Brief History
The office of the Lieutenant Governor has been substantially
restructured in the past two decades, but the most important function still
is to succeed to the governorship should that office become vacant.
Historically, the primary duties of the Lieutenant Governor
were legislative, serving as president of the Senate. These duties were frequently
limited, and the legislative duties of the Lieutenant Governor gradually declined
over the years. State Senators elected from their own ranks the president
pro tem, and it was this officer rather than the Lieutenant Governor who functioned
as the real leader of the Senate. In 1972, a constitutional amendment made
the Lieutenant Governor's primary responsibility to serve as part of the executive
branch, deleting the provision that the Lieutenant Governor be President of
the Senate.
The same 1972 Kansas Constitutional Amendment increased
the term of the Governor and the Lieutenant Governor from two to four years,
and beginning with the 1974 election, candidates for the office of Governor
and Lieutenant Governor have been nominated and elected as part of the same
ticket. Theoretically, the person who immediately succeeds the governorship
in the event of its vacancy should share the same political views as the predecessor.
The Kansas Supreme Court has held that the absence of the
Governor from the state does not entitle the Lieutenant Governor to act as
Governor. The Lieutenant Governor becomes Governor only when the office becomes
vacant or when the Governor has become disabled. If by chance both the office
of the Governor and the office of the Lieutenant Governor become vacant, the
president of the Senate will assume the office of Governor. If all three of
these offices were to become vacant the Speaker of the House would be next
in line to assume the governorship.
In Kansas, there is no formal provision which mandates a
minimum age, state or U.S. citizenship, or years as a qualified voter to hold
the office of Lieutenant Governor.
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