List of Vice Presidents of the United States

The Number One Observatory Circle in Washington, D.C. is the vice president's official residence.

The Official Seal of the Vice President of the United States.

There have been 47 vice presidents of the United States, from John Adams to Joe Biden. Originally, the Vice President was the person who received the second most votes for President in the Electoral College. However, in the election of 1800, a tie in the electoral college between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr led to the selection of the President by the House of Representatives. To prevent such an event from happening again, the Twelfth Amendment was added to the Constitution, creating the current system where electors cast a separate ballot for the vice presidency.^[1]

The Vice President has few powers or duties explicitly provided for in the Constitution. The Vice President's primary function is to succeed to the presidency if the President dies, resigns, or is impeached and removed from office. Nine vice presidents have ascended to the presidency in this way: eight through the president's death, and one, Gerald Ford, through the president's resignation. In addition, the Vice President serves as the President of the Senate and may choose to cast a tie-breaking vote on decisions made by the Senate. Vice presidents have exercised this latter power to varying extents over the years.^[1] The vice presidency was described by former VP John Nance Garner in 1960 as "not worth a bucket of warm piss".^[2]

Prior to passage of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, a vacancy in the office of the Vice President could not be filled until the next post-election inauguration. Such vacancies were common; sixteen occurred before the 25th Amendment was ratified–as a result of seven deaths, one resignation (John C. Calhoun, who resigned to enter Congress), and eight cases in which the vice president succeeded to the presidency. This amendment allowed for a vacancy to be filled with appointment by the President and confirmation by both chambers of the U.S. Congress. Since the Amendment's passage, two vice presidents have been appointed through this process, Gerald Ford of Michigan in 1973 and Nelson Rockefeller of New York in 1974.^[1] The office has been vacant for 13,800 days since the beginning of the United States federal government, or for approximately 37 years and 10 months. To date, 14 vice presidents became president, five of whom via election.

The vice presidents have been elected from 21 states. More than half of them have come from just five states, New York (11), Indiana (5), Massachusetts (4), Kentucky (3), and Texas (3). Most vice presidents have been in their 50s or 60s and had political experience prior to assuming the office.^[1] The youngest person to become Vice President was John C. Breckinridge at 36 years of age, while the oldest is Alben W. Barkley at 71 years of age.

