Gary Herbert

Gary Richard Herbert (born May 7, 1947) is an American politician who is the 17th and current Governor of Utah. A member of the Republican Party, Herbert has served as Governor since August 2009. As of July 2015, Herbert serves as chair of the National Governors Association.

Born in American Fork, Utah, Herbert served for two years as an LDS missionary in the eastern United States following his graduation from high school, then attended Brigham Young University and joined the Utah Army National Guard. After serving in the National Guard, Herbert began a career in real estate and opened his own firm. Herbert won a seat on the Utah County Commission in 1990, where he served 14 years. Herbert also served as presidents of the Utah Association of Counties and Utah Association of Realtors.

After initially running for the Republican nomination for Governor in 2004, Herbert teamed up with ambassador and businessman Jon Huntsman as his running mate in the general election. Herbert was sworn in as Lieutenant Governor of Utah in 2005, serving one term until he assumed the governorship on August 11, 2009, following the resignation of Governor Huntsman, who was appointed to serve as the United States Ambassador to China by President Barack Obama. Herbert was elected to serve out the remainder of the term in a special election in 2010, defeating Democratic nominee Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon with 64% of the vote. He won election to a full four-year term in 2012, defeating Democratic Businessman Peter Cooke with 68% of the vote.

List of Governors of Utah

The Governor of Utah is the head of the executive branch of Utah's state government and the commander-in-chief of its military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws as well as the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Utah Legislature. The governor may also convene the legislature on "extraordinary occasions".

The self-proclaimed State of Deseret, precursor to the organization of the Utah Territory, had only one governor, Brigham Young. Utah Territory had 15 territorial governors from its organization in 1850 until the formation of the state of Utah in 1896, appointed by the President of the United States. John W. Dawson had the shortest term of only three weeks and Brigham Young, the first territorial governor, had the longest term at seven years.

There have been 17 governors of the State of Utah, with the longest serving being Calvin L. Rampton, who served three terms from 1965 to 1977. Olene Walker served the shortest term, the remaining 14 months of Mike Leavitt's term upon Leavitt's resignation to become head of the Environmental Protection Agency. At the age of 36, Heber Manning Wells was the youngest person to become governor. At the age of 70, Simon Bamberger became the oldest person to be elected, while Olene Walker, at age 72, was the oldest person to succeed to the office.

Herbert

Herbert may refer to:

People

Places

Antarctica

Australia

Canada

New Zealand

United States

Other uses

Gary

Gary may refer to:

Places

Ships

Entertainment

Utah

Utah (/ˈjuːtɔː/ or ⁱ/ˈjuːtɑː/; Navajo: Áshįįh bi Tó Hahoodzo; Arapaho: Wo'tééneihí ) is a state in the western United States. It became the 45th state admitted to the Union on January 4, 1896. Utah is the 13th-largest, the 31st-most populous, and the 10th-least-densely populated of the 50 United States. Utah has a population of nearly 3 million (Census estimate for July 1, 2015), approximately 80% of whom live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. Utah is bordered by Colorado to the east, Wyoming to the northeast, Idaho to the north, Arizona to the south, and Nevada to the west. It also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast.

Approximately 62% of Utahns are reported to be members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or LDS (Mormons), which greatly influences Utah culture and daily life. The world headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) is located in Utah's state capital, Salt Lake City. Utah is the most religiously homogeneous state in the United States, the only state with a Mormon majority, and the only state with a majority population belonging to a single church.