(18) Governor Henry L. Bellmon, 1963 to 1967//1987 to 1991

              Office of the GovernorMS 50 (portrait only)Henry Louis Bellmon, Republican. Served from 1963 to 1967. The first Republican Governor of the State of Oklahoma was born in Tonkawa, Oklahoma, September 3, 1921. He is the son of George and Edith Caskey Bellmon. He attended Colorado State University, later transferring to Oklahoma State University where he was granted the degree of Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. Henry Bellmon served with the U.S. Marine Corps from 1942 through 1946, received the Silver Star for action on Saipan and the Legion of Merit for action on Iwo Jima. He was a member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives during the Twenty-first Oklahoma Legislature in 1947. He was a farmer in Billings, Oklahoma, at the time of his election as governor. He served from January 4, 1963, to January 9, 1967. He was elected U.S. Senator in 1968 and again in 1974, the first Republican in state history to be re-elected to the U.S. Senate. He chose not to run in 1980. However, he was elected to his second term as governor on November 4, 1986. He served from 1987 to 1991. He chose not to run in 1990.The Governor of Oklahoma is the chief executive officer of the state and is elected for a four year term. Principal powers and responsibilities are outlined by the state constitution and by statute and include certain appointive powers, the veto or approval of bills passed by the Legislature, the granting of pardons and paroles, the summoning of special sessions of the legislature, and the calling out of the militia. Moreover, the Governor is directly responsible for the preparation of the state budget, serves as an ex officio member of several boards and commissions, receives reports from various state officers and agencies, and is charged with the duty of seeing that all laws are faithfully executed in the state.