Court agree on the governor's mental or physical unfitness for office, they may suspend and reinstate the governor, pursuant to Article IV, Section 3 of the Florida Constitution. If a vacancy occurs in the office of governor and a successor within the above-stated line of succession can not fill the vacancy, the speaker of the Florida House of Representatives and the president of the  Senate must convene the Legislature by joint proclamation within 15 days for the purpose of choosing a person to serve as governor for the remainder of the term. A successor can only be chosen by a majority vote in a joint session of both houses. If, after the appointment of a lieutenant governor, a vacancy occurs in the office of governor with more than 28 months remaining in the term and the appointed lieutenant governor becomes governor, voters must choose a governor and lieutenant governor to serve out the remainder of the terms at the next general election. Acting Governor . Florida has had a number of people serve as “Acting Governor”. The state's first three Constitutions provided that the succession in office became operative whenever the Governor was out of the state. Thus, in 1853 when Governor Thomas Brown attended an event in Boston—the Senate President who would normally succeed the Governor at the time was also out of state. Therefore, the Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, A.K. Allison, became “Acting Governor” on September 16, 1853. He served for 17 days. Only seven weeks after his inauguration, Governor McCarty suffered a heart attack. He died in  September 1953. The President of the Senate, Charley E. Johns, took over as “Acting Governor” until an election could be held in November 1954 to till out Governor McCarty's term. Article IV Section 3 (b) of the Florida Constitution now calls for the Lieutenant Governor to “act as Governor” during the Governor's physical or mental incapacity. This provision has been invoked one time. On June 18, 2008 Governor Charlie Crist filed a Proclamation with the Secretary of State transferring power of the Office of Governor to Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp pursuant to the Constitutional provision while he underwent  knee surgery.