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The White House, official residence of the president of the United States, in July 2008

The president of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States,[1] indirectly elected to a four-year term via the Electoral College.[2] The officeholder leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.[3] Since the office was established in 1789, 45 men have served in 46 presidencies. The first president, George Washington, won a unanimous vote of the Electoral College.[4] Grover Cleveland served two non-consecutive terms and is therefore counted as the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, giving rise to the discrepancy between the number of presidencies and the number of individuals who have served as president.[5]

The presidency of William Henry Harrison, who died 31 days after taking office in 1841, was the shortest in American history.[6] 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.[7] 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.[8]

Four presidents 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, facing impeachment and removal from office).[9] 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 their own administration.[10]

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, no organized parties existed. Soon after the 1st Congress convened, political factions began rallying around dominant Washington administration officials, such as Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson.[11] 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.[12]

The incumbent president is Joe Biden, who assumed office on January 20, 2021.[13] The president-elect is Donald Trump, who will assume office on January 20, 2025.[14][15] Trump will be the second president after Cleveland to serve two non-consecutive terms, as the 45th and 47th president.[16]

Presidents

List of presidents of the United States from 1789 – till date.
No.[a] Portrait Name
(Birth–Death) 		Term[17] Party[b][18] Election Vice President[19]
1 Painting of George Washington George Washington
(1732–1799)
[20] 		April 30, 1789
–
March 4, 1797 		Unaffiliated 1788–1789
1792 		John Adams[c]
2 Painting of John Adams John Adams
(1735–1826)
[22] 		March 4, 1797
–
March 4, 1801 		Federalist 1796 Thomas Jefferson[d]
3 Painting of Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson
(1743–1826)
[24] 		March 4, 1801
–
March 4, 1809 		Democratic-
Republican 		1800
1804 		Aaron Burr
George Clinton
4 Painting of James Madison James Madison
(1751–1836)
[25] 		March 4, 1809
–
March 4, 1817 		Democratic-
Republican 		1808
1812 		George Clinton[e]
Vacant after
April 20, 1812
Elbridge Gerry[e]
Vacant after
November 23, 1814
5 Painting of James Monroe James Monroe
(1758–1831)
[27] 		March 4, 1817
–
March 4, 1825 		Democratic-
Republican 		1816
1820 		Daniel D. Tompkins
6 Painting of John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams
(1767–1848)
[28] 		March 4, 1825
–
March 4, 1829 		Democratic-
Republican[f]
National Republican 		1824 John C. Calhoun[g]
7 Painting of Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson
(1767–1845)
[31] 		March 4, 1829
–
March 4, 1837 		Democratic 1828
1832 		John C. Calhoun[h]
Vacant after
December 28, 1832
Martin Van Buren
8 Martin Van Buren
(1782–1862)
[32] 		March 4, 1837
–
March 4, 1841 		Democratic 1836 Richard Mentor Johnson
9 William Henry Harrison
(1773–1841)
[33] 		March 4, 1841
–
April 4, 1841[e] 		Whig 1840 John Tyler
10 John Tyler
(1790–1862)
[34] 		April 4, 1841[i]
–
March 4, 1845 		Whig[j]
Unaffiliated 		– Vacant throughout
presidency
11 Black-and-white photographic portrait of James K. Polk James K. Polk
(1795–1849)
[37] 		March 4, 1845
–
March 4, 1849 		Democratic 1844 George M. Dallas
12 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor
(1784–1850)
[38] 		March 4, 1849
–
July 9, 1850[e] 		Whig 1848 Millard Fillmore
13 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Millard Fillmore Millard Fillmore
(1800–1874)
[39] 		July 9, 1850[k]
–
March 4, 1853 		Whig – Vacant throughout
presidency
14 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce
(1804–1869)
[41] 		March 4, 1853
–
March 4, 1857 		Democratic 1852 William R. King[e]
Vacant after
April 18, 1853
15 Black-and-white photographic portrait of James Buchanan James Buchanan
(1791–1868)
[42] 		March 4, 1857
–
March 4, 1861 		Democratic 1856 John C. Breckinridge
16 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln
(1809–1865)
[43] 		March 4, 1861
–
April 15, 1865[e] 		Republican
National Union[l] 		1860
1864 		Hannibal Hamlin
Andrew Johnson
17 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson
(1808–1875)
[45] 		April 15, 1865[m]
–
March 4, 1869 		National Union[n]
Democratic 		– Vacant throughout
presidency
18 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant
(1822–1885)
[46] 		March 4, 1869
–
March 4, 1877 		Republican 1868
1872 		Schuyler Colfax
