A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, to or ranked under a

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

— a " second-in-command", rather like deputy governor. In Canadian provinces and in the

Dutch Caribbean The Dutch Caribbean (historically known as the Dutch West Indies) are the territories, colonies, and countries, former and current, of the Dutch Empire and the Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Caribbean Sea. They are in the north and south-wes ...

, the lieutenant governor is the representative of the

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority and power i ...

in that jurisdiction, and thus outranks the head of government but for practical purposes has virtually no power. In

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, lieutenant governors are in charge of special administrative divisions in that country. In the United States, lieutenant governors are usually second-in-command to a

state governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, and the actual power held by the lieutenant governor varies greatly from state to state. The lieutenant governor is often first in line of succession to the governorship, and acts as governor when the governor leaves the state or is unable to serve. Also, the lieutenant governor is often the president of the

state senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

. In Argentina, lieutenant governors are called "vice governors" and are modeled after the U.S. lieutenant governors, since as their U.S. counterpart the vice governors are the second-in-command to a

provincial governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, and are the first in the gubernatorial line of succession. Also, the vice governor usually acts as the president of the provincial senate (or the provincial legislature in

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...

provinces).

Lieutenant governors in the former British Empire

* Australia –

Lieutenant-Governor (Australia) In Australia, a lieutenant-governor is a standing appointment for a deputy governor of a state, who acts in place of the governor if the governor is unable, unavailable or unwilling to act. Constitutionally, Australian state lieutenant-governors ...

Lieutenant-Governor of New South Wales The Lieutenant-Governor of New South Wales is a government position in the State of New South Wales, Australia, acting as a deputy to the Governor of New South Wales. The office was first created in October 1786, before the arrival of the First ...

Lieutenant-Governor of Queensland The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor performs constitutional and ceremonial func ...

Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria The Lieutenant-Governor of Victoria is a government position in the state of Victoria, Australia, acting as a deputy to the Governor of Victoria. When the governor is out of the state, the lieutenant-governor acts as the governor. This office h ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

–

Lieutenant Governor (Canada) In Canada, a lieutenant governor (; French asculine , or eminine ) is the viceregal representative in a provincial jurisdiction of the . On the advice of his or her prime minister, the Governor General of Canada appoints the lieutenant govern ...

Lieutenant Governor of Alberta The lieutenant governor of Alberta () is the viceregal representative in Alberta of the . The lieutenant governor is appointed in the same manner as the other provincial viceroys in Canada and is similarly tasked with carrying out most of the m ...

Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia The lieutenant governor of British Columbia () is the viceregal representative of the , in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The office of lieutenant governor is an office of the Crown and serves as a representative of the monarchy in ...

** Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba **

Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick The lieutenant governor of New Brunswick (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''du Nouveau-Brunswick'') is the viceregal representative in New Brunswick of the , who operates distinctly wit ...

Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador The lieutenant governor of Newfoundland and Labrador () is the viceregal representative in Newfoundland and Labrador of the , who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada, as ...

** Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia **

Lieutenant Governor of Ontario The lieutenant governor of Ontario (, in French: ''Lieutenant-gouverneur'' (if male) or ''Lieutenante-gouverneure'' (if female) ''de l'Ontario'') is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the , who operates distinctly within the province bu ...

** Lieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island ** Lieutenant Governor of Quebec ** Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan *British Crown Dependencies and other possessions ** Guernsey –

Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey The Lieutenant Governor of Guernsey is the representative of the British monarch in the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a Crown dependency of the British Crown. The role of the Lieutenant Governor is to act as the ''de facto'' head of state in Guernsey ...

Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...

–

Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man The Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man ( gv, Fo-chiannoort Vannin or ''Lhiass-chiannoort Vannin'') is the Lord of Mann's official personal representative in the Isle of Man. He has the power to grant royal assent and is styled "His Excelle ...

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

–

Lieutenant Governor of Jersey The Lieutenant Governor of Jersey (, Jèrriais: ''Gouvèrneux d'Jèrri'') is the representative of the British monarch in the Bailiwick of Jersey, a Crown dependency of the British Crown. The Lieutenant Governor has his own flag in Jersey, ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

(historical) – Lieutenant Governor of Hong Kong (1843–1902) **

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

(historical) – Lieutenant-Governor of Java (1811–1814) *

– Governors and Lieutenant-Governors of states of India ** List of Governors of Indian states *** List of Lieutenant Governors of the North-Western Provinces ***

List of Lieutenant Governors of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh This is a list of Lieutenant-Governors of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. The establishment of the title of ''Lieutenant-Governor of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh'' happened in 1902 by renaming of the title of Lieutenant-Governo ...

*** List of Lieutenant Governors of the North-Western Provinces and Chief Commissioners of Oudh *

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

– The only person to have held the rank of Lieutenant Governor of New Zealand was

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

Captain

William Hobson Captain William Hobson (26 September 1792 – 10 September 1842) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first Governor of New Zealand. He was a co-author of the Treaty of Waitangi. Hobson was dispatched from London in July 1 ...

from 1839 to 1841 when New Zealand colony was a dependency of the colony of New South Wales, governed at that time by Sir George Gipps. When New Zealand was designated a Crown colony in 1841, Hobson was raised to the rank of governor, which he held until his death the following year. Subsequently, in 1848 New Zealand was divided into three provinces:

New Ulster New Ulster was a province of the Colony of New Zealand that existed between 1841 and 1853. It was named after the Irish province of Ulster. Creation Between 1841 and 1846, the province included all the North Island. With the passing of the New ...

, New Munster, and

New Leinster New Leinster was a name given to the Stewart Island in the Royal Charter of November 1840, which stated the division of New Zealand into three parts. The division only hold a geographic significance. In 1846 New Zealand Constitution Act, the are ...

, each with their own Lieutenant Governors. *

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

- known as Deputy Governor * U.S. states –

Lieutenant governor (United States) A lieutenant governor is an official in state governments of 45 out of 50 of the United States. In most cases, the lieutenant governor is the highest officer of state after the governor, standing in for that officer when they are absent from th ...

List of current United States lieutenant governors The Lieutenant governor (United States), lieutenant governor is the second-highest-ranking government official in 45 of the 50 U.S. states and four of the five Territories of the United States, territories. In those states and territories, it i ...

** Colonial government in the Thirteen Colonies#The Council

Lieutenant governors in the Kingdom of the Netherlands

Lieutenant governors ( nl, gezaghebber) of the former Dutch constituent country of Netherlands Antilles acted as head of the governing council of the island territories, which formed a level of decentral government until the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010. Currently the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

has a lieutenant governor overseeing each of the three special municipalities in the

Caribbean Netherlands ) , image_map = BES islands location map.svg , map_caption = Location of the Caribbean Netherlands (green and circled). From left to right: Bonaire, Saba, and Sint Eustatius , elevation_max_m = 887 , elevation_max_footnotes = , demographic ...

–

Saba Saba may refer to: Places * Saba (island), an island of the Netherlands located in the Caribbean Sea * Şaba (Romanian for Shabo), a town of the Odesa Oblast, Ukraine * Sabá, a municipality in the department of Colón, Honduras * Saba (river), ...

, Bonaire, and Sint Eustatius – where their function is similar to a mayor in the European Netherlands.

References

{{EB1911, wstitle=Governor Gubernatorial titles

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Vice offices

Lieutenant governors in the former British Empire

Lieutenant governors in the Kingdom of the Netherlands

See also

References