Question: Who was the governor the last time martial law was declared in Texas?
Answer: Coke Stevenson was the governor the last time martial law was declared, but he didn’t declare it. Because he and Lt. Gov. John Lee Smith were out of the state during the Beaumont Race Riot of June 15 and 16, 1943, acting governor A. M. Aikin Jr. imposed martial law to restore order. A force of 1,800 Texas State Guard members, 100 state troopers, and 75 Texas Rangers was sent to Beaumont, where 206 people were arrested.
The last governor to declare martial law in Texas was Gov. R. S. Sterling, who dispatched national guardsmen to several counties in East Texas in 1931 to enforce restrictions on oil production.