Henry Wilson[e]
Vacant after
November 22, 1875
19 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Rutherford B. Hayes Rutherford B. Hayes
(1822–1893)
[47] 		March 4, 1877
–
March 4, 1881 		Republican 1876 William A. Wheeler
20 Black-and-white photographic portrait of James A. Garfield James A. Garfield
(1831–1881)
[48] 		March 4, 1881
–
September 19, 1881[e] 		Republican 1880 Chester A. Arthur
21 Sepia photographic portrait of Chester A. Arthur Chester A. Arthur
(1829–1886)
[49] 		September 19, 1881[o]
–
March 4, 1885 		Republican – Vacant throughout
presidency
22 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Grover Cleveland Grover Cleveland
(1837–1908)
[51] 		March 4, 1885
–
March 4, 1889 		Democratic 1884 Thomas A. Hendricks[e]
Vacant after
November 25, 1885
23 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison
(1833–1901)
[52] 		March 4, 1889
–
March 4, 1893 		Republican 1888 Levi P. Morton
24 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Grover Cleveland Grover Cleveland
(1837–1908)
[51] 		March 4, 1893
–
March 4, 1897 		Democratic 1892 Adlai Stevenson I
25 Black-and-white photographic portrait of William McKinley William McKinley
(1843–1901)
[53] 		March 4, 1897
–
September 14, 1901[e] 		Republican 1896
1900 		Garret Hobart[e]
Vacant after
November 21, 1899
Theodore Roosevelt
26 Photographic portrait of Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt
(1858–1919)
[54] 		September 14, 1901[p]
–
March 4, 1909 		Republican –
1904 		Vacant through
March 4, 1905
Charles W. Fairbanks
27 Black-and-white photographic portrait of William Howard Taft William Howard Taft
(1857–1930)
[56] 		March 4, 1909
–
March 4, 1913 		Republican 1908 James S. Sherman[e]
Vacant after
October 30, 1912
28 Woodrow Wilson
(1856–1924)
[57] 		March 4, 1913
–
March 4, 1921 		Democratic 1912
1916 		Thomas R. Marshall
29 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Warren G. Harding Warren G. Harding
(1865–1923)
[58] 		March 4, 1921
–
August 2, 1923[e] 		Republican 1920 Calvin Coolidge
30 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge
(1872–1933)
[59] 		August 2, 1923[q]
–
March 4, 1929 		Republican –
1924 		Vacant through
March 4, 1925
Charles G. Dawes
31 Black-and-white photographic portrait of Herbert Hoover Herbert Hoover
(1874–1964)
[61] 		March 4, 1929
–
March 4, 1933 		Republican 1928 Charles Curtis
32 Photographic portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin D. Roosevelt
(1882–1945)
[62] 		March 4, 1933
–
April 12, 1945[e] 		Democratic 1932
1936
1940
1944 		John Nance Garner
Henry A. Wallace
Harry S. Truman
33 Photographic portrait of Harry S. Truman Harry S. Truman
(1884–1972)
[63] 		April 12, 1945[r]
–
January 20, 1953 		Democratic –
1948 		Vacant through
January 20, 1949
Alben W. Barkley
34 Photographic portrait of Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight D. Eisenhower
(1890–1969)
[65] 		January 20, 1953
–
January 20, 1961 		Republican 1952
1956 		Richard Nixon
35 Photographic portrait of John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy
(1917–1963)
[66] 		January 20, 1961
–
November 22, 1963[e] 		Democratic 1960 Lyndon B. Johnson
36 Photographic portrait of Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon B. Johnson
(1908–1973)
[67] 		November 22, 1963[s]
–
January 20, 1969 		Democratic –
1964 		Vacant through
January 20, 1965
Hubert Humphrey
37 Photographic portrait of Richard Nixon Richard Nixon
(1913–1994)
[69] 		January 20, 1969
–
August 9, 1974[h] 		Republican 1968
1972 		Spiro Agnew[h]
Vacant:
October 10 – December 6, 1973
Gerald Ford[t]
38 Photographic portrait of Gerald Ford Gerald Ford
(1913–2006)
[70] 		August 9, 1974[u]
–
January 20, 1977 		Republican – Vacant through
December 19, 1974
Nelson Rockefeller[t]
39 Photographic portrait of Jimmy Carter Jimmy Carter
(b. 1924)
[71] 		January 20, 1977
–
January 20, 1981 		Democratic 1976 Walter Mondale
40 Photographic portrait of Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan
(1911–2004)
[72] 		January 20, 1981
–
January 20, 1989 		Republican 1980
1984 		George H. W. Bush
41 Photographic portrait of George H. W. Bush George H. W. Bush
(1924–2018)
[73] 		January 20, 1989
–
January 20, 1993 		Republican 1988 Dan Quayle
42 Photographic portrait of Bill Clinton Bill Clinton
(b. 1946)
[74] 		January 20, 1993
–
January 20, 2001 		Democratic 1992
1996 		Al Gore
43 Photographic portrait of George W. Bush George W. Bush
(b. 1946)
[75] 		January 20, 2001
–
January 20, 2009 		Republican 2000
2004 		Dick Cheney
44 Photographic portrait of Barack Obama Barack Obama
(b. 1961)
[76] 		January 20, 2009
–
January 20, 2017 		Democratic 2008
2012 		Joe Biden
45 Photographic portrait of Donald Trump Donald Trump
(b. 1946)
[77] 		January 20, 2017
–
January 20, 2021 		Republican 2016 Mike Pence
46 Photographic portrait of Joe Biden Joe Biden
(b. 1942)
[13] 		January 20, 2021
–
Incumbent 		Democratic 2020 Kamala Harris

