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Countries Where US Governors Have Been Born

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Countries Where US Governors Have Been Born

Map created by reddit user dphayteeyl
The map above shows which countries US governors have been born in. And below you can find the full list of governors who have been born outside the United States:

NameStateBirthplace (current country)Then the territory ofFirst Term startFirst Term end
John McKinlyDelawareUnited KingdomKingdom of IrelandFebruary 12, 1777September 22, 1777
Button GwinnettGeorgiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainMarch 4, 1777May 8, 1777
John A. TreutlenGeorgiaGermanyHoly Roman EmpireMay 8, 1777January 10, 1778
John WereatGeorgiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainAugust 6, 1779January 4, 1780
William FlemingVirginiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainJune 4, 1781June 12, 1781
Thomas BurkeNorth CarolinaIrelandKingdom of IrelandJune 26, 1781April 22, 1782
Edward TelfairGeorgiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainJanuary 9, 1786January 9, 1787
Samuel JohnstonNorth CarolinaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainDecember 20, 1787
George HandleyGeorgiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainJanuary 7, 1788December 17, 1789
William PatersonNew JerseyUnited KingdomKingdom of IrelandOctober 29, 1790January 7, 1789
James JacksonGeorgiaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainJanuary 12, 1798March 30, 1793
William DavieNorth CarolinaUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainDecember 7, 1798March 3, 1801
Edward TiffinOhioUnited KingdomKingdom of Great BritainMarch 3, 1803March 4, 1807
Thomas KirkerOhioUnited KingdomKingdom of IrelandMarch 4, 1807December 12, 1808
Pierre DerbignyLouisianaFranceKingdom of FranceDecember 15, 1828October 6, 1829
Arthur MacArthur Sr.WisconsinUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandMarch 21, 1856March 25, 1856
John G. DowneyCaliforniaIrelandUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 14, 1860January 10, 1862
Edward SalomonWisconsinGermanyKingdom of PrussiaApril 19, 1862January 4, 1864
Michael HahnLouisianaGermanyKingdom of BavariaMarch 4, 1864March 4, 1865
Jacob Dolson CoxOhioCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 8, 1866January 13, 1868
Robert B. LindsayAlabamaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandNovember 26, 1870November 17, 1872
Thomas L. YoungOhioUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandMarch 2, 1877January 14, 1878
William E. SmithWisconsinUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 7, 1878January 2, 1882
George P. WetmoreRhode IslandUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandMay 26, 1885May 29, 1887
Frank BellNevadaCanadaBritish EmpireSeptember 21, 1890January 5, 1891
James E. BoydNebraskaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 8, 1891January 13, 1893
Knute NelsonMinnesotaNorwayUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 4, 1893January 31, 1895
John Peter AltgeldIllinoisGermanyNassauJanuary 10, 1893January 11, 1897
Frederic T. GreenhalgeMassachusettsUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 4, 1894March 5, 1896
John Edward JonesNevadaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 7, 1895April 10, 1896
Roger AllinNorth DakotaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 10, 1895January 6, 1897
Reinhold SadlerNevadaPolandKingdom of PrussiaApril 10, 1896January 5, 1903
John LindMinnesotaSwedenUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 2, 1899January 7, 1901
Fred M. WarnerMichiganUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 1, 1905January 2, 1911
John CutlerUtahUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 2, 1905January 4, 1909
Frank R. GoodingIdahoUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 2, 1905January 4, 1909
John McLaneNew HampshireUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 5, 1905January 3, 1907
James O. DavidsonWisconsinNorwayUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 1, 1906January 2, 1911
William SpryUtahUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 4, 1909January 1, 1917
Aram J. PothierRhode IslandCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 5, 1909January 5, 1915
Adolph EberhartMinnesotaSwedenUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwaySeptember 21, 1909January 5, 1915
Oswald WestOregonCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 11, 1911January 12, 1915
John K. TenerPennsylvaniaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 17, 1911January 19, 1915
James WithycombeOregonUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 12, 1915March 3, 1919
Moses AlexanderIdahoGermanyKingdom of BavariaJanuary 4, 1915January 6, 1919
Simon BambergerUtahGermanyHesse-DarmstadtJanuary 1, 1917January 3, 1921
Octaviano LarrazoloNew MexicoMexicoMexicoJanuary 1, 1919January 1, 1921
D. W. DavisIdahoUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 6, 1919January 1, 1923
Ragnvald NestosNorth DakotaNorwayUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayNovember 23, 1921January 7, 1925
Roland H. HartleyWashingtonCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 12, 1925January 9, 1933
A. W. NorbladOregonSwedenUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayDecember 21, 1929January 12, 1931
Frank Henry CooneyMontanaCanadaBritish EmpireMarch 13, 1933December 15, 1935
Walter WelfordNorth DakotaUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandFebruary 2, 1935January 6, 1937
Hjalmar PetersenMinnesotaDenmarkDenmarkAugust 22, 1936January 4, 1937
Julius P. HeilWisconsinGermanyGerman EmpireJanuary 2, 1939January 4, 1943
John MosesNorth DakotaNorwayUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 5, 1939January 4, 1945
Sigurd AndersonSouth DakotaNorwayUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 2, 1951January 4, 1955
Christian HerterMassachusettsFranceFrench Third RepublicJanuary 8, 1953January 3, 1957
J. Hugo AronsonMontanaSwedenUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 5, 1953January 2, 1961
Joseph B. JohnsonVermontSwedenUnited Kingdoms of Sweden and NorwayJanuary 6, 1955January 8, 1959
John SwainsonMichiganCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 1, 1961January 1, 1963
John N. DempseyConnecticutIrelandUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and IrelandJanuary 21, 1961January 6, 1971
George RomneyMichiganMexicoMexicoJanuary 1, 1963January 22, 1969
Samuel H. ShapiroIllinoisEstoniaRussian EmpireMay 21, 1968January 13, 1969
Raúl Héctor CastroArizonaMexicoMexicoJanuary 6, 1975October 20, 1977
John SununuNew HampshireCubaCubaJanuary 6, 1983January 4, 1989
Madeleine KuninVermontSwitzerlandSwitzerlandJanuary 10, 1985January 10, 1991
Stan StephensMontanaCanadaBritish EmpireJanuary 2, 1989January 4, 1993
Lowell WeickerConnecticutFranceFrench Third RepublicJanuary 9, 1991January 4, 1995
Jennifer GranholmMichiganCanadaCanadaJanuary 1, 2003January 1, 2011
Arnold SchwarzeneggerCaliforniaAustriaUnited Kingdom Allied-occupied Austria AustriaNovember 13, 2003January 3, 2011
Kate BrownOregonSpainSpain SpainFebruary 18, 2015January 9, 2023
Joe LombardoNevadaJapanJapanJanuary 2, 2023present

