Rhode Island. Governor

The Governor is the head of the Executive Department of government and is the chief executive and administrator. The Governor retains all of the rights and duties prescribed for him in the original Rhode Island Constitution, and executes newer functions described in more recent iterations of the state’s Constitution. The Governor oversees that all laws are being executed and, today, has the power to appoint certain board executives and members, as well as some members of the judiciary. The Governor has general veto power and the power to grant reprieves. The heads of the departments of government serve at the pleasure of the Governor and the Governor is the symbolic and actual leader of the Rhode Island Government. The Governor is also the captain general and commander-in-chief of the state’s military and naval forces, and submits to the general assembly a legislative and fiscal program for the operation and advancement of the state.

The history and development of the Office of the Governor is fairly straightforward. Upon the founding of the colony, the original settlers formed an agreement amongst themselves consenting to act according to rules agreed upon by all of the colonists. While this agreement was able to act as a form of government when the colony was small, as the colony grew it became clear that a more organized, centralized form of government would be necessary. Although the colony received its first Royal Charter in 1644, it did not formulate a government system until 1647. The general assembly met in 1647 and produced a set of Acts and Orders, which formed the basis of the first formal explanation of Rhode Island’s colonial government. Within these Acts and Orders was the appointment of a President of the colony, the predecessor to the office of the Governor of the colony. The President of the colony headed the colony’s government, along with assistants representing the colony’s various towns. Although the President enjoyed a certain degree of power, he did not have the rights and responsibilities later conferred on the Governor.

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