President-elect

President-elect of the United States
No. Portrait Name
(Birth–Death) 		Term Party Election Vice President-elect
47 Photographic portrait of Donald Trump Donald Trump
(b. 1946)
[77] 		To be sworn in on
January 20, 2025 		Republican 2024 JD Vance

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Presidents are numbered according to uninterrupted periods served by the same person. For example, George Washington served two consecutive terms and is counted as the first president (not the first and second). Upon the resignation of 37th president, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford became the 38th president even though he simply served out the remainder of Nixon's second term and was never elected to the presidency in his own right. Grover Cleveland was both the 22nd president and the 24th president because his two terms were not consecutive. A vice president who temporarily becomes acting president under the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution is not counted, because the president remains in office during such a period.
  2. ^ Reflects the president's political party at the start of their presidency. Changes during their time in office are noted. Also reflects the vice president's political party unless otherwise noted beside the individual's name.
  3. ^ Political parties had not been anticipated when the Constitution was drafted, nor did they exist at the time of the first presidential election in 1788–89. When they did develop, during Washington's first term, Adams joined the faction that became the Federalist Party. The elections of 1792 were the first ones in the United States that were contested on anything resembling a partisan basis.[21]
  4. ^ The 1796 presidential election was the first contested American presidential election and the only one in which a president and vice president were elected from opposing political parties. Federalist John Adams was elected president, and Jefferson of the Democratic-Republicans was elected vice president.[23]
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Died in office[26]
  6. ^ Early during John Quincy Adams' term, the Democratic-Republican Party dissolved; his allies in Congress and at the state level were referred to as "Adams' Men" during the Adams presidency. When Andrew Jackson became president in 1829, this group became the "Anti-Jackson" opposition, and organized themselves as the National Republican Party.[29]
  7. ^ John Calhoun, formerly a Democratic-Republican, founded the Nullifier Party in 1828 to oppose the Tariff of 1828 and advance the cause of states' rights, but was brought on as Andrew Jackson's running mate in the 1828 presidential election in an effort to broaden the democratic coalition led by Jackson.[30]
  8. ^ a b c Resigned from office[26]
  9. ^ John Tyler succeeded to the presidency upon the death of William Henry Harrison.[35]
  10. ^ John Tyler was elected vice president on the Whig Party ticket in 1840. His policy priorities as president soon proved to be opposed to most of the Whig agenda, and he was expelled from the party five months after assuming office.[36]
  11. ^ Millard Fillmore succeeded to the presidency upon the death of Zachary Taylor.[40]
  12. ^ When he ran for reelection in 1864, Republican Abraham Lincoln formed a bipartisan electoral alliance with War Democrats by selecting Democrat Andrew Johnson as his running mate, and running on the National Union Party ticket.[44]
  13. ^ Andrew Johnson succeeded to the presidency upon the death of Abraham Lincoln.[45]
  14. ^ While president, Andrew Johnson tried and failed to build a party of loyalists under the National Union banner. Near the end of his presidency, Johnson began reassociating with the Democratic Party.[45]
  15. ^ Chester A. Arthur succeeded to the presidency upon the death of James A. Garfield.[50]
  16. ^ Theodore Roosevelt succeeded to the presidency upon the death of William McKinley.[55]
  17. ^ Calvin Coolidge succeeded to the presidency upon the death of Warren G. Harding.[60]
  18. ^ Harry S. Truman succeeded to the presidency upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt.[64]
  19. ^ Lyndon B. Johnson succeeded to the presidency upon the death of John F. Kennedy.[68]
  20. ^ a b Appointed as vice president under terms of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, Section 2[26]
  21. ^ Gerald Ford succeeded to the presidency upon the resignation of Richard Nixon.[70]