List of vice presidents

Federalist (1)       Democratic-Republican (6)       Democratic (19)       Whig (2)       Republican (20)
№	Portrait	Vice President		State	Term of office	Party	Term [n 1]	Previous office	President
1			John Adams October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826 (aged 90)	Massachusetts	April 21, 1789 – March 4, 1797	None	1 (1789)	United States Minister to the Court of St. James's		Washington
						Federalist	2 (1792)
2			Thomas Jefferson April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826 (aged 83)	Virginia	March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801	Democratic- Republican	3 (1796)	1st United States Secretary of State		J. Adams
3			Aaron Burr February 6, 1756 – September 14, 1836 (aged 80)	New York	March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1805	Democratic- Republican	4 (1800)	U.S. Senator from New York		Jefferson
4			George Clinton July 26, 1739 – April 20, 1812 (aged 72)	New York	March 4, 1805 – April 20, 1812	Democratic- Republican	5 (1804)	1st Governor of New York
							6 (1808)			Madison
V			Vacant (by death)		April 20, 1812 – March 4, 1813
5			Elbridge Gerry July 17, 1744 – November 23, 1814 (aged 70)	Massachusetts	March 4, 1813 – November 23, 1814	Democratic- Republican	7 (1812)	9th Governor of Massachusetts
V			Vacant (by death)		November 23, 1814 – March 4, 1817
6			Daniel D. Tompkins June 21, 1774 – June 11, 1825 (aged 50)	New York	March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825	Democratic- Republican	8 (1816)	Governor of New York		Monroe
							9 (1820)
7			John C. Calhoun March 18, 1782 – March 31, 1850 (aged 68)	South Carolina	March 4, 1825 – December 28, 1832	Democratic- Republican	10 (1824)	10th United States Secretary of War		J.Q. Adams
						Democratic	11 (1828)			Jackson
V			Vacant (by resignation)		December 28, 1832 – March 4, 1833
8			Martin Van Buren December 5, 1782 – July 24, 1862 (aged 79)	New York	March 4, 1833 – March 4, 1837	Democratic	12 (1832)	United States Minister to the Court of St. James's
9			Richard Mentor Johnson October 17, 1780/81 – November 19, 1850 (aged 70)	Kentucky	March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841	Democratic	13 (1836)	U.S. Representative for Kentucky's 13th		Van Buren
10			John Tyler March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862 (aged 71)	Virginia	March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841	Whig	14 (1840)	U.S. Senator from Virginia		W.H. Harrison
V			Vacant (by ascension)		April 4, 1841 – March 4, 1845					Tyler
11			George M. Dallas July 10, 1792 – December 31, 1864 (aged 72)	Pennsylvania	March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849	Democratic	15 (1844)	U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania		Polk
12			Millard Fillmore January 7, 1800 – March 8, 1874 (aged 74)	New York	March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850	Whig	16 (1848)	14th New York State Comptroller		Taylor
V			Vacant (by ascension)		July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853					Fillmore
13			William R. King April 7, 1786 – April 18, 1853 (aged 67)	Alabama	March 4, 1853[n 2] – April 18, 1853	Democratic	17 (1852)	President pro tempore of the Senate		Pierce
V			Vacant (by death)		April 18, 1853 – March 4, 1857
14			John C. Breckinridge January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875 (aged 54)	Kentucky	March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861	Democratic	18 (1856)	U.S. Representative for Kentucky's 8th		Buchanan
15			Hannibal Hamlin August 27, 1809 – July 4, 1891 (aged 81)	Maine	March 4, 1861 – March 4, 1865	Republican	19 (1860)	26th Governor of Maine		Lincoln
16			Andrew Johnson December 29, 1808 – July 31, 1875 (aged 66)	Tennessee	March 4, 1865 – April 15, 1865	Democratic National Union	20 (1864)	U.S. Senator from Tennessee
V			Vacant (by ascension)		April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869					A. Johnson
17			Schuyler Colfax March 23, 1823 – January 13, 1885 (aged 61)	Indiana	March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1873	Republican	21 (1868)	25th Speaker of the House		Grant
18			Henry Wilson February 16, 1812 – November 22, 1875 (aged 63)	Massachusetts	March 4, 1873 – November 22, 1875	Republican	22 (1872)	U.S. Senator from Massachusetts
V			Vacant (by death)		November 22, 1875 – March 4, 1877
19			William A. Wheeler June 30, 1819 – June 4, 1887 (aged 67)	New York	March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881	Republican	23 (1876)	U.S. Representative for New York's 19th		Hayes
20			Chester A. Arthur October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886 (aged 57)	New York	March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881	Republican	24 (1880)	21st Collector of the Port of New York		Garfield
V			Vacant (by ascension)		September 19, 1881 – March 4, 1885					Arthur
21			Thomas A. Hendricks September 7, 1819 – November 25, 1885 (aged 66)	Indiana	March 4, 1885 – November 25, 1885	Democratic	25 (1884)	16th Governor of Indiana		Cleveland
V			Vacant (by death)		November 25, 1885 – March 4, 1889
