In 1882, Sheppard was placed on the Democratic statewide ticket for the post of Lieutenant Governor and easily won election and reelection in 1884. When Hugh Smith Thompson resigned on July 10, 1886, to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Sheppard succeeded to the governorship.
Sheppard was elected to the position of Lieutenant Governor in 1882, and later took over as governor when Thompson resigned in 1886.