The Speaker of the Tennessee Senate, who also serves as lieutenant governor of Tennessee, is the presiding officer of the Tennessee Senate and first in line in the succession to the office of governor of Tennessee in the event of the death, resignation, or removal from office through impeachment and conviction of the governor of Tennessee. The official title for the officeholder is Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the Senate.

Under the Tennessee State Constitution of 1870, the speaker of the Senate is elected by the Tennessee State Senate from among its members. The lieutenant governor as a member of the Tennessee Senate has a four-year term as a senator but is subject to re-election by his peers with each new legislature; as the senators' terms are staggered by class and there could be a 50 percent turnover in membership between one legislature and the next.

The current lieutenant governor is Randy McNally, who was elected to the post on January 10, 2017, and is the second (consecutive) Republican to hold the post since Reconstruction. He succeeded Ron Ramsey, who held the post continuously from 2007 to 2017.

Compensation The job is in theory a part-time one, paying $72,948 per year; the lieutenant governor is a member of the Tennessee General Assembly (the base pay for which is $24,316 per year), which is a legislature limited to 15 organizational days and 90 legislative days with full pay and expenses in each two-year sitting.

Line of succession Since Tennessee became a state in 1796, four speakers of the Senate have succeeded to the governorship:

William Hall, who succeeded upon the resignation of Sam Houston; Dewitt Clinton Senter, who succeeded William G. Brownlow, who resigned to accept election to the U.S. Senate; John I. Cox, who succeeded James B. Frazier, who resigned as governor after arranging his appointment to the unexpired term of U.S. Senator William B. Bate, who had died in office; and Henry Hollis Horton, who succeeded Austin Peay, the only governor of Tennessee to die in office .

Under the Tennessee Constitution, in the event of succession the Speaker does not become "acting governor" or "interim governor," but assumes the title and full powers of the governorship, much as the vice president of the United States becomes president upon the death, resignation or removal from office of the president. An important distinction is that if the speaker becomes governor during the first 18 months of the governor's four-year term, a special election for the balance of the term will be held at the next U.S. general election. If the speaker becomes governor after the first 18 months of the term, the speaker will serve the entire remainder of the term. In either case, any partial term counts toward the limit of two consecutive terms. For example, if the current speaker, Randy McNally, had ascended to the governorship during the second term of Bill Haslam, he would have been eligible to run for a full term in 2018, but would have had to leave office in 2023. However, this provision has not been put into practice since the gubernatorial term was extended to four years in 1953.

The title of lieutenant governor is granted to the speaker by statutory law enacted in 1951 in recognition of the fact that the speaker is the governor's designated successor; such has been the case since the adoption of the first state constitution and Tennessee statehood in 1796.

List of officeholders President of the Council of the Southwest TerritoryThe five-man council was the upper chamber of the territorial legislature. Its members were appointed by the President of the United States, and the council president was elected by the five members. The council president was not the first in line of succession (this role fell to the Territorial Secretary).PresidentTermPartyLifeNotesGriffith Rutherford1794–17961721–1805The council dissolved upon the territory's admission as a state Speakers of the Tennessee Senate, 1796–1869Historical Constitutional Officers of Tennessee, 1796 - Present, Territory South of the River Ohio, 1790 - 1796. Retrieved: 29 November 2012.ImageNameTermPartyLifeNotesJames Winchester1796–17971752–1826James White1797–17981747–1821William Blount1798–1799Democratic-Republican1749–1800Alexander Outlaw1799–18011738–1826James White1801–18051747–1821Joseph McMinn1805–1811Democratic-Republican1758–1824Thomas Henderson1811–1813Democratic-Republican1742 –1832Robert Coleman Foster1813–1815Whig1769–1844Edward Ward1815–1819d. 1837Robert Weakley1819–1821Democratic-Republican1764–1845Sterling Brewer1821–18231770–1832Robert Weakley1823–1825Democratic-Republican1764–1845Robert C. Foster1825–1827Whig1796–1871William Hall1827–1829Democratic1775–1856Became governor upon the resignation of Sam HoustonJoel Walker1829–1831Whig1789–1844Burchet Douglas1831–1833Whig1793–1849David Burford1833–1835Democratic1791–1864Jonathan Webster1835–1837Whig1779–1849Terry H. Cahal1837–1839Whig1802–1851Thomas Love1839Democratic1766–1844Levin H. Coe1839–1841Democratic1807–1850Samuel Turney1841–1843Democraticc. 1795–1863Josiah M. Anderson1843–1845Whig1807–1861Harvey M. Watterson1845–1847Democratic1811–1891Josiah M. Anderson1847–1849Whig1807–1861John F. Henry1849–1851Whig1808–1884Munson R. Hill1851–1853Whig1821–1867Edwin Polk1853–1855Democratic1818–1854Edward S. Cheatham1855–1857Whig1818–1878John C. Burch1857–1859Democratic1827–1881Tazewell W. Newman1859–1861Democratic1827–1867Burton L. Stovall1861Democratic1812–1879Edward S. Cheatham1861–1862Whig1818–1878The state government was replaced by a military government in 1862Samuel R. Rodgers1865Unionist1798–1866Joshua B. Frierson1865–1867Unionist1806–1876Dewitt Clinton Senter1867–1869Republican1830–1898Became governor upon the resignation of William G. BrownlowPhilip P.C. Nelson1869Republican1828–1880

