Republican Governors Association
The Republican Governors Association (RGA) is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1961,[1] consisting of U.S. state and territorial Republican governors. Its primary objective is to help elect and support Republican governors.[2]
Republican Governors Association
The RGA's Executive Committee for 2024 includes Governors Eric Holcomb of Indiana, Greg Abbott of Texas, Greg Gianforte of Montana, Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, Tate Reeves of Mississippi, Henry McMaster of South Carolina, Kristi Noem of South Dakota, Kim Reynolds of Iowa, and Glenn Youngkin of Virginia. Additionally, Governor Bill Lee of Tennessee was elected Chairman, Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia was elected Vice Chairman, and Governor Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma was elected Policy Chairman.[3]
Its Democratic counterpart is the Democratic Governors Association. The RGA is not directly affiliated with the non-partisan National Governors Association.
Election cycles[edit]
2018[edit]
36 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2018 election cycle. The elections were held on November 6, 2018, with Republicans losing a net of 7 governorships.[4]
In 2017, it sponsored a website The Free Telegraph to promote issues from the perspective of Republicans.[5]
2020[edit]
In the 2020 election cycle, 11 states and two territories held elections for governors. The elections were held on November 3, 2020, with Republicans gaining a net of one governorship, Montana, for state elections.[6] This marked the first time Montana elected a Republican governor in 16 years.[7] Former Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced, who was a member of the Republican Governors Association, lost reelection in Puerto Rico, meaning a net loss of one Republican governor for territorial elections.[8] As of 2021, this election meant that only one of five American territories have Republican governors.
2022[edit]
36 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2022 election cycle. The elections were held on November 8, 2022, with Republicans losing a net of 2 governor ships and lost all territorial governorships.
2023[edit]
3 gubernatorial races occurred during the 2023 election cycle including Louisiana where Republican Jeff Landry was elected to succeed term-limited Democrat John Bel Edwards and is scheduled to take office in January 2024.
Fundraising[edit]
In the 18 months ending June 30, 2010, the RGA raised $58 million, while its counterpart DGA raised $40 million. "Unlike the national political parties and federal candidates, the governors' associations can take in unlimited amounts from corporations," according to Bloomberg, which notes that the RGA recently received $1 million from Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, the parent corporation of Fox News, and $500,000 from WellPoint (now Anthem).[9]
In 2018, the Republican Governors Association announced that $63.2 million was raised in all of 2017, including $27.2 million raised in the final six months of the year, setting a new fundraising record that significantly eclipses the $52.5 million raised in 2013, the last comparable year.[10]