The Republican Governors Association (RGA) is a Washington, D.C.–based 527 organization founded in 1961,[1] consisting of U.S. state and territorial Republican governors. Its primary objective is to help elect and support Republican governors.[2]
Republican Governors Association | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Chair | Bill Lee (TN) |
| Vice Chair | Brian Kemp (GA) |
| Policy Chair | Kevin Stitt (OK) |
| Executive Committee | Greg Abbott (TX) Greg Gianforte (MT) Eric Holcomb (IN) Sarah Huckabee Sanders (AR) Henry McMaster (SC) Tate Reeves (MS) Kim Reynolds (IA) Glenn Youngkin (VA) |
| Founded | 1961 |
| Headquarters | 1747 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Suite 250 Washington, DC 20006 |
| Affiliated | Republican Party |
| State governors | 27 / 50 |
| Territorial governors | 0 / 5 |
| Federal district mayorship | 0 / 1
|
| Website | |
| www | |
The RGA's Executive Committee for 2024 includes Governors Eric Holcomb of Indiana, Greg Abbott of Texas, Greg Gianforte of Montana, Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, Tate Reeves of Mississippi, Henry McMaster of South Carolina, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia. Additionally, Governor Bill Lee of Tennessee was elected Chairman, Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia was elected Vice Chairman, and Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma was elected Policy Chairman.[3]
Its Democratic counterpart is the Democratic Governors Association. The RGA is not directly affiliated with the non-partisan National Governors Association.
List of current Republican governors
editAll of the following states are members of the Republican Governors Association:
| Current governor | State | Past | Took office | Current term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kay Ivey | List | 2017 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Mike Dunleavy | List | 2018 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Sarah Huckabee Sanders | List | 2023 | First term | |
| Ron DeSantis | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Brian Kemp | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Brad Little | List | 2019 | Second term | |
| Eric Holcomb | List | 2017 | Second term (term-limited in 2024) | |
| Kim Reynolds | List | 2017 | Second term (elected to first full term in 2018) | |
| Jeff Landry | List | 2024 | First term | |
| Tate Reeves | List | 2020 | Second term (term-limited in 2027) | |
| Mike Parson | List | 2018 | First term (elected to first full term in 2020; term-limited in 2024) | |
| Greg Gianforte | List | 2021 | First term | |
| Jim Pillen | List | 2023 | First term | |
| Joe Lombardo | List | 2023 | First term | |
| Chris Sununu | List | 2017 | Fourth term (two-year term; retiring in 2024) | |
| Doug Burgum | List | 2016 | Second term | |
| Mike DeWine | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Kevin Stitt | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Henry McMaster | List | 2017 | Second term (elected to first full term in 2018; term-limited in 2026) | |
| Kristi Noem | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Bill Lee | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) | |
| Greg Abbott | List | 2015 | Third term | |
| Spencer Cox | List | 2021 | First term | |
| Phil Scott | List | 2017 | Fourth term (two-year term) | |
| Glenn Youngkin | List | 2022 | First term (term-limited in 2025) | |
| Jim Justice | List | 2017 | Second term (term-limited in 2024) | |
| Mark Gordon | List | 2019 | Second term (term-limited in 2026) |
List of RGA chairs
editExecutive directors
edit| Term | Director |
|---|---|
| 1963–1964 | Robert McCall |
| 1966 | Carl McMurray |
| 1967–1969 | Richard Fleming |
| 1971–1975 | Buehl Berentson |
| 1976–1980 | Ralph Griffith |
| 1980–1981 | Ronald Rietdorf |
| 1981 | John Stevens |
| 1982–1985 | Carol Whitney |
| 1985–1991 | Michele Davis |
| 1991–1995 | Chris Henick |
| 1995–1996 | Paul Hatch |
| 1996 | LeAnne Wilson |
| 1997 | Brian Kennedy |
| 1997–2000 | Clinton Key |
| 2000–2001 | Michael McSherry |
| 2001 | Duncan Campbell |
| 2001–2002 | Clinton Key |
| 2002–2004 | Edward Tobin |
| 2004–2005 | Mike Pieper |
| 2005–2006 | Phillip Musser |
| 2006–2011 | Nick Ayers |
| 2011–2014 | Phil Cox |
| 2014–2018 | Paul Bennecke |
| 2019–2022 | Dave Rexrode |
| 2023–present | Sara Craig Gongol |
Election cycles
edit2018
edit36 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2018 election cycle. The elections were held on November 6, 2018, with Republicans losing a net of 7 governorships.[4]
In 2017, it sponsored a website The Free Telegraph to promote issues from the perspective of Republicans.[5]
2020
editIn the 2020 election cycle, 11 states and two territories held elections for governors. The elections were held on November 3, 2020, with Republicans gaining a net of one governorship, Montana, for state elections.[6] This marked the first time Montana elected a Republican governor in 16 years.[7] Former Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced, who was a member of the Republican Governors Association, lost reelection in Puerto Rico, meaning a net loss of one Republican governor for territorial elections.[8]
2022
edit36 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2022 election cycle. The elections were held on November 8, 2022, with Republicans losing a net of 2 governor ships and lost all territorial governorships.[citation needed]
2023
edit3 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2023 election cycle including Louisiana where Republican Jeff Landry was elected to succeed term-limited Democrat John Bel Edwards and is scheduled to take office in January 2024.
Fundraising
editIn the 18 months ending June 30, 2010, the RGA raised $58 million, while its counterpart DGA raised $40 million. "Unlike the national political parties and federal candidates, the governors' associations can take in unlimited amounts from corporations," according to Bloomberg, which notes that the RGA recently received $1 million from Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, the parent corporation of Fox News, and $500,000 from WellPoint (now Anthem).[9]
In 2018, the Republican Governors Association announced that $63.2 million was raised in all of 2017, including $27.2 million raised in the final six months of the year, setting a new fundraising record that significantly eclipses the $52.5 million raised in 2013, the last comparable year.[10]
References
edit- ^ Sparacino, Anthony (2021). "The Democratic and Republican Governors Associations and the Nationalization of American Party Politics, 1961–1968". Studies in American Political Development. 35: 76–103. doi:10.1017/S0898588X20000188. ISSN 0898-588X. S2CID 233359969.
- ^ "About the RGA". Archived from the original on 2007-07-27.
- ^ "RGA Announces 2024 Leadership". 7 December 2023.
- ^ Haslam, Bill (16 May 2016). "RGA". Retrieved 2018-02-19.
- ^ Chokshi, Niraj (2017-09-19). "This New G.O.P. Publication Looks a Lot Like a News Website (Published 2017)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
- ^ "2020 gubernatorial election results". www.cnn.com. Archived from the original on 2021-01-01. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
- ^ Muvlihill, Geoff (2020-11-03). "Montana goes red; it's status quo in other governor races". WSLS. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
- ^ Florido, Adrian (2020-08-16). "Puerto Rico's Governor Loses Primary Bid For Full Term". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
- ^ Salant, Jonathan D. (August 16, 2010). "Republicans See Gains in Governors' Races as Funding Hits Peak". Bloomberg News.
- ^ "RGA Breaks Fundraising Records, Brings In $63 Million in 2017" (Press release). Washington, DC: RGA. 2018-01-31. Retrieved 2018-02-19.