References

  1. ^ Rossiter (1962), p. 86.
  2. ^ Shugart (2004), pp. 633–636.
  3. ^ Epstein (2005), p. 318.
  4. ^ Matuz (2001), p. xxii.
  5. ^ Schaller & Williams (2003), p. 192.
  6. ^ McHugh & Mackowiak (2014), pp. 990–995.
  7. ^ Skau (1974), pp. 246–275.
  8. ^ Peabody & Gant (1999), p. 565.
  9. ^ Abbott (2005), pp. 627–644.
  10. ^ Dinnerstein (1962), pp. 447–451.
  11. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), p. 197; Nardulli (1992), p. 179.
  12. ^ LOC (2); Jamison (2014).
  13. ^ a b whitehouse.gov (g).
  14. ^ Hajela (2024).
  15. ^ Freile (2024).
  16. ^ AP (2024).
  17. ^ LOC; whitehouse.gov.
  18. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), pp. 257–258.
  19. ^ LOC.
  20. ^ McDonald (2000).
  21. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), pp. 197, 272; Nardulli (1992), p. 179.
  22. ^ Pencak (2000).
  23. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), p. 274.
  24. ^ Peterson (2000).
  25. ^ Banning (2000).
  26. ^ a b c Neale (2004), p. 22.
  27. ^ Ammon (2000).
  28. ^ Hargreaves (2000).
  29. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), p. 228; Goldman (1951), p. 159.
  30. ^ Guide to U.S. Elections (2010), p. 892; Houpt (2010), pp. 26, 280.
  31. ^ Remini (2000).
  32. ^ Cole (2000).
  33. ^ Gutzman (2000).
  34. ^ Shade (2000).
  35. ^ Abbott (2013), p. 23.
  36. ^ Cash (2018), pp. 34–36.
  37. ^ Rawley (2000).
  38. ^ Smith (2000).
  39. ^ Anbinder (2000).
  40. ^ Abbott (2005), p. 639.
  41. ^ Gara (2000).
  42. ^ Gienapp (2000).
  43. ^ McPherson (b) (2000).
  44. ^ McSeveney (1986), p. 139.
  45. ^ a b c Trefousse (2000).
  46. ^ McPherson (a) (2000).
  47. ^ Hoogenboom (2000).
  48. ^ Peskin (2000).
  49. ^ Reeves (2000).
  50. ^ Greenberger (2017), pp. 174–175.
  51. ^ a b Campbell (2000).
  52. ^ Spetter (2000).
  53. ^ Gould (a) (2000).
  54. ^ Harbaugh (2000).
  55. ^ Abbott (2005), pp. 639–640.
  56. ^ Gould (b) (2000).
  57. ^ Ambrosius (2000).
  58. ^ Hawley (2000).
  59. ^ McCoy (2000).
  60. ^ Senate.
  61. ^ Hoff (a) (2000).
  62. ^ Brinkley (2000).
  63. ^ Hamby (2000).
  64. ^ Abbott (2005), p. 636.
  65. ^ Ambrose (2000).
  66. ^ Parmet (2000).
  67. ^ Gardner (2000).
  68. ^ Abbott (2005), p. 633.
  69. ^ Hoff (b) (2000).
  70. ^ a b Greene (2013).
  71. ^ whitehouse.gov (a).
  72. ^ Schaller (2004).
  73. ^ whitehouse.gov (b).
  74. ^ whitehouse.gov (c).
  75. ^ whitehouse.gov (d).
  76. ^ whitehouse.gov (e).
  77. ^ a b whitehouse.gov (f).

Works cited

General

  • Guide to U.S. Elections. SAGE Publications. 2010. ISBN 978-1-60426-536-1.
  • "Chronological List of Presidents, First Ladies, and Vice Presidents of the United States". Library of Congress. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
  • "Presidents". whitehouse.gov. Retrieved May 14, 2022.

Expert studies

Presidential biographies

Online sources

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