22			Levi P. Morton May 16, 1824 – May 16, 1920 (aged 96)	New York	March 4, 1889 – March 4, 1893	Republican	26 (1888)	31st Governor of New York		B. Harrison
23			Adlai Stevenson October 23, 1835 – June 14, 1914 (aged 78)	Illinois	March 4, 1893 – March 4, 1897	Democratic	27 (1892)	U.S. Representative for Illinois' 13th		Cleveland
24			Garret Hobart June 3, 1844 – November 21, 1899 (aged 55)	New Jersey	March 4, 1897 – November 21, 1899	Republican	28 (1896)	President of the New Jersey Senate		McKinley
V			Vacant (by death)		November 21, 1899 – March 4, 1901
25			Theodore Roosevelt October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919 (aged 60)	New York	March 4, 1901 – September 14, 1901	Republican	29 (1900)	33rd Governor of New York
V			Vacant (by ascension)		September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1905					T. Roosevelt
26			Charles W. Fairbanks May 11, 1852 – June 4, 1918 (aged 66)	Indiana	March 4, 1905 – March 4, 1909	Republican	30 (1904)	U.S. Senator from Indiana
27			James S. Sherman October 24, 1855 – October 30, 1912 (aged 57)	New York	March 4, 1909 – October 30, 1912	Republican	31 (1908)	U.S. Representative for New York's 27th		Taft
V			Vacant (by death)		October 30, 1912 – March 4, 1913
28			Thomas R. Marshall March 14, 1854 – June 1, 1925 (aged 71)	Indiana	March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921	Democratic	32 (1912)	27th Governor of Indiana		Wilson
							33 (1916)
29			Calvin Coolidge July 4, 1872 – January 5, 1933 (aged 60)	Massachusetts	March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923	Republican	34 (1920)	48th Governor of Massachusetts		Harding
V			Vacant (by ascension)		August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1925					Coolidge
30			Charles G. Dawes August 27, 1865 – April 23, 1951 (aged 85)	Illinois	March 4, 1925 – March 4, 1929	Republican	35 (1924)	Director of the Bureau of the Budget[n 3]
31			Charles Curtis January 25, 1860 – February 8, 1936 (aged 76)	Kansas	March 4, 1929 – March 4, 1933	Republican	36 (1928)	Senate Majority Leader from Kansas		Hoover
32			John Nance Garner November 22, 1868 – November 7, 1967 (aged 98)	Texas	March 4, 1933 – January 20, 1941	Democratic	37 (1932)	39th Speaker of the House		F.D. Roosevelt
							38 (1936)
33			Henry A. Wallace October 7, 1888 – November 18, 1965 (aged 77)	Iowa	January 20, 1941 – January 20, 1945	Democratic	39 (1940)	11th Secretary of Agriculture
34			Harry S. Truman May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972 (aged 88)	Missouri	January 20, 1945 – April 12, 1945	Democratic	40 (1944)	U.S. Senator from Missouri
V			Vacant (by ascension)		April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1949					Truman
35			Alben W. Barkley November 24, 1877 – April 30, 1956 (aged 78)	Kentucky	January 20, 1949 – January 20, 1953	Democratic	41 (1948)	U.S. Senator from Kentucky
36			Richard Nixon January 9, 1913 – April 22, 1994 (aged 81)	California	January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961	Republican	42 (1952)	U.S. Senator from California		Eisenhower
							43 (1956)
37			Lyndon B. Johnson August 27, 1908 – January 22, 1973 (aged 64)	Texas	January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963	Democratic	44 (1960)	Senate Majority Leader from Texas		Kennedy
V			Vacant (by ascension)		November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1965					L. Johnson
38			Hubert Humphrey May 27, 1911 – January 13, 1978 (aged 66)	Minnesota	January 20, 1965 – January 20, 1969	Democratic	45 (1964)	Senate Majority Whip from Minnesota
39			Spiro Agnew November 9, 1918 – September 17, 1996 (aged 77)	Maryland	January 20, 1969 – October 10, 1973	Republican	46 (1968)	55th Governor of Maryland		Nixon
							47 (1972)
V			Vacant (by resignation)		October 10, 1973 – December 6, 1973
40			Gerald Ford July 14, 1913 – December 26, 2006 (aged 93)	Michigan	December 6, 1973[n 4] – August 9, 1974	Republican		House Minority Leader from Michigan's 5th
V			Vacant (by ascension)		August 9, 1974 – December 19, 1974					Ford
41			Nelson Rockefeller July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979 (aged 70)	New York	December 19, 1974 – January 20, 1977	Republican		49th Governor of New York
42			Walter Mondale January 5, 1928	Minnesota	January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981	Democratic	48 (1976)	U.S. Senator from Minnesota		Carter
43			George H. W. Bush June 12, 1924 [3]	Texas	January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989	Republican	49 (1980)	11th Director of Central Intelligence		Reagan
							50 (1984)
44			Dan Quayle February 4, 1947	Indiana	January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993	Republican	51 (1988)	U.S. Senator from Indiana		G.H.W. Bush
45			Al Gore March 31, 1948	Tennessee	January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001	Democratic	52 (1992)	U.S. Senator from Tennessee		Clinton
							53 (1996)
46			Dick Cheney January 30, 1941	Wyoming	January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009	Republican	54 (2000)	17th United States Secretary of Defense		G.W. Bush
							55 (2004)
47			Joe Biden November 20, 1942	Delaware	January 20, 2009 – Incumbent	Democratic	56 (2008)	U.S. Senator from Delaware		Obama
							57 (2012)

