The lieutenant governor of Texas is the second-highest executive office in the government of

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

, a state in the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

It is the second most powerful post in Texas government because its occupant controls the work of the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per cons ...

and controls the budgeting process as a leader of the Legislative Budget Board. Under the provisions of the

Texas Constitution The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document that establishes the structure and function of the government of the U.S. state of Texas, and enumerates the basic rights of the citizens of Texas. The current document was adopted on Febr ...

, the lieutenant governor is president of the

. Unlike with most other states' senates and the U.S. Senate, the lieutenant governor regularly exercises this function rather than delegating it to the

president pro tempore A president pro tempore or speaker pro tempore is a constitutionally recognized officer of a legislative body who presides over the chamber in the absence of the normal presiding officer. The phrase ''pro tempore'' is Latin "for the time being". ...

or a

majority leader In U.S. politics (as well as in some other countries utilizing the presidential system), the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body.

. By the rules of the Senate, the lieutenant governor establishes all special and standing committees, appoints all chairpersons and members, and assigns all Senate legislation to the committee of his choice. The lieutenant governor decides all questions of

parliamentary procedure Parliamentary procedure is the accepted rules, ethics, and customs governing meetings of an assembly or organization. Its object is to allow orderly deliberation upon questions of interest to the organization and thus to arrive at the sense or t ...

in the Senate. The lieutenant governor also has broad discretion in following Senate procedural rules. The lieutenant governor is an ''

ex officio An ''ex officio'' member is a member of a body (notably a board, committee, council) who is part of it by virtue of holding another office. The term '' ex officio'' is Latin, meaning literally 'from the office', and the sense intended is 'by right ...

'' member of several statutory bodies. These include the Legislative Budget Board, the Legislative Council, the Legislative Audit Committee, the Legislative Board and Legislative Council, which have considerable sway over state programs, the budget and policy. The lieutenant governor is also a member of the Legislative Redistricting Board (together with the speaker of the House, attorney general, comptroller, and land commissioner), which is charged with adopting a redistricting plan for the Texas House of Representatives, Texas Senate, or U.S. House of Representatives after the decennial census if the Legislature fails to do so. In the case of a vacancy in the lieutenant governor's office, the Senate elects one of its members to act as ''President of the Senate'' until the next statewide office election, in effect becoming the lieutenant governor. A senator elected as presiding officer in this way retains their district seat and the voting privileges entailed with his Senate election. The lieutenant governor is sworn-in on the third Tuesday every four years, the same as the governor.

Dan Patrick Dan Patrick may refer to: * Dan Patrick (ice hockey) (born 1938), Canadian ice hockey player * Dan Patrick (politician) (born 1950), Lieutenant Governor of Texas and political and sports radio journalist * Dan Patrick (sportscaster) (born 1956), Ame ...

has been the lieutenant governor of Texas since January 20, 2015. The term of office was two years from 1846 to 1972. Voters then increased it to four years, effective for the 1974 election. The lieutenant governor assumes the powers of the

governor of Texas The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who ...

when the governor is out of the state or otherwise unable to discharge the office. The lieutenant governor is elected separately from the governor, rather than on the same ticket; it is therefore possible for the governor and lieutenant governor to be from different political parties (which was the case during Governor

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

's first term and also during

Bill Clements William Perry Clements Jr. (April 13, 1917 – May 29, 2011) was an American businessman and Republican Party politician who served two non-consecutive terms as the governor of Texas between 1979 and 1991. His terms bookended the sole t ...

's two non-consecutive terms). The lieutenant governor becomes the governor if the elected governor resigns, dies or is removed from office via impeachment and conviction. Former governor

Rick Perry James Richard Perry (born March 4, 1950) is an American politician who served as the 14th United States secretary of energy from 2017 to 2019 and as the 47th governor of Texas from 2000 to 2015. Perry also ran unsuccessfully for the Republica ...

took office upon George W. Bush's resignation on December 21, 2000. Bush became US President on January 20, 2001. When Perry became lieutenant governor on 19 January 1999, he became the first Republican since

Albert Jennings Fountain Colonel Albert Jennings Fountain (October 23, 1838 – disappeared February 1, 1896) was an American attorney who served in the Texas Senate and the New Mexico House of Representatives. Following a purge of corruption among cattle rustlers that ...

in 1873 to serve as lieutenant governor, and the first Republican to be elected as Lieutenant Governor since

James W. Flanagan James Winright Flanagan (September 5, 1805September 28, 1887) was an American merchant, lawyer, and farmer from Henderson, Texas. He served as the eleventh Lieutenant Governor of Texas in 1869 and 1870, and then represented Texas in the United S ...

in 1869.

Compared to other lieutenant governors

Texas is one of the few states that vests significant power in the office of lieutenant governor, making it among the most influential. By contrast, the lieutenant governor position in other states has few (if any) legislative responsibilities, akin to the

vice president of the United States The vice president of the United States (VPOTUS) is the second-highest officer in the executive branch of the U.S. federal government, after the president of the United States, and ranks first in the presidential line of succession. The vice ...

. The consequence is that the

is weaker than other states' governors.

Lieutenant governors of Texas

; Parties

Living former lieutenant governors of Texas

, five former lieutenant governors of Texas were alive, the oldest being

William P. Hobby Jr. William Pettus Hobby Jr. (born January 19, 1932) is an American Democratic politician who served a record eighteen years as the 37th Lieutenant Governor of Texas. He held that office from January 16, 1973, to January 15, 1991, for an unpreced ...

(served 1973–1991, born 1932). The most recent death of a former lieutenant governor of Texas was that of

Preston Smith Preston Smith may refer to: * Preston Smith (American football coach) (1871–1945), American football coach at Colgate University * Preston Smith (linebacker) (born 1992), American football outside linebacker * Preston Smith (governor) (1912–20 ...

(served 1963–1969, born 1912), on October 18, 2003. The most recent serving lieutenant governor of Texas to die was

Bob Bullock Robert Douglas Bullock Sr. (July 10, 1929 – June 18, 1999), was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic politician from Texas, whose career spanned four decades. His service culminated in his term as the 38th List of lieu ...

(served 1991–1999, born 1929), on June 18, 1999.

References

Legislative Reference Library of Texas
* ''Presiding Officers of the Texas Legislature, 1846–1982'', Texas Legislative Council, Austin, Texas, August 1982.

External links

{{Texas statewide political officials Texas Senate