Executive Department; Key State Officers

The executive department shall consist of a governor,lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditorof state, treasurer of state, and an attorney general,who shall be elected on the first Tuesday after the firstMonday in November, by the electors of the state, andat the places of voting for members of the GeneralAssembly.

Joint Vote Cast for Governor and Lieutenant

In the general election for governor and lieutenantgovernor, one vote shall be cast jointly for the candidatesnominated by the same political party or petition.The General Assembly shall provide by law forthe nomination of candidates for governor and lieutenantgovernor.

Lieutenant Governor Duties Assigned by Governor

The lieutenant governor shall perform such dutiesin the executive department as are assigned to him bythe governor and as are prescribed by law.

Term of Office of Key State Officers

The governor, lieutenant governor, secretary ofstate, treasurer of state, and attorney general shall holdtheir offices for four years commencing on the secondMonday of January, 1959. Their terms of office shallcontinue until their successors are elected and qualified.The auditor of state shall hold his office for a termof two years from the second Monday of January, 1961to the second Monday of January, 1963 and thereaftershall hold this office for a four year term. No personshall hold the office of governor for a period longerthan two successive terms of four years.No person shall hold any one of the offices of lieutenantgovernor, secretary of state, treasurer of state,attorney general, or auditor of state for a period longerthan two successive terms of four years. Terms shall beconsidered successive unless separated by a period offour or more years. Only terms beginning on or afterJanuary 1, 1995 shall be considered in determining anindividual’s eligibility to hold the office of lieutenantgovernor, secretary of state, treasurer of state, attorneygeneral, or auditor of state.In determining the eligibility of an individual to holdan office in accordance with this article, (A) time spentin an office in fulfillment of a term to which anotherperson was first elected shall not be consideredprovided that a period of at least four years passedbetween the time, if any, in which the individualpreviously held that office, and the time the individualis elected or appointed to fulfill the unexpired term;and (B) a person who is elected to an office in aregularly scheduled general election and resigns priorto the completion of the term for which he or she waselected, shall be considered to have served the fullterm in that office.

Counting Votes for Key State Officers

The returns of every election for the officers, namedin the foregoing section, shall be sealed and transmittedto the seat of government, by the returning officers,directed to the president of the Senate, who, during thefirst week of the next regular session, shall open andpublish them, and declare the result, in the presence ofa majority of the members of each house of the GeneralAssembly. The joint candidates having the highestnumber of votes cast for governor and lieutenant governorand the person having the number of votes forany other office shall be declared duly elected; but ifany two or more have an equal and the highest numberof votes for the same office or offices, one of them orany two for whom joint votes were cast for governorand lieutenant governor, shall be chosen by joint voteof both houses.

Repealed

Executive Power Vested in Governor

The supreme executive power of this state shall bevested in the governor.

Governor to See that Laws Executed; May Require Written Information

He may require information, in writing from theofficers in the executive department, upon any subjectrelating to the duties of their respective offices; andshall see that the laws are faithfully executed.

Governor's Annual Message to General Assembly; Recommendations for Legislation

He shall communicate at every session, by message,to the General Assembly, the condition of thestate, and recommend such measures as he shall deemexpedient.

Governor May Convene Special Session of Legislature with Limited Purposes

The governor on extraordinary occasions may convenethe General Assembly by proclamation and shallstate in the proclamation the purpose for which suchspecial session is called, and no other business shall betransacted at such special session except that named inthe proclamation or message to the General Assemblyissued by the governor during said special session, butthe General Assembly may provide for the expenses ofthe session and other matters incidental thereto.

When Governor May Adjourn the Legislature

In case of disagreement between the two houses,in respect to the time of adjournment, he shall havethe power to adjourn the General Assembly to suchtime as he may think proper, but not beyond the regularmeetings thereof.

Governor is Commander-in-Chief of Militia

He shall be commander-in-chief of the militaryand naval forces of the state, except when they shall becalled into the service of the United States.

Governor May Grant Reprieves, Commutations and Pardons

The governor shall have power, after conviction,to grant reprieves, commutations, and pardons, for allcrimes and offences, except treason and cases of impeachment,upon such conditions as the governor maythink proper; subject, however, to such regulations, asto the manner of applying for commutations and pardons,as may be prescribed by law. Upon convictionfor treason, the governor may suspend the executionof the sentence, and report the case to the General Assembly,at its next meeting, when the General Assemblyshall either pardon, commute the sentence, directits execution, or grant a further reprieve. The governorshall communicate to the General Assembly, at everyregular session, each case of reprieve, commutation,or pardon granted, stating the name and crime of theconvict, the sentence, its date, and the date of the commutation,pardon, or reprieve, with the governor’s reasonstherefore.

Seal of the State, and by Whom Kept

There shall be a seal of the state, which shall bekept by the governor, and used by him officially; andshall be called “The Great Seal of the State of Ohio.”

How Grants and Commissions Issued

All grants and commissions shall be issued in thename, and by the authority, of the state of Ohio; sealedwith the great seal; sighed by the governor countersignedby the secretary of state.

Who is Ineligible for Governor

No member of Congress, or other person holdingoffice under the authority of this state, or of the UnitedStates, shall execute the office of governor, except asherein provided.

Succession in Case of Vacancy in Office of Governor

(A) In the case of the death, conviction on impeachment,resignation, or removal, of the governor,the lieutenant governor shall succeed to the office ofgovernor.

