The Rosenberg Library Collection - Governor for a Day (1966)

Duration: 6:46

Year Published: 1966

Format: 16mm

Sound: No Sound on Film

Description: It is a long-standing tradition within the Texas Legislature that the President Pro Tem of each session serve as governor for at least one day. (The President Pro Tem position is customarily given to a senator from the majority party with the longest record of continuous service. In state legislatures, he or she serves as chief executive in the absence of the governor and lieutenant governor.) This film shows Texas Senator A. R. “Babe” Schwartz of Galveston receiving the honor on February 19, 1966. District Judge Herman Jones first swears Schwartz in at a ceremony in the State Capitol Building. Then, the acting governor signs a pair of declarations and holds a news conference in the governor’s private office.