1870–present The following is a list of people who have served as Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee (formal title: Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the Senate) since the current Tennessee State Constitution was adopted in 1870. The title of Lieutenant Governor was formally added in 1951; however, the speaker of the Senate has been the designated successor to the governor of Tennessee since Tennessee achieved statehood in 1796. Lieutenant Governor Ron Ramsey (who served 2007–2017) was the first Republican to hold this office since the adoption of the current constitution, all previous ones having been Democrats.

Parties

Lieutenant governors of the State of TennesseeImageNameTermPartyGovernor(s) served underLife1Dorsey B. Thomas1869–1871DemocraticNone1823–18972John C. Vaughn1871–1873Democratic1824–18753A. T. Lacey1873–1875Democratic1821–18784Thomas H. Paine1875–1877Democratic1836–19035Hugh M. McAdoo1877–1879Democratic1838–18946John R. Neal1879–1881Democratic1836–18897George H. Morgan1881–1883Democratic1841–19008Benjamin F. Alexander1883–1885Democratic1849–19119Cabell R. Berry1885–1887Democratic1848–191010Z. W. Ewing1887–1889Democratic1843–190911Benjamin J. Lea1889–1891Democratic1833–189412William C. Dismukes1891–1895Democratic1850–190313Ernest Pillow1895–1897Democratic1856–190414John Thompson1897–1899Democratic1852–191915Seid Waddell1899–1901Democratic1849–192116Newton H. White1901–1903Democratic1860–193117Edward T. Seay1903–1905Democratic1868-194118John I. CoxJohn I. Cox became governor of Tennessee on March 21, 1905, when Governor James B. Frazier arranged his own appointment to a vacant United States Senate seat and then resigned as governor.1905Democratic1855–194619Ernest Rice1905–1907Democratic1872-195020E. G. Tollett1907–1909Democratic1864–192621William Kinney1909–1911Democratic1863–194022Nathaniel Baxter Jr.1911–1913Democratic1844–191323Newton H. White1913–1915Democratic1860–193124Hugh C. Anderson1915Democratic1851–191525Albert E. Hill1915–1917Democratic1870–193326W. R. Crabtree1917–1919Democratic1867–192027Andrew L. Todd Sr.1919–1921Democratic1872–194528William West Bond1921–1923Democratic1884–197529Eugene J. Bryan1923–1925Democratic1888–195830Lucius D. Hill1925–1927Democratic1856–193331Henry Hollis HortonHenry H. Horton became governor of Tennessee on October 3, 1927, upon the death of Governor Austin Peay. The legislature at the time met on a biennial basis, so the position of Speaker of the Senate remained vacant until January 1929. During this period, the designated successor to the governor was Selden Maiden, Speaker of the Tennessee House of Representatives.1927Democratic1866–193432Sam R. Bratton1929–1931Democratic1864–193633Scott Fitzhugh1931Democratic1888–195634Ambrose B. Broadbent1931–1933Democratic1885–195235Albert F. Officer1933–1935Democratic1899–196536William P. Moss1935–1936Democratic1897–198537Bryan Pope1936–1939Democratic1893–197338Blan R. Maxwell1939–1943Democratic1899–194339Joseph H. Ballew1943–1945Democratic1886–197240Larry Morgan1945–1947Democratic1896–196541George Oliver Benton1947–1949Democratic1915–200142Walter M. Haynes1949–1953DemocraticGordon Browning1897–196743Jared Maddux1953–1959DemocraticFrank G. Clement1912–197144William D. Baird1959–1962DemocraticBuford Ellington1906–198745James L. Bomar Jr.1963–1965DemocraticFrank G. Clement1914–200146Jared Maddux1965–1967DemocraticFrank G. Clement1912–197147Frank Gorrell1967–1971DemocraticBuford Ellington1927–199448John S. Wilder1971–2007DemocraticWinfield Dunn, Ray Blanton, Lamar Alexander, Ned McWherter, Don Sundquist, Phil Bredesen1921–201049Ron Ramsey2007–2017RepublicanPhil Bredesen, Bill Haslamb. 195550Randy McNally2017–presentRepublicanBill Haslam, Bill Leeb. 1944

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