Democratic Governors Association

The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) is a Washington, D.C.–based 527 organization founded in 1983, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Democratic Party. The main purpose of the organization is to provide party support to the election and re-election of Democratic gubernatorial candidates. The DGA's Republican counterpart is the Republican Governors Association. The DGA is not directly affiliated with the non-partisan National Governors Association.

Meghan Meehan-Draper is currently the DGA's executive director, and Governor of Kansas Laura Kelly is the current chair.

Previously known as the Democratic Governors Conference within the Democratic National Committee, DGA became an independent institution in 1983 under the leadership of then-Virginia governor Chuck Robb with the help of then-Democratic National Committee chair Charles Manatt. The purpose of the committee was to raise funds to elect Democrats to governorships and to improve the partnership between Democratic governors and the Democratic leadership of the U.S. Congress. Prior to its current formation in mid-1983, they met as the Democratic Governors Conference.

The DGA played a pivotal role in the election of Arkansas governor Bill Clinton to the presidency in 1992. Under the leadership of DGA chair and Hawaii governor John Waiheʻe, the DGA helped organize Clinton's "winning the West" campaign tour through Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Nevada and California. Republicans had handily won all of those states except Washington and Oregon the previous three elections. According to The Washington Post, it was "all but unthinkable to Republicans that the GOP could lose such stalwart pieces of the party's electoral base as Wyoming and Nevada." Clinton lost Wyoming but carried Nevada, Colorado, Montana, Washington, Oregon, and California.

Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota and chair of the DGA, was chosen by Kamala Harris to be the Democratic nominee for vice president in the 2024 presidential election. Walz stepped down as chair after accepting the nomination, and Laura Kelly became the chair for the rest of 2024.

The DGA is led by two elected Democratic governors.

There are currently 23 Democratic governors.

In addition to governors of U.S. states, the DGA also offers membership to Democratic governors of U.S. territories.