MY UNITED STATE PRESIDENT
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The President of the United States is the elected head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces. The president is indirectly elected to a four-year term by the people through the Electoral College.
Since the office was established in 1789, 44 men have served as president. The first, George Washington, won a unanimous vote of the Electoral College. Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms in office, and is counted as the nation's 22nd and 24th presidents; the incumbent, Donald Trump, is therefore the 45th president. There are currently five living former presidents. The most recent death of a former president was on December 26, 2006 with the death of Gerald Ford.
William Henry Harrison's presidency was the shortest in American history. He died 31 days after taking office in 1841. Franklin D. Roosevelt served the longest, over twelve years, before dying early in his fourth term in 1945. He is the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms. Since the ratification of the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1951, no person may be elected president more than twice, and no one who has served more than two years of a term to which someone else was elected may be elected more than once.[1]
Of the elected presidents, four died in office of natural causes (William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Warren G. Harding, and Franklin D. Roosevelt), four were assassinated (Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley and John F. Kennedy), and one resigned (Richard Nixon). John Tyler was the first vice president to assume the presidency during a presidential term, and set the precedent that a vice president who does so becomes the fully functioning president with his own presidency, as opposed to a caretaker president. The Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution put Tyler's precedent into law in 1967. It also established a mechanism by which a mid-term vacancy in the vice presidency could be filled. Richard Nixon was the first president to fill a vacancy under this Provision when he appointed Gerald Ford to the office. Later, Ford became the second to do so when he appointed Nelson Rockefeller to succeed him. Previously, a mid-term vacancy was left unfilled.
Throughout most of its history, American politics has been dominated by political parties. The Constitution is silent on the issue of political parties, and at the time it came into force in 1789, there were no parties. Soon after the 1st Congress convened, factions began rallying around dominant Washington Administration officials, such as Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. Greatly concerned about the capacity of political parties to destroy the fragile unity holding the nation together, Washington remained unaffiliated with any political faction or party throughout his eight-year presidency. He was, and remains, the only U.S. president never affiliated with a political party.[2] Since Washington, every president has been affiliated with a political party at the time they assumed office.
Presidents
| Unaffiliated (2) Federalist (1) Democratic-Republican (4) Democratic (15) Whig (4) Republican (19) National Union (2) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Presidency[a] | President | Prior office[b] | Party[c] | Term[d] | Vice President | |||
| 1 | April 30, 1789 [e] – March 4, 1797 |  | George Washington 1732–1799 (Lived: 67 years) [3][4][5] | Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army (1775–1783) | Unaffiliated [2] | (1788–89) 1 (1789) | John Adams [f][g] | |
| (1792) 2 (1793) | ||||||||
| 2 | March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801 |  | John Adams 1735–1826 (Lived: 90 years) [6][7][8] | 1st Vice President of the United States | Federalist | (1796) 3 (1797) | Thomas Jefferson [h] | |
| 3 | March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1809 |  | Thomas Jefferson 1743–1826 (Lived: 83 years) [9][10][11] | 2nd Vice President of the United States | Democratic- Republican | (1800) 4 (1801) | Aaron Burr March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1805 | |
| (1804) 5 (1805) | George Clinton March 4, 1805 – March 4, 1809 | |||||||
| 4 | March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817 |  | James Madison 1751–1836 (Lived: 85 years) [12][13][14] | 5th United States Secretary of State (1801–1809) | Democratic- Republican | (1808) 6 (1809) | George Clinton March 4, 1809 – April 20, 1812 (Died in office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of Clinton's term) | ||||||||
