Fletcher was elected governor in 2003 over state Attorney General Ben Chandler. Early in his term, Fletcher achieved some savings to the state by reorganizing the executive branch. He proposed an overhaul to the state tax code in 2004, but was unable to get it passed through the General Assembly. When Republicans in the state senate insisted on tying the reforms to the state budget, the legislature adjourned without passing either and the state operated under an executive spending plan drafted by Fletcher until 2005, when both the budget and the reforms were passed.