List of lieutenant governors of Colorado

The lieutenant governor of Colorado is the second-highest-ranking member of the executive department of the Government of Colorado, United States, below the governor of Colorado. The lieutenant governor of Colorado, who acts as governor of Colorado in the absence of the officeholder and succeeds to the governorship in case of vacancy, is elected on a partisan ticket.

Lieutenant Governor of Colorado
Official seal
Incumbent Dianne Primavera since 8 January 2019
Government of Colorado
Style	The Honorable
Term length	Four years, renewable once consecutively
Inaugural holder	Lafayette Head
Formation	1877
Succession	First
Salary	$93,360 per year
Website

After the 1966 general election, the Constitution of Colorado was amended to require the joint election of governor and lieutenant governor — candidates running as a ticket.^[1] Prior to this amendment, the lieutenant governor candidate was elected separately from the governor during the same election—sometimes resulting in a governor and a lieutenant governor from different political parties.

The current lieutenant governor is Dianne Primavera, a Democrat, who took office 8 January 2019.

Lieutenant governors

Lieutenant governors of the State of Colorado

No.	Lieutenant Governor			Term in office	Party	Election	Governor[a]
1			Lafayette Head (1825–1897)	November 3, 1876 – January 14, 1879 (did not run)	Republican	1876		John Long Routt
2			Horace Tabor (1830–1899)	January 14, 1879 – January 9, 1881 (did not run)	Republican	1878		Frederick Walker Pitkin
—			George B. Robinson (d. 1880)	Died before taking office	Republican	1880[b]
2			Horace Tabor (1830–1899)	January 9, 1881 – January 9, 1883 (did not run)	Republican
3			William H. Meyer (1847–1923)	January 9, 1883 – January 13, 1885 (did not run)	Republican	1882		James Benton Grant[c]
4			Peter W. Breene (1846–1926)	January 13, 1885 – January 11, 1887 (did not run)[d]	Republican	1884		Benjamin Harrison Eaton
5			Norman H. Meldrum (1841–1920)	January 11, 1887 – January 8, 1889 (did not run)	Republican	1886		Alva Adams[c]
6			William Grover Smith (1857–1921)	January 8, 1889 – January 13, 1891 (did not run)	Republican	1888		Job Adams Cooper
7			William Story (1843–1921)	January 13, 1891 – January 10, 1893 (did not run)	Republican	1890		John Long Routt
8			David H. Nichols (1826–1900)	January 10, 1893 – January 8, 1895 (did not run)	Populist	1892		Davis Hanson Waite
9			Jared L. Brush (1835–1913)	January 8, 1895 – January 10, 1899 (did not run)	Republican	1894		Albert McIntire
						1896		Alva Adams[c]
10			Francis Patrick Carney (1846–1902)	January 10, 1899 – January 8, 1901 (did not run)	Populist	1898		Charles Spalding Thomas[c]
11			David C. Coates (1868–1933)	January 8, 1901 – January 13, 1903 (did not run)	Democratic	1900		James Bradley Orman
12			Warren A. Haggott (1864–1958)	January 13, 1903 – January 10, 1905 (did not run)	Republican	1902		James Hamilton Peabody
13			Jesse Fuller McDonald (1858–1942)	January 10, 1905 – March 17, 1905 (succeeded to governor)[e]	Republican	1904[e]		Alva Adams (declared loser March 17, 1905)[c]
								James Hamilton Peabody (resigned March 17, 1905)
14			Arthur Cornforth (1861–1938)	March 17, 1905 – July 5, 1905 (resigned July 5, 1905)	Republican	Succeeded from president of the Senate[e]		Jesse Fuller McDonald
15			Fred W. Parks (1871–1941)	July 5, 1905 – January 8, 1907 (did not run)	Republican	Succeeded from president of the Senate[e]
16			Erastus Harper (1854–1927)	January 8, 1907 – January 12, 1909 (did not run)	Republican	1906		Henry Augustus Buchtel
17			Stephen R. Fitzgarrald (1854–1926)	January 12, 1909 – January 14, 1913 (did not run)	Democratic	1908		John F. Shafroth
						1910
—			Benjamin F. Montgomery (1834–1912)	Died before taking office	Democratic	1912		Elias M. Ammons
17			Stephen R. Fitzgarrald (1854–1926)	January 14, 1913 – January 12, 1915 (did not run)	Democratic
18			Moses E. Lewis (1854–1951)	January 12, 1915 – January 9, 1917 (lost election)	Republican	1914		George Alfred Carlson
19			James Pulliam (1863–1934)	January 9, 1917 – January 14, 1919 (did not run)	Democratic	1916		Julius Caldeen Gunter
20			George Stephan (1862–1944)	January 14, 1919 – January 11, 1921 (did not run)	Republican	1918		Oliver Henry Shoup
21			Earl Cooley (1880–1940)	January 11, 1921 – January 9, 1923 (did not run)[f]	Republican	1920
22			Robert F. Rockwell (1886–1950)	January 9, 1923 – January 13, 1925 (did not run)[g]	Republican	1922		William Ellery Sweet[c]
23			Sterling Byrd Lacy (1882–1957)	January 13, 1925 – January 11, 1927 (did not run)	Democratic	1924		Clarence Morley[h]
24			George Milton Corlett (1884–1955)	January 11, 1927 – January 13, 1931 (did not run)	Republican	1926		Billy Adams[c]
						1928
25			Edwin C. Johnson (1884–1970)	January 13, 1931 – January 10, 1933 (elected governor)	Democratic	1930
26			Ray Herbert Talbot (1896–1955)	January 10, 1933 – January 1, 1937 (succeeded to governor)	Democratic	1932		Edwin C. Johnson (resigned January 2, 1937)
						1934
—	Office vacant from January 1–12, 1937				Office vacated by succession to governor			Ray Herbert Talbot
27			Frank Hayes (1882–1948)	January 12, 1937 – January 10, 1939 (lost election)	Democratic	1936		Teller Ammons
28			John Charles Vivian (1887–1964)	January 10, 1939 – January 12, 1943 (elected governor)	Republican	1938		Ralph Lawrence Carr
						1940
29			William Eugene Higby (1884–1967)	January 12, 1943 – January 14, 1947 (did not run)	Republican	1942		John Charles Vivian
						1944
30			Homer L. Pearson (1900–1985)	January 14, 1947 – January 11, 1949 (lost election)	Republican	1946		William Lee Knous[c] (resigned April 15, 1950)
31			Walter Walford Johnson (1904–1987)	January 11, 1949 – April 15, 1950 (succeeded to governor)	Democratic	1948
32			Charles P. Murphy (1882–1953)	April 15, 1950 – January 9, 1951 (did not run)	Republican	Succeeded from president of the Senate		Walter Walford Johnson
33			Gordon Allott (1907–1989)	January 9, 1951 – January 11, 1955 (did not run)[i]	Republican	1950		Daniel I. J. Thornton
						1952
34			Stephen McNichols (1914–1997)	January 11, 1955 – January 8, 1957 (elected governor)	Democratic	1954		Edwin C. Johnson
35			Frank L. Hays (1922–2003)	January 8, 1957 – January 13, 1959 (lost election)	Republican	1956		Stephen McNichols
36			Robert Lee Knous (1917–2000)	January 13, 1959 – January 10, 1967 (did not run)[j]	Democratic	1958
						1962		John Arthur Love[h] (resigned July 16, 1973)
37			Mark Anthony Hogan (1931–2017)	January 10, 1967 – January 12, 1971 (did not run)[k]	Democratic	1966
38			John D. Vanderhoof (1922–2013)	January 12, 1971 – July 16, 1973 (succeeded to governor)	Republican	1970
39			Ted L. Strickland (1932–2012)	July 16, 1973 – January 14, 1975 (lost election)	Republican	Succeeded from president of the Senate		John D. Vanderhoof
40			George L. Brown (1926–2006)	January 14, 1975 – January 10, 1979 (did not run)	Democratic	1974		Richard Lamm
41			Nancy E. Dick (b. 1930)	January 10, 1979 – January 13, 1987 (did not run)	Democratic	1978
						1982
42			Mike Callihan (b. 1947)	January 13, 1987 – May 10, 1994 (resigned)	Democratic	1986		Roy Romer
						1990
—	Office vacant from May 10–11, 1994				Office vacated by succession to governor
43			Samuel H. Cassidy (b. 1950)	May 11, 1994 – January 3, 1995 (did not run)	Democratic	Appointed by governor
44			Gail Schoettler (b. 1943)	January 3, 1995 – January 12, 1999 (did not run)[l]	Democratic	1994
45			Joe Rogers (1964–2013)	January 12, 1999 – January 14, 2003 (did not run)[m]	Republican	1998		Bill Owens
46			Jane E. Norton (b. 1954)	January 14, 2003 – January 9, 2007 (did not run)	Republican	2002
47			Barbara O'Brien (b. 1950)	January 9, 2007 – January 11, 2011 (did not run)	Democratic	2006		Bill Ritter
48			Joseph Garcia (b. 1957)	January 11, 2011 – May 12, 2016 (resigned)[n]	Democratic	2010		John Hickenlooper
						2014
49			Donna Lynne (b. 1953)	May 12, 2016 – January 8, 2019 (did not run)[o]	Democratic	Appointed by governor
50			Dianne Primavera (b. 1950)	January 8, 2019 – Incumbent[p]	Democratic	2018		Jared Polis
						2022