| (1812) 7 (1813) | Elbridge Gerry March 4, 1813 –November 23, 1814 (Died in office) | |||||||
| Office vacant (Balance of Gerry's term) | ||||||||
| 5 | March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825 |  | James Monroe 1758–1831 (Lived: 73 years) [15][16][17] | 7th United States Secretary of State (1811–1817) | Democratic- Republican | (1816) 8 (1817) | Daniel D. Tompkins | |
| (1820) 9 (1821) | ||||||||
| 6 | March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829 |  | John Quincy Adams 1767–1848 (Lived: 80 years) [18][19][20] | 8th United States Secretary of State (1817–1825) | Democratic- Republican | (1824) 10 (1825) | John C. Calhoun | |
| 7 | March 4, 1829 – March 4, 1837 |  | Andrew Jackson 1767–1845 (Lived: 78 years) [21][22][23] | U.S. Senatorfrom Tennessee (1797–1798 & 1823–1825) | Democratic | (1828) 11 (1829) | John C. Calhoun [i] March 4, 1829 –December 28, 1832 (Resigned from office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of Calhoun's term) | ||||||||
| (1832) 12 (1833) | Martin Van Buren March 4, 1833 – March 4, 1837 | |||||||
| 8 | March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841 |  | Martin Van Buren 1782–1862 (Lived: 79 years) [24][25][26] | 8th Vice President of the United States | Democratic | (1836) 13 (1837) | Richard M. Johnson | |
| 9 | March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841 (Died in office) |  | William Henry Harrison 1773–1841 (Lived: 68 years) [27][28][29] | United States Minister to Colombia (1828–1829) | Whig | (1840) 14 (1841) (1841) [j] | John Tyler (Succeeded to presidency) | |
| 10 | April 4, 1841 [k] – March 4, 1845 | .jpg) | John Tyler 1790–1862 (Lived: 71 years) [30][31][32] | 10th Vice President of the United States | Whig April 4, 1841 –September 13, 1841 | Office vacant | ||
| Unaffiliated September 13, 1841– March 4, 1845 [l] | ||||||||
| 11 | March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849 |  | James K. Polk 1795–1849 (Lived: 53 years) [33][34][35] | 9th Governor of Tennessee (1839–1841) | Democratic | (1844) 15 (1845) | George M. Dallas | |
| 12 | March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850 (Died in office) |  | Zachary Taylor 1784–1850 (Lived: 65 years) [36][37][38] | Major General of the 1st Infantry Regiment United States Army (1846–1849) (No prior elected office) | Whig | (1848) 16 (1849) (1850) [j] | Millard Fillmore (Succeeded to presidency) | |
| 13 | July 9, 1850 [m] – March 4, 1853 |  | Millard Fillmore 1800–1874 (Lived: 74 years) [39][40][41] | 12th Vice President of the United States | Whig | Office vacant | ||
| 14 | March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857 |  | Franklin Pierce 1804–1869 (Lived: 64 years) [42][43][44] | Brigadier General of the 9th Infantry United States Army (1847–1848) | Democratic | (1852) 17 (1853) | William R. King March 4 – April 18, 1853 (Died in office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of King's term) | ||||||||
| 15 | March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861 |  | James Buchanan 1791–1868 (Lived: 77 years) [45][46][47] | United States Minister to the Court of St James's (1853–1856) | Democratic | (1856) 18 (1857) | John C. Breckinridge | |
| 16 | March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865 (Died in office) |  | Abraham Lincoln 1809–1865 (Lived: 56 years) [48][49][50] | U.S. Representativefor Illinois's 7th District (1847–1849) | Republican (National Union) [n] | (1860) 19 (1861) | Hannibal Hamlin March 4, 1861 – March 4, 1865 | |
| (1864) 20 (1865) (1865) [j] | Andrew Johnson March 4 – April 15, 1865 (Succeeded to presidency) | |||||||
| 17 | April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869 |  | Andrew Johnson 1808–1875 (Lived: 66 years) [51][52][53] | 16th Vice President of the United States | National Union April 15, 1865 –c. 1868 | Office vacant | ||
| Democratic c. 1868 –March 4, 1869 [o] | ||||||||
| 18 | March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877 |  | Ulysses S. Grant 1822–1885 (Lived: 63 years) [54][55][56] | Commanding General of the U.S. Army (1864–1869) (No prior elected office) | Republican | (1868) 21 (1869) | Schuyler Colfax March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1873 | |
| (1872) 22 (1873) | Henry Wilson March 4, 1873 –November 22, 1875 (Died in office) | |||||||
| Office vacant (Balance of Wilson's term) | ||||||||
| 19 | March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881 |  | Rutherford B. Hayes 1822–1893 (Lived: 70 years) [57][58][59] | 29th & 32nd Governor of Ohio (1868–1872 & 1876–1877) | Republican | (1876) 23 (1877) | William A. Wheeler | |