(B) When the governor is unable to discharge the dutiesof office by reason of disability, the lieutenantgovernor shall serve as governor until the governorsdisability terminates.

(C) In the event of a vacancy in the office of governoror when the governor is unable to discharge the dutiesof office, the line of succession to the office ofgovernor or to the position of serving as governor forthe duration of the governor’s disability shall proceedfrom the lieutenant governor to the president of theSenate and then to the speaker of the House ofRepresentatives.

(D) Any person serving as governor for the duration ofthe governor’s disability shall have the powers, duties,title and compensation of the office of governor.

(E) No person shall simultaneously serve as governorand lieutenant governor, president of the Senateor speaker of the House of Representatives, nor shallany person simultaneously receive the compensationsof the office of governor and that of lieutenant governor,president of the Senate, or speaker of the Houseof Representatives.

Repealed

If a Vacancy Shall Occur While Executing the Office of Governor, Who Shall Act

When a vacancy occurs in both the office of governorand lieutenant governor because of the death,conviction on impeachment, resignation, or removalof the persons elected to those offices prior to the expirationof the first twenty months of a term, a governorand lieutenant governor shall be elected at the nextgeneral election occurring in an even-numbered yearafter the vacancy occurs, for the unexpired portion ofthe term. The officer next in line of succession to theoffice of governor shall serve as governor from the occurrencethe vacancy until the newly elected governorhas qualified.If by reason of death, resignation, or disqualification,the governor-elect shall assume the office of governorat the commencement of the gubernatorial term,the lieutenant governor-elect shall assume the officeof governor for the full term. If at the commencementof such term, the governor-elect fails to assume theoffice by reason of disability, the lieutenant governorelectshall serve as governor until the disability of thegovernor elect terminates.

Filling a Vacancy in the Office of Lieutenant Governor

Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of thelieutenant governor, the governor shall nominate alieutenant governor, who shall take office upon confirmationby vote of a majority of the members elected toeach house of the General Assembly.

Governor to Fill Vacancies in Key State Offices

Should the office of auditor of state, treasurer ofstate, secretary of state, or attorney general becomevacant, for any of the causes specified in the fifteenthsection of this article, the governor shall fill the vacancy until the disability is removed, or a successoris elected and qualified. Such successor shall be electedfor the unexpired term of the vacant office at the firstgeneral election in an even numbered year that occursmore than forty days after the vacancy has occurred;provided, that when the unexpired term ends withinone year immediately following the date of such generalelection, an election to fill such unexpired termshall not be held and the appointment shall be for suchunexpired term.(1851, am. 1969)

Compensation of Key State Officers

The officers mentioned in this article shall, at statedtimes, receive for their services, a compensation tobe established by law, which shall neither be increasednor diminished during the period for which they shallhave been elected.

Annual Report of Executive Officers

The officers of the executive department, and ofthe public state institutions shall, at least five days precedingeach regular session of the General Assembly,severally report to the governor, who shall transmitsuch reports, with his message to the GeneralAssembly.

Appointments to Office; Advice and Consent of Senate

When required by law, appointments to state officeshall be subject to the advice and consent of theSenate. All statutory provisions requiring advice andconsent of the Senate to appointments to state officeheretofore enacted by the General Assembly are herebyvalidated, ratified and confirmed as to all appointmentsmade hereafter, but any such provision may bealtered or repealed by law.No appointment shall be consented to without concurrenceof a majority of the total number of senatorsprovided for by this constitution, except as hereinafterprovided for in the case of failure of the Senate to act.If the Senate has acted upon any appointment to whichits consent is required and has refused to consent, anappointment of another person shall be made to fill thevacancy.If an appointment is submitted during a session of theGeneral Assembly, it shall be acted upon by the Senateduring such session of the General Assembly, exceptthat if such session of the General Assembly adjournssine die within ten days after such submission withoutacting upon such appointment, it may be acted upon atthe next session of the General Assembly.If an appointment is made after the Senate has adjournedsine die, it shall be submitted to the Senateduring the next session of the General Assembly.In acting upon an appointment a vote shall be takenby a yea and nay vote of the members of the Senateand shall be entered upon its journal. Failure of theSenate to act by a roll call vote on an appointment bythe governor within the time provided for herein shallconstitute consent to such appointment.

Supreme Court to Determine Disability of Governor or Governor Elect; Succession

The Supreme Court has original, exclusive, andfinal, jurisdiction to determine disability of the governoror governor-elect upon presentment to it of a jointresolution by the General Assembly, declaring that thegovernor or governor-elect is unable to discharge thepowers and duties of the office of governor by reasonof disability. Such joint resolution shall be adopted bya two-thirds vote of the members elected to each house.The Supreme Court shall give notice of the resolutionto the governor and after a public hearing, at which allinterested parties may appear and be represented, shalldetermine the question of disability. The court shallmake its determination within twenty-one days afterpresentment of such resolution.If the governor transmits to the Supreme Court a writtendeclaration that the disability no longer exists, theSupreme Court shall, after public hearing at whichall interested parties may appear and be represented,determine the question of the continuation of the disability.The court shall make its determination withintwenty-one days after transmittal of such declaration.The Supreme Court has original, exclusive, and finaljurisdiction to determine all questions concerning successionto the office of the governor or to its powersand duties.