Notes

1. Lieutenant governors represented the same party as their governor unless noted.
2. Robinson was elected in the 1880 election, but died before taking office; the sitting lieutenant governor, Tabor, claimed the office and held it for the term.
3. Represented the Democratic Party.
4. Breene instead ran successfully for Colorado State Treasurer.
5. The 1904 gubernatorial election was rife with fraud and controversy. Alva Adams won election, but soon after Adams took office the Republican legislature declared Peabody to be the actual winner, on the condition that Peabody immediately tender his resignation, postdated to the next day. Peabody's lieutenant governor, McDonald, then succeeded to the governorship. Cornforth, as president pro tempore of the senate, acted as lieutenant governor until the Colorado Supreme Court declared that Parks, who had been elected president pro tempore of the senate on April 3, 1905, was the rightful acting lieutenant governor.^[2]
6. Cooley instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for governor.
7. Rockwell instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for governor.
8. Represented the Republican Party
9. Allott instead ran successfully for the United States Senate.
10. Knous instead ran unsuccessfully for governor.
11. Hogan instead ran unsuccessfully for governor.
12. Schoettler instead ran unsuccessfully for governor.
13. Rogers instead ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for the United States House of Representatives.
14. Garcia resigned to be President of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education.
15. Lynne instead ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for governor.
16. Primavera's second term began on January 10, 2023, and will expire on January 12, 2027; she will be term-limited.