| 20 | March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881 (Died in office) |  | James A. Garfield 1831–1881 (Lived: 49 years) [60][61][62] | U.S. Representativefor Ohio's 19th District (1863–1881) | Republican | (1880) 24 (1881) (1881) [j] | Chester A. Arthur (Succeeded to presidency) | |
| 21 | September 19, 1881 [p] – March 4, 1885 |  | Chester A. Arthur 1829–1886 (Lived: 57 years) [63][64][65] | 20th Vice President of the United States | Republican | Office vacant | ||
| 22 | March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1889 | .jpg) | Grover Cleveland 1837–1908 (Lived: 71 years) [66][67] | 28th Governor of New York (1883–1885) | Democratic | (1884) 25 (1885) | Thomas A. Hendricks March 4 – November 25, 1885 (Died in office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of Hendricks's term) | ||||||||
| 23 | March 4, 1889 – March 4, 1893 |  | Benjamin Harrison 1833–1901 (Lived: 67 years) [68][69][70] | U.S. Senatorfrom Indiana (1881–1887) | Republican | (1888) 26 (1889) | Levi P. Morton | |
| 24 | March 4, 1893 – March 4, 1897 | | Grover Cleveland 1837–1908 (Lived: 71 years) [66][67] | 22nd President of the United States (1885–1889) | Democratic | (1892) 27 (1893) | Adlai Stevenson | |
| 25 | March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901 (Died in office) |  | William McKinley 1843–1901 (Lived: 58 years) [71][72][73] | 39th Governor of Ohio (1892–1896) | Republican | (1896) 28 (1897) | Garret Hobart March 4, 1897 –November 21, 1899 (Died in office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of Hobart's term) | ||||||||
| (1900) 29 (1901) (1901) [j] | Theodore Roosevelt March 4 – September 14, 1901 (Succeeded to presidency) | |||||||
| 26 | September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909 |  | Theodore Roosevelt 1858–1919 (Lived: 60 years) [74][75][76] | 25th Vice President of the United States | Republican | Office vacant September 14, 1901 –March 4, 1905 | ||
| (1904) 30 (1905) | Charles W. Fairbanks March 4, 1905 – March 4, 1909 | |||||||
| 27 | March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913 |  | William Howard Taft 1857–1930 (Lived: 72 years) [77][78][79] | 42nd United States Secretary of War (1904–1908) | Republican | (1908) 31 (1909) | James S. Sherman March 4, 1909 –October 30, 1912 (Died in office) | |
| Office vacant (Balance of Sherman's term) | ||||||||
| 28 | March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921 |  | Woodrow Wilson 1856–1924 (Lived: 67 years) [80][81][82] | 34th Governor of New Jersey (1911–1913) | Democratic | (1912) 32 (1913) | Thomas R. Marshall | |
| (1916) 33 (1917) | ||||||||
| 29 | March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923 (Died in office) |  | Warren G. Harding 1865–1923 (Lived: 57 years) [83][84][85] | U.S. Senatorfrom Ohio (1915–1921) | Republican | (1920) 34 (1921) (1923) [j] | Calvin Coolidge (Succeeded to presidency) | |
| 30 | August 2, 1923 [q] – March 4, 1929 |  | Calvin Coolidge 1872–1933 (Lived: 60 years) [86][87][88] | 29th Vice President of the United States | Republican | Office vacant August 2, 1923 –March 4, 1925 | ||
| (1924) 35 (1925) | Charles G. Dawes March 4, 1925 – March 4, 1929 | |||||||
| 31 | March 4, 1929 – March 4, 1933 |  | Herbert Hoover 1874–1964 (Lived: 90 years) [89][90][91] | 3rd United States Secretary of Commerce (1921–1928) (No prior elected office) | Republican | (1928) 36 (1929) | Charles Curtis | |
| 32 | March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945 (Died in office) |  | Franklin D. Roosevelt 1882–1945 (Lived: 63 years) [92][93][94] | 44th Governor of New York (1929–1932) | Democratic | (1932) 37 (1933) | John N. Garner March 4, 1933 –January 20, 1941 [r] | |
| (1936) 38 (1937) | ||||||||
| (1940) 39 (1941) | Henry A. Wallace January 20, 1941 –January 20, 1945 | |||||||
| (1944) 40 (1945) (1945) [j] | Harry S. Truman January 20 – April 12, 1945 (Succeeded to presidency) | |||||||
| 33 | April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953 |  | Harry S. Truman 1884–1972 (Lived: 88 years) [95][96][97] | 34th Vice President of the United States | Democratic | Office vacant April 12, 1945 –January 20, 1949 | ||
| (1948) 41 (1949) | Alben W. Barkley January 20, 1949 –January 20, 1953 | |||||||
| 34 | January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961 |  | Dwight D. Eisenhower 1890–1969 (Lived: 78 years) [98][99][100] | Supreme Allied Commander Europe (1949–1952) (No prior elected office) | Republican | (1952) 42 (1953) | Richard Nixon | |
| (1956) 43 (1957) | ||||||||
| 35 | January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963 (Died in office) |  | John F. Kennedy 1917–1963 (Lived: 46 years) [101][102][103] | U.S. Senatorfrom Massachusetts (1953–1960) | Democratic | (1960) 44 (1961) (1963) [j] | Lyndon B. Johnson (Succeeded to presidency) | |
