The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) is a Washington, D.C.–based 527 organization founded in 1983, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Democratic Party. The main purpose of the organization is to provide party support to the election and re-election of Democratic gubernatorial candidates. The DGA's Republican counterpart is the Republican Governors Association. The DGA is not directly affiliated with the non-partisan National Governors Association.
Meghan Meehan-Draper is currently the DGA's executive director, and Governor of Kentucky Andy Beshear is the current chair.
History Previously known as the Democratic Governors Conference within the Democratic National Committee, DGA became an independent institution in 1983 under the leadership of then-Virginia governor Chuck Robb with the help of then-Democratic National Committee chair Charles Manatt. The purpose of the committee was to raise funds to elect Democrats to governorships and to improve the partnership between Democratic governors and the Democratic leadership of the U.S. Congress. Prior to its current formation in mid-1983, they met as the Democratic Governors Conference.
The DGA played a pivotal role in the election of Arkansas governor Bill Clinton to the presidency in 1992. Under the leadership of DGA chair and Hawaii governor John Waiheʻe, the DGA helped organize Clinton's "winning the West" campaign tour through Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California. Republicans had handily won all of those states except Washington and Oregon the previous three elections. According to The Washington Post, it was "all but unthinkable to Republicans that the GOP could lose such stalwart pieces of the party's electoral base as Wyoming and Nevada." Clinton lost Wyoming but carried Nevada, Colorado, Montana, Washington, Oregon, and California.
Leadership The DGA is led by two elected Democratic governors.
OfficeOfficerStateSinceChairAndy BeshearKentucky2025Vice ChairGretchen WhitmerMichigan2025
List of current Democratic governors There are currently 24 Democratic governors.
Current governorStatePastTook officeCurrent term ArizonaList2023First term CaliforniaList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) ColoradoList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) ConnecticutList2019Second term DelawareList2025First term HawaiiList2022First term IllinoisList2019Second term KansasList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) KentuckyList2019Second term (term-limited in 2027) MaineList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) MarylandList2023First term MassachusettsList2023First term MichiganList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) MinnesotaList2019Second term (retiring in 2026) New JerseyList2026First term New MexicoList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) New YorkList2021 (succeeded)First full term North CarolinaList2025First term OregonList2023First term PennsylvaniaList2023First term Rhode IslandList2021 (succeeded)First full term VirginiaList2026First term (term-limited in 2029) WashingtonList2025First term WisconsinList2019Second term (retiring in 2026)
In addition to governors of U.S. states, the DGA also offers membership to Democratic governors of U.S. territories. Current governorTerritoryPastTook officeCurrent term GuamList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) U.S. Virgin IslandsList2019Second term (term-limited in 2026) In addition, the DGA offers membership to the mayor of the District of Columbia. Current mayorFederal districtPastTook officeCurrent termMuriel Bowser District of ColumbiaList2015Third term
List of DGA chairs Electioncycle(s)ChairState1965 Texas1966–1967 Iowa1968 South Carolina1969 Connecticut1970 North Carolina1971 Maryland1972 Arkansas1973 Kentucky1974 Minnesota1975 Rhode Island1976 Florida1977 WisconsinUnknownUnknown1978 North Carolina1979 Connecticut1980 New Jersey1981 California1982 Kentucky1983 Utah1984 Virginia1985 Arizona1986 South Carolina1987 Massachusetts1988 Arkansas1989 Michigan1990 Ohio1991 Colorado1992 Hawaii1993 Oklahoma1994 Indiana1995 Missouri1996 West Virginia1997 Vermont1998 Puerto Rico1999 Indiana2000 Kentucky2001 California2002 Maryland2003 Washington2004 Iowa2005–2006 New Mexico2007 Kansas2008 West Virginia2009 Montana2010 Delaware2011–2012 Maryland2013–2014 Vermont2015 Montana2016–2017 Connecticut2018 Washington2019 Rhode Island2020 New Jersey2021 New Mexico2022 North Carolina2023 New Jersey2024 Minnesota2024–2025 Kansas2025–present Kentucky
Executive directors TermDirector1983–1989Chuck Dolan1990–1992Mark Gearan1993–1998Katie Whelan1999–2004BJ Thornberry2005–2006Penny Lee2007–2010Nathan Daschle2011–2014Colm O'Comartun2015–2018Elisabeth Pearson2018–2022Noam Lee2022–presentMeghan Meehan-Draper
Other offices Democratic governors have served in various other government positions after their tenure. The following list includes recent positions from the DGA's formalization in 1983.
