COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Governors from across the country met at the Broadmoor to talk shop Saturday.
Sixteen newly-elected governors and 14 veteran governors were at the Broadmoor this weekend.
The National Governors Association is hosting the event, meant to help new governors transition smoothly into their new jobs.
This is the biggest group of newly elected incoming governors ever, as 29 states will have new governors. They said they are ready to make the tough decisions that have to be made.
"It's the largest class in history, the closest was 1920 when there were 27," democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire of Washington said.
These men and women will take the reigns of their states at a difficult time. They will be faced with a sagging economy and high unemployment.
They were in Colorado Springs this weekend to get sound advice from veteran governors from around the country.
"Doing all we can to talk about the kinds of experiences we've had and hopefully mentor those governors in this transition," Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter said.
But the vets said the job of governor of a state has changed dramatically in recent years.
"Six years ago you might have had a natural disaster you had to pay attention to the day that it happened," Gregoire said. "Today governors have to stand ready 24/7 in case of a terrorist attack."
Most of these governors will face tough decisions in the months ahead as they struggle to balance their budgets. They said they stand ready to make the hard decisions.
"We've just just gone through an election, and now its time to govern without regard for the polling, without regard for favorability or unfavorability," Ritter said. "You just have to do the thing that's necessary to move your state along."
The governors said even though they come from different parties, they can set aside their political differences for this weekend and help the rookie governors become veterans themselves.