Nonfarm payroll jobs during each governor's tenure
51 governors, ranked by how nonfarm payroll jobs changed from their first day in office, next to the United States over the same months. Politare shows what happened during a tenure; it does not claim the office-holder caused it.
| # | Governor | State | In office | Total | vs US | Per year | Chart |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Mike Leavitt | Utah | 4 Jan 1993 – 5 Nov 2003 | +37.6% Dec 1992 → Oct 2003 | +18.5 pts US +19.1% | +3.0%/yr | |
| 2 |  Kenny Guinn | Nevada | 4 Jan 1999 – 1 Jan 2007 | +35.3% Dec 1998 → Dec 2006 | +27.7 pts US +7.6% | +3.8%/yr | |
| 3 | Gary Herbert | Utah | 11 Aug 2009 – 4 Jan 2021 | +33.3% Jul 2009 → Dec 2020 | +24.2 pts US +9.1% | +2.6%/yr | |
| 4 | Fife Symington | Arizona | 6 Mar 1991 – 5 Sep 1997 | +32.9% Feb 1991 → Aug 1997 | +19.7 pts US +13.2% | +4.5%/yr | |
| 5 | Zell Miller | Georgia | 14 Jan 1991 – 11 Jan 1999 from Feb 1991 | +28.4% Feb 1991 → Dec 1998 | +11.0 pts US +17.3% | +3.2%/yr | |
| 6 | Lawton Chiles | Florida | 8 Jan 1991 – 5 Jan 1999 from Feb 1991 | +26.3% Feb 1991 → Dec 1998 | +8.9 pts US +17.3% | +3.0%/yr | |
| 7 | Brian Sandoval | Nevada | 3 Jan 2011 – 7 Jan 2019 | +25.3% Dec 2010 → Dec 2018 | +10.8 pts US +14.5% | +2.9%/yr | |
| 8 | Rick Perry | Texas | 21 Dec 2000 – 20 Jan 2015 | +23.6% Nov 2000 → Dec 2014 | +17.7 pts US +5.9% | +1.5%/yr | |
| 9 | Jay Inslee | Washington | 16 Jan 2013 – 15 Jan 2025 | +23.3% Dec 2012 → Dec 2024 | +6.1 pts US +17.2% | +1.8%/yr | |
| 10 | John Hickenlooper | Colorado | 11 Jan 2011 – 8 Jan 2019 | +23.3% Dec 2010 → Dec 2018 | +8.8 pts US +14.5% | +2.7%/yr |
Showing 10 of 273 tenures.
Sorted by total, highest first. Every row is indexed to the last month complete before the first day in office ("from" marks a start that had to move because that period had no data, or because the period cut it); the United States is measured over the same months. Levels are per cent changes, rates are differences in %; "per year" compounds levels and divides rates. Tenures with under 12 months, or under three observations, are left out. thousands · BLS CES via FRED · state data · as of Sep 2026.