Events from the year 1951 in the United States.

Incumbents

Federal government

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" ! Governors and lieutenant governors

Governors

• Governor of Alabama: Jim Folsom (Democratic) (until January 15), Gordon Persons (Democratic) (starting January 15) • Governor of Arizona: Dan Edward Garvey (Democratic) (until January 1), John Howard Pyle (Republican) (starting January 1) • Governor of Arkansas: Sid McMath (Democratic) • Governor of California: Earl Warren (Republican) • Governor of Colorado: Walter Walford Johnson (Democratic) (until January 9), Daniel I. J. Thornton (Republican) (starting January 9) • Governor of Connecticut: Chester Bowles (Democratic) (until January 3), John Davis Lodge (Republican) (starting January 3) • Governor of Delaware: Elbert N. Carvel (Democratic) • Governor of Florida: Fuller Warren (Democratic) • Governor of Georgia: Herman Talmadge (Democratic) • Governor of Idaho: C. A. Robins (Republican) (until January 1), Leonard B. Jordan (Republican) (starting January 1) • Governor of Illinois: Adlai E. Stevenson II (Democratic) • Governor of Indiana: Henry F. Schricker (Democratic) • Governor of Iowa: William S. Beardsley (Republican) • Governor of Kansas: Frank L. Hagaman (Republican) (until January 8), Edward F. Arn (Republican) (starting January 8) • Governor of Kentucky: Lawrence W. Wetherby (Democratic) • Governor of Louisiana: Earl K. Long (Democratic) • Governor of Maine: Frederick G. Payne (Republican) • Governor of Maryland: William Preston Lane, Jr. (Democratic) (until January 10), Theodore R. McKeldin (Republican) (starting January 10) • Governor of Massachusetts: Paul A. Dever (Democratic) • Governor of Michigan: G. Mennen Williams (Democratic) • Governor of Minnesota: Luther W. Youngdahl (Republican) (until September 27), C. Elmer Anderson (Republican) (starting September 27) • Governor of Mississippi: Fielding L. Wright (Democratic) • Governor of Missouri: Forrest Smith (Democratic) • Governor of Montana: John W. Bonner (Democratic) • Governor of Nebraska: Val Peterson (Republican) • Governor of Nevada: Vail M. Pittman (Democratic) (until January 1), Charles H. Russell (Republican) (starting January 1) • Governor of New Hampshire: Sherman Adams (Republican) • Governor of New Jersey: Alfred E. Driscoll (Republican) • Governor of New Mexico: Thomas J. Mabry (Democratic) (until January 1), Edwin L. Mechem (Republican) (starting January 1) • Governor of New York: Thomas Dewey (Republican) • Governor of North Carolina: W. Kerr Scott (Democratic) • Governor of North Dakota: Fred G. Aandahl (Republican) (until January 3), Clarence Norman Brunsdale (Republican) (starting January 3) • Governor of Ohio: Frank J. Lausche (Democratic) • Governor of Oklahoma: Roy J. Turner (Democratic) (until January 8), Johnston Murray (Democratic) (starting January 8) • Governor of Oregon: Douglas McKay (Republican) • Governor of Pennsylvania: James H. Duff (Republican) (until January 16), John S. Fine (Republican) (starting January 16) • Governor of Rhode Island: John S. McKiernan (Democratic) (until January 2), Dennis J. Roberts (Democratic) (starting January 2) • Governor of South Carolina: Strom Thurmond (Democratic) (until January 16), James Francis Byrnes (Democratic) (starting January 16) • Governor of South Dakota: George T. Mickelson (Republican) (until January 2), Sigurd Anderson (Republican) (starting January 2) • Governor of Tennessee: Gordon Browning (Democratic) • Governor of Texas: Allan Shivers (Democratic) • Governor of Utah: J. Bracken Lee (Republican) • Governor of Vermont: Harold J. Arthur (Republican) (until January 4), Lee E. Emerson (Republican) (starting January 4) • Governor of Virginia: John S. Battle (Democratic) • Governor of Washington: Arthur B. Langlie (Republican) • Governor of West Virginia: Okey L. Patteson (Democratic) • Governor of Wisconsin: Oscar Rennebohm (Republican) (until January 1), Walter J. Kohler, Jr. (Republican) (starting January 1) • Governor of Wyoming: Arthur G. Crane (Republican) (until January 1), Frank A. Barrett (Republican) (starting January 1)

Lieutenant governors

• Lieutenant Governor of Alabama: James C. Inzer (Democratic) (until January 15), James B. Allen (Democratic) (starting January 15) • Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas: Nathan Green Gordon (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of California: Goodwin Knight (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Colorado: Gordon L. Allott (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut: William T. Carroll (Democratic) (until January 3), Edward N. Allen (Republican) (starting January 3) • Lieutenant Governor of Delaware: Alexis I. du Pont Bayard (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Georgia: Marvin Griffin (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Idaho: Donald S. Whitehead (Republican) (until January 1), Edson H. Deal (Republican) (starting January 1) • Lieutenant Governor of Illinois: Sherwood Dixon (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Indiana: John A. Watkins (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Iowa: Kenneth A. Evans (Republican) (until month and day unknown), William H. Nicholas (Republican) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Kansas: vacant (until January 8), Fred Hall (Republican) (starting January 8) • Lieutenant Governor of Kentucky: vacant (until month and day unknown), Emerson Beauchamp (Democratic) (starting month and day unknown) • Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana: William J. Dodd (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts: Charles F. Sullivan (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Michigan: John W. Connolly (Democratic) (until January 1), William C. Vandenberg (Republican) (starting January 1) • Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota: C. Elmer Anderson (Republican) (until September 27), vacant (starting September 27) • Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi: Sam Lumpkin (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Missouri: James T. Blair, Jr. (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Montana: Paul Cannon (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Nebraska: Charles J. Warner (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Nevada: Clifford A. Jones (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of New Mexico: Joseph Montoya (Democratic) (until January 1), Tibo J. Chavez (Democratic) (starting January 1) • Lieutenant Governor of New York: Frank C. Moore (Republican) (starting January 1) • Lieutenant Governor of North Carolina: Hoyt Patrick Taylor (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of North Dakota: Clarence P. Dahl (Republican) (until January 3), Ray Schnell (Republican) (starting January 3) • Lieutenant Governor of Ohio: George D. Nye (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma: James E. Berry (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania: Daniel B. Strickler (Republican) (until January 16), Lloyd H. Wood (Republican) (starting January 16) • Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island: John S. McKiernan (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina: George Bell Timmerman, Jr. (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota: Rex A. Terry (Republican) • Lieutenant Governor of Tennessee: Walter M. Haynes (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Texas: vacant (until January 16), Ben Ramsey (Democratic) (starting January 16) • Lieutenant Governor of Vermont: vacant (until January 4), Joseph B. Johnson (Republican) (starting January 4) • Lieutenant Governor of Virginia: Lewis Preston Collins II (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Washington: Victor A. Meyers (Democratic) • Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin: George M. Smith (Republican)

Events

January–March

April–June

July–September

October–December

Ongoing

Unknown

Births

January–March

April–June

July–September

October–December

Deaths

January–March

April–June

July–September

October–December