And here is the total by Country:

How Many US Governors Where Born In Your Country

CountryNumber of Governors
United Kingdom30
Canada9
Germany7
Sweden5
Norway5
France3
Mexico3
Ireland3
Cuba1
Spain1
Switzerland1
Japan1
Austria1
Denmark1
Estonia1
Poland1

Breaking down the UK you have:

  • England: 15
  • Northern Ireland: 6
  • Scotland: 7
  • Wales; 2

And finally the number of Governors born outside the United States by State:

How Many Governors Has Your State Had Who Were Born Outside Of The United States

StateNumber of Non-US Born Governors
Alaska0
Alabama1
Arkansas0
Arizona1
California2
Colorado0
Connecticut2
Delaware1
Florida0
Georgia6
Hawaii0
Iowa0
Idaho3
Illinois2
Indiana0
Kansas0
Kentucky0
Louisiana2
Massachusetts2
Maryland0
Maine0
Michigan4
Minnesota4
Missouri0
Mississippi0
Montana3
North Carolina3
North Dakota4
Nebraska1
New Hampshire2
New Jersey1
New Mexico1
Nevada4
New York0
Ohio4
Oklahoma0
Oregon4
Pennsylvania1
Rhode Island2
South Carolina0
South Dakota1
Tennessee0
Texas0
Utah3
Virginia1
Vermont2
Washington1
Wisconsin5
West Virginia0
Wyoming0

How are some US governors born outside the United States?

The short answer: U.S. governors don’t have to be “natural-born citizens,” so being born abroad usually isn’t a problem.

The presidency is different, that’s where the strict rule comes in.

Why some U.S. governors are foreign-born

Several governors have been born outside the United States, most famously Arnold Schwarzenegger (Austria).

That’s allowed because the U.S. Constitution does not set qualifications for state governors.

Instead, each state writes its own rules in its constitution.

Most states require things like:

  • Minimum age (often 30)
  • State residency for a certain number of years
  • U.S. citizenship (but not necessarily “natural-born”)

So if someone immigrates, becomes a U.S. citizen, and meets residency requirements, they can usually run for governor.

Do any states ban foreign-born governors?

No state explicitly requires a governor to be natural-born.

However, some states historically required:

  • U.S. citizenship for a number of years (e.g., 5-20 years)
  • Long-term residency in the state

These rules can indirectly limit recent immigrants, but they don’t ban foreign-born citizens outright.

Key difference: Governor vs President

Here’s where things diverge sharply:

Governors

  • Rules set by states
  • Usually require citizenship, not birthplace
  • Foreign-born citizens are eligible in most cases

President

  • Rules set by the U.S. Constitution
  • Must be a “natural-born citizen”
  • Must be at least 35 and a U.S. resident for 14 years

This “natural-born citizen” requirement comes from Article II of the Constitution and is unique to the presidency.

Why the presidency has stricter rules

The “natural-born citizen” clause was included by the Founders to:

  • Prevent foreign influence over the executive branch
  • Ensure loyalty to the U.S. from birth

It has never been applied to governors or most other offices.

Real-world implication

A foreign-born politician can:

  • Serve as governor (e.g., Arnold Schwarzenegger)
  • Serve in Congress (House or Senate)

…but cannot become president unless the Constitution is amended.

This is why figures like Schwarzenegger have sometimes discussed constitutional change, because despite holding high office, they’re barred from the presidency.

Bottom line

  • Being born outside the U.S. does not disqualify someone from being a governor
  • No state currently bans foreign-born governors outright
  • The presidency is the only major office requiring “natural-born” citizenship

 

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