Democratic governors elected as President: Jimmy Carter of Georgia, 1977–1981 Bill Clinton of Arkansas, 1993–2001
Democratic governors appointed to the U.S. Cabinet: Reubin Askew of Florida: Trade Representative, 1979–1980 (Carter) Bruce Babbitt of Arizona: Secretary of the Interior, 1993–2001 (Clinton) Richard Riley of South Carolina: Secretary of Education, 1993–2001 (Clinton) Andrew Cuomo of New York (served prior to governorship): Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, 1997–2001 (Clinton) Bill Richardson of New Mexico (served prior to governorship): Ambassador to the United Nations, 1997–1998 and Secretary of Energy, 1998–2001 (Clinton) Gary Locke of Washington: Secretary of Commerce, 2009–2011 (Obama) Ray Mabus of Mississippi: Secretary of the Navy, 2009–2017 (Obama) Janet Napolitano of Arizona: Secretary of Homeland Security, 2009–2013 (Obama) Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas: Secretary of Health and Human Services, 2009–2014 (Obama) Tom Vilsack of Iowa: Secretary of Agriculture, 2009–2017 (Obama) and 2021– 2025 (Biden) Jennifer Granholm of Michigan: Secretary of Energy, 2021– 2025 (Biden) Gina Raimondo of Rhode Island: Secretary of Commerce, 2021–2025 (Biden)
Democratic governors appointed to ambassadorships: James Blanchard of Michigan: Ambassador to Canada, 1993–1996 (Clinton) Ray Mabus of Mississippi: Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, 1994–1996 (Clinton) Dick Celeste of Ohio: Ambassador to India, 1997–2001 (Clinton) Mike Sullivan of Wyoming: Ambassador to Ireland, 1998–2001 (Clinton) Gary Locke of Washington: Ambassador to China, 2011–2014 (Obama) Phil Murphy of New Jersey (served prior to governorship): Ambassador to Germany, 2009–2013 (Obama) Jack Markell of Delaware: Ambassador to the OECD, 2022–2023 and Ambassador to Italy, 2023– 2025 (Biden)
Democratic governors elected as chair of the Democratic National Committee: Roy Romer of Colorado, 1997–1999 Howard Dean of Vermont, 2005–2009 Tim Kaine of Virginia, 2009–2011
Democratic governors elected to the U.S. Senate: Clyde R. Hoey of North Carolina, 1945–1954 J. Melville Broughton of North Carolina, 1948–1949 W. Kerr Scott of North Carolina, 1954–1958 Fritz Hollings of South Carolina, 1966–2005 Dale Bumpers of Arkansas, 1975–1999 Wendell Ford of Kentucky, 1974–1999 David Boren of Oklahoma, 1979–1994 J. James Exon of Nebraska, 1979–1997 David Pryor of Arkansas, 1979–1997 Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, 1985–2015 Terry Sanford of North Carolina, 1986–1993 Bob Graham of Florida, 1987–2005 Bob Kerrey of Nebraska, 1989–2001 Chuck Robb of Virginia, 1989–2001 Evan Bayh of Indiana, 1999–2011 Zell Miller of Georgia, 2000–2005 Tom Carper of Delaware, 2001–2025 Mark Dayton of Minnesota (served prior to governorship), 2001–2007 Jon Corzine of New Jersey (served prior to governorship), 2001–2006 Ben Nelson of Nebraska, 2001–2013 Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, 2009–present Mark Warner of Virginia, 2009–present Joe Manchin of West Virginia, 2010–2025 Tim Kaine of Virginia, 2013–present Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, 2017–present John Hickenlooper of Colorado, 2021–present
Fundraising The DGA reported raising over $20 million in 2011, almost doubling what it raised during the comparable 2007 election cycle. "Because of our strong efforts in 2011, we will have the resources to aid Democratic candidates in targeted states and continue to fight for our core priorities: Jobs. Opportunity. Now.," DGA Chair Martin O'Malley said. Executive Director Colm O'Comartun added, "There is no doubt that we will face a challenging electoral environment in 2012, but our victories in 2011 showed that we know how to wisely and strategically deploy our resources. We are delighted with the continued support of everyone who believes in our mission of creating jobs and expanding opportunity now."
Notable staff alumni Several former DGA staff members have gone on to hold prominent positions in the government and in the private and non-profit sectors.
Former communications director Jake Siewert served as press secretary for President Bill Clinton for four months from 2000 to 2001. From 2001 to 2009, he worked for Alcoa Inc. In 2009, he became an advisor to then-Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner.http://www.whorunsgov.com/Profiles/Jake_Siewert?loadTab=0
Former policy director Sheryl Rose Parker was director of intergovernmental affairs for U.S. House speaker Nancy Pelosi. She is currently deputy director of government affairs for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Former policy communications director Doug Richardson served as director of public affairs at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy in the Obama administration. He is currently public relations director for R&R Partners.
Former executive director Katie Whelan served as a senior advisor to Republican California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. She was an Institute of Politics Fellow at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government. She is currently senior public policy advisor for Patton Boggs LLP.
Former executive director Nathan Daschle is the founder and CEO of Ruckus, Inc., an online political engagement platform. He is the son of former U.S. senator Tom Daschle. In October 2010, Daschle was recognized as one of Time magazine's "40 under 40" rising stars in politics.
Former executive director Mark Gearan was director of communications during the Clinton administration and served as director of the Peace Corps. He served as president of Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York from 1999 to 2017.
Founding executive director Chuck Dolan is a senior vice president at kglobal and was appointed by President Clinton as vice-chair of the Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy. He is a lecturer at the George Washington University School of Media and Public Affairs.
References
External links
Contributors and Expenditures at OpenSecrets