Has any US state elected a black person as governor? I think there may have been one or two during Reconstruction, but I don’t know of any since then.
Douglas Wilder, the first and only black man elected governor of a U.S. State: Virginia, from 1990 to 1994.
Thanks Garfield, I remember that now.
The reason I asked is that there’s a chance we may elect one here in Oregon this year and I was wondering if he’d be the first ever. I guess he’ll have to settle for second.
Of course, this is a bit premature, as the primary is still a month or so away. If he wins that, I’m sure this question will be repeated here. Just remember, I asked it first…
And he’ll have to settle for a tie for second if Ken Blackwell is elected governor in Ohio this year (something which has a decent chance of happening).
Just from his picture, I would never have thought he was Black. The earlier poster of him running for the state Senate looks like a Black man, but not the more recent one. He didn’t happen to visit Michael Jackson’s doctor between then and now, did he? 
He’s definitely a light-skinned guy; this looks a little more natural (less posed).
In terms of other minorities, Hawaii has elected several “firsts” as governor:
First Asian American: George Ariyoshi (1974-1986)
First Native Hawaiian: John D Waihee III (1986-1994)
First Filipino American: Benjamin J Cayetano (1994-2002)
I am unsure whether Waihee would qualify as the person of indigenous extraction (i.e., including Native Americans as well as Hawaiian) to be elected governor of a US state.
Yeah. I’m pretty sure that Hill has no chance against Kulongoski in the primary, though, despite his qualifications and endorsements. Unfortunate, as he’d get my vote in a heartbeat.