| 36 | November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969 |  | Lyndon B. Johnson 1908–1973 (Lived: 64 years) [104][105] | 37th Vice President of the United States | Democratic | Office vacant November 22, 1963 –January 20, 1965 | ||
| (1964) 45 (1965) | Hubert Humphrey January 20, 1965 –January 20, 1969 | |||||||
| 37 | January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974 (Resigned from office) |  | Richard Nixon 1913–1994 (Lived: 81 years) [106][107][108] | 36th Vice President of the United States (1953–1961) | Republican | (1968) 46 (1969) | Spiro Agnew January 20, 1969 –October 10, 1973 (Resigned from office) | |
| (1972) 47 (1973) (1974) [j] | ||||||||
| Office vacant October 10 –December 6, 1973 | ||||||||
| Gerald Ford December 6, 1973 –August 9, 1974 (Succeeded to presidency) | ||||||||
| 38 | August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977 |  | Gerald Ford 1913–2006 (Lived: 93 years) [109][110][111] | 40th Vice President of the United States | Republican | Office vacant August 9 – December 19, 1974 | ||
| Nelson Rockefeller December 19, 1974 –January 20, 1977 | ||||||||
| 39 | January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981 |  | Jimmy Carter Born 1924 (93 years old) [112][113][114] | 76th Governor of Georgia (1971–1975) | Democratic | (1976) 48 (1977) | Walter Mondale | |
| 40 | January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989 |  | Ronald Reagan 1911–2004 (Lived: 93 years) [115][116][117] | 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975) | Republican | (1980) 49 (1981) | George H. W. Bush | |
| (1984) 50 (1985) | ||||||||
| 41 | January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993 |  | George H. W. Bush Born 1924 (93 years old) [118][119][120] | 43rd Vice President of the United States | Republican | (1988) 51 (1989) | Dan Quayle | |
| 42 | January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001 |  | Bill Clinton Born 1946 (71 years old) [121][122][123] | 40th & 42nd Governor of Arkansas (1979–1981 & 1983–1992) | Democratic | (1992) 52 (1993) | Al Gore | |
| (1996) 53 (1997) | ||||||||
| 43 | January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009 |  | George W. Bush Born 1946 (71 years old) [124][125] | 46th Governor of Texas (1995–2000) | Republican | (2000) 54 (2001) | Dick Cheney | |
| (2004) 55 (2005) | ||||||||
| 44 | January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017 |  | Barack Obama Born 1961 (56 years old) [126][127] | U.S. Senatorfrom Illinois (2005–2008) | Democratic | (2008) 56 (2009) | Joe Biden | |
| (2012) 57 (2013) | ||||||||
| 45 | January 20, 2017 – Incumbent | .jpg) | Donald Trump Born 1946 (71 years old) [128][129] | Chairman of The Trump Organization (1971–2017) (No prior elected office) | Republican | (2016) 58 (2017) | Mike Pence | |
Subsequent public office
Four presidents held other high U.S. federal offices after leaving the presidency.
| President | Presidency[a] | Subsequent service | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Quincy Adams | 6 | 1825–1829 | U.S. Representative from Massachusetts (1831–1848) |
| Andrew Johnson | 17 | 1865–1869 | U.S. Senator from Tennessee (1875) |
| Grover Cleveland | 22 | 1885–1889 | 24th President of the United States (1893–1897) |
| William Howard Taft | 27 | 1909–1913 | 10th Chief Justice of the United States (1921–1930) |
Several presidents campaigned unsuccessfully for other U.S. state or federal elective offices after leaving the presidency.
| President | Presidency[a] | Office sought unsuccessfully | |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Quincy Adams | 6 | 1825–1829 | Governor of Massachusetts (1833) |
| Martin Van Buren | 8 | 1837–1841 | President of the United States (1844) |
| President of the United States (1848) | |||
| Millard Fillmore | 13 | 1850–1853 | President of the United States (1856) |
| Andrew Johnson | 17 | 1865–1869 | U.S. Senator from Tennessee (1870) |
| U.S. Representative from Tennessee (1872) | |||
| Ulysses S. Grant | 18 | 1869–1877 | President of the United States (1880) |
| Theodore Roosevelt | 26 | 1901–1909 | President of the United States (1912) |
| Herbert Hoover | 31 | 1929–1933 | President of the United States (1940) |
Additionally, one former president, John Tyler, served in the government of the Confederate States during the American Civil War. Tyler served in the Provisional Confederate Congress from 1861 to 1862. He was elected to the Confederate House of Representatives in November 1861, but died before he could take his seat.
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