While eyes are on the 2024 presidential election, another political event with major repercussions for state and local governments looms: gubernatorial elections.
Voters in at least 11 states will elect new governors in November, with eight of those races featuring fresh candidates due to term limits or other factors.
Vice President Kamala Harris has chosen Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential running mate in the 2024 election, which means there’s a potential for a leadership change in Minnesota at the start of 2025. However, it won’t be clear exactly what, if any, change will occur until after the Nov. 5 election.
Under Minnesota law, Walz isn’t required to resign from his position to run for vice president, but he would have to resign if he is elected. Walz was re-elected governor in 2022, and his term ends in 2026. Minnesota CIO Tarek Tomes, whom Walz appointed in 2019 a few months after first taking office, stayed on when the governor was re-elected to lead Minnesota IT Services in a cabinet-level position. Government Technology named Tomes one of its Top 25 Doers, Dreamers and Drivers in 2022.
If Walz becomes the country’s next vice president, his resignation would trigger the state’s order of succession statute, which dictates that if a vacancy occurs in the office of governor, the lieutenant governor — in this case, Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan — becomes governor for the remainder of the term. If Harris and Walz lose the 2024 election, Gov. Walz could simply continue serving as Minnesota’s governor.
In most states, governors appoint the chief information officer (CIO). While the CIO role itself is typically nonpartisan, their vision must align with the governor's overall goals for technology and information management.
Government Technology's 2019 analysis found that a new governor often leads to a new CIO 60 percent of the time.
Will that trend continue in 2024? Let's examine the current state CIO and governor landscape to reveal some key insights.
WHERE COULD GOVERNOR CHANGES OCCUR?
Gubernatorial elections in 2024 will primarily occur in states with Republican governors.
In only three states, Montana, Utah and Vermont will the incumbent governor be running for re-election.
In states that will experience a certain leadership change, CIOs have likely been considering the repercussions of an election year in their long-term plans.
In a January 2024 interview with Government Technology, Indiana CIO Tracy Barnes explained that the Indiana Office of Technology was already working to keep agencies moving forward into the future to embrace enterprise technology, knowing a change in the state’s administration is on the horizon.
“We’ve been literally going agency by agency, and we’ve got over 100 state agencies, we’re trying to gather all that information and really funnel into how do we set an overall statewide strategy that we can help present to the new administration to hopefully help keep us moving in a forward trajectory in a very positive fashion,” he said.
WHAT IS THE CURRENT STATE OF CIOS?
Currently, most state CIO positions are filled, with only six states lacking permanent appointments. Only one state, Missouri, has an interim CIO and an impending election that will bring a certain change in administration.
Government Technology's research from 2022 indicates a typical turnover rate of 12 CIOs annually, with 75 percent remaining in their roles after one year. In 2019 when we studied CIOs, we concluded that the average tenure is three years and six months. Our 2024 analysis reveals a high concentration of recent appointments in 2023.
CAN CIOS SURVIVE A TURNOVER?
While a strong relationship between a governor and CIO is essential, a change in leadership doesn't necessarily spell the end for a CIO's tenure. Several current CIOs have successfully navigated gubernatorial transitions, even when the new governor belongs to a different political party.
There are six current CIOs that have been on the job longer than their current governors, surviving a change in state leadership — sometimes even with a boss who has a different political party than their predecessor.
Oregon’s CIO Terrence Woods and Tennessee's Stephanie Dedmon also survived a leadership transition where no political party change occurred.
Meanwhile, three CIOs kept their jobs after a transition, even when their state’s top boss had a different political party than their predecessor.
J.R. Sloan survived a transition from Republican to Democratic leadership following the election of Arizona’s current leader, Gov. Katie Hobbs, in 2023. He had been working in his position since 2020.
Denis Goulet has also made it through a party transition, starting the job in 2015 and staying through the departure of his top boss, Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan, as well as through the tenure of the state’s acting Gov. Chuck Morse, to the swearing in of the state’s current governor, Republican Gov. Christopher Sununu.
Timothy Galluzi was appointed CIO of Nevada in 2022, the year before a new governor from a different party took office.
These examples show that a change in leadership isn't always certain doom for CIOs. However, with at least eight new governors taking office in 2025, some departures and new hires are likely on the horizon. The ability of CIOs to adapt and build relationships with new administrations will be crucial for their continued success in an evolving political landscape.
Editor's Note: This article has been updated to reflect that the Arkansas Division of Information Systems does not currently have a CIO.
