Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association
Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association | |
|---|---|
| Chair | Austin Davis (PA) |
| Vice Chair | Kim Driscoll (MA) |
| Founded | 2018 (refounded) |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
| Affiliated | Democratic Party Democratic Governors Association |
| State lieutenant governors | 22 / 50 |
| Territorial lieutenant governors | 2 / 5 |
| Website | |
| demlgs | |
The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association (DLGA) is a Washington, D.C.–based organization founded in 2018, consisting of U.S. state and territorial lieutenant governors affiliated with the Democratic Party. The focus of the group is on electing Democratic lieutenant governors and candidates. The DGLA's Republican counterpart is the Republican Lieutenant Governors Association and it is not affiliated with the nonpartisan National Lieutenant Governors Association.
Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania Austin Davis is the current chair, and Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts Kim Driscoll is the current vice chair.
History
2018 re-founding
The position of lieutenant governor has had a reputation for its lack of clear responsibilities or duties beyond being the first in the line of succession to be governor in many states. The DLGA was re-founded by Democratic lieutenant governors in 2018 seeking to change this by forming a national organization backing liberal candidates for the post and then support their members in other elections, as many tend to run for another office. At the time of its founding, there were only 14 Democratic lieutenant governors in office compared to 31 Republicans, who had founded their own organization— the Republican Lieutenant Governors Association— in 2002.[1] The DLGA sought to function like the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee by funneling donations to candidates and coordinating messaging in the 2018 election and beyond.
Justin Fairfax of Virginia served as the group's first chair, but resigned in 2019 after being accused of sexual assault.[2]
By 2020, the number of Democratic lieutenant governors increased from 14 to 24. The group's chair at the time, Kathy Hochul, focused strongly on recruiting and fundraising for candidates.[3]
Austin Davis of Pennsylvania was elected the group's chair unopposed and Kim Driscoll of Massachusetts as vice chair in December 2024. He celebrated the diversity of the DLGA's membership, which is predominantly women or people of color at 80% in 2024 compared to just 12 women and 4 people of color serving as governors.[4][5] In 2025, Davis stated that the group would make a major push to support its members running for open gubernatorial and U.S. Senate elections in the 2026 United States elections.[6]
Political donations and campaigns
2024
The DLGA dropped approximately $2 million in the lieutenant gubernatorial election in North Carolina, including a significant campaign to boost the eventual Republican nominee Hal Weatherman in the primary as he was considered a weaker candidate in the general election against eventual winner Rachel Hunt.[5] It also spent around $1 million boosting lieutenant Governor of Delaware Bethany Hall-Long in the 2024 Delaware gubernatorial election, although she ultimately lost with 36.62% of the vote in the primary to Matt Meyer.[7]
2025
In June 2025, the DLGA announced it would donate $1 million to Democratic nominee Ghazala Hashmi in the 2025 Virginia lieutenant gubernatorial election, which it said was the largest donation ever received by a lieutenant governor nominee in the state.[8]
2026
The DLGA’s political operation announced it would back numerous lieutenant governors in open races, including: Peggy Flanagan for the open Senate seat in Minnesota, Juliana Stratton for the open Senate seat in Illinois, Garlin Gilchrist for the open gubernatorial election in Michigan, and Eleni Kounalakis for the open gubernatorial election in California. It would not endorse Antonio Delgado in New York, who is challenging incumbent governor Kathy Hochul.[6]
Leadership
The DGLA is led by two elected Democratic lieutenant governors as chair and vice chair respectively as well as an executive director.
List of chairs
| Chair | State | Term |
|---|---|---|
| Justin Fairfax | Virginia | 2018-2019 |
| Kathy Hochul | New York | 2020-2021 |
| Garlin Gilchrist | Michigan | 2021-2022 |
| Bethany Hall-Long | Delaware | 2022-2023 |
| Peggy Flanagan | Minnesota | 2023-2024 |
| Austin Davis | Pennsylvania | 2024-present |
List of executive directors
| Executive director | Term |
|---|---|
| Roshan Patel | 2018-2023 |
| Kevin Holst | 2023-present |
List of current Democratic lieutenant governors
There are currently 20 Democratic lieutenant governors from states who are members of the DLGA, including 2 secretaries of state from Arizona and Oregon which do not have a lieutenant governor position.
There are currently 2 Democratic lieutenant governors of U.S. territories.
| Current lieutenant governor | Territory | Past | Took office | Current term | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Tenorio | Guam | List | 2019 | Second term | |
| Tregenza Roach | U.S. Virgin Islands | List | 2019 | Second term | |
Notes
- ^ Arizona does not have a lieutenant governor position, the closest equivalent is the Secretary of State of Arizona.
- ^ Oregon does not have a lieutenant governor position, the closest equivalent is the Secretary of State of Oregon.
References
- ^ Simon, Abigail (August 9, 2018). "No One Pays Attention to Lieutenant Governors. These Democrats Want to Change That". Time. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ Nirappil, Fenit; Portnoy, Jenna; Vozzella, Laura (February 14, 2019). "Woman who says Fairfax sexually assaulted her to meet with law enforcement officials". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ Gronewold, Anna (October 1, 2020). "Hochul's back as New York's campaign warrior". Politico. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ McMorris-Santoro, Evan (August 2, 2025). "The Country's Most Diverse Democratic Bench Is On the Cusp of Its Moment". NOTUS. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ a b Booker, Brakkton (December 3, 2024). "Democratic Party committee elevates Pennsylvania Lt. Gov". Politico. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ a b McMorris-Santoro, Evan (June 4, 2025). "Democratic Lieutenant Governors Want to Be Their Party's Future". NOTUS. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ Fernandez, Madison (September 10, 2024). "Scandal, party infighting and more: Primary season comes to a dramatic close". Politico. Retrieved June 27, 2025.
- ^ Bryson, Anna (June 26, 2025). "Hashmi to receive $1M from Democratic Lieutenant Governors' Association". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved June 27, 2025.