Living former vice presidents

As of May 2016, there are five living former vice presidents of the United States, the oldest being George H. W. Bush (1981–1989, born 1924). The most recent death of a former vice president was that of Gerald Ford (1973–1974), on December 26, 2006. The most recently serving vice president to die was Nelson Rockefeller (1974–1977) on January 26, 1979. Pictured below, listed in order of service:

• 

  Walter Mondale
  (1977–1981)
  January 5, 1928
• 

  George H.W. Bush
  (1981–1989)
  June 12, 1924
• 

  Dan Quayle
  (1989–1993)
  February 4, 1947
• 

  Al Gore
  (1993–2001)
  March 31, 1948
• 

  Dick Cheney
  (2001–2009)
  January 30, 1941

Vice presidents who became presidents

A timeline graph of Presidents with a highlighting of those who had been Vice Presidents. A gray arrow points to those who became president without having been elected as president. The double arrow indicates Ford becoming president without having been elected as vice president also. (See source image for more info.)

There have been 14 vice presidents who subsequently became President of the United States.

• John Adams, elected president in 1796, lost reelection in 1800.
• Thomas Jefferson, elected president in 1800, won reelection in 1804.
• Martin Van Buren, elected president in 1836, lost reelection in 1840.
• John Tyler, became president in 1841 when William Henry Harrison died in office, did not seek election in 1844.
• Millard Fillmore, became president in 1850 when Zachary Taylor died in office, did not seek election in 1852, lost election in 1856.
• Andrew Johnson, became president in 1865 when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in office, did not seek election in 1868.
• Chester A. Arthur, became president in 1881 when James A. Garfield was assassinated in office, did not seek election in 1884.
• Theodore Roosevelt, became president in 1901 when William McKinley was assassinated in office, elected in 1904, did not seek reelection in 1908, lost election in 1912.
• Calvin Coolidge, became president in 1923 when Warren G. Harding died in office, elected in 1924, did not seek reelection in 1928.
• Harry S. Truman, became president in 1945 when Franklin D. Roosevelt died in office, elected in 1948, did not seek reelection in 1952.
• Lyndon B. Johnson, became president in 1963 when John F. Kennedy was assassinated in office, elected in 1964, dropped reelection bid in 1968.
• Richard Nixon, elected president in 1968, won reelection in 1972.
• Gerald Ford, became president in 1974 when Richard Nixon resigned from office, lost election in 1976.
• George H. W. Bush, elected president in 1988, lost reelection in 1992.

Of the nine vice presidents who ascended to the presidency after their predecessor's death or resignation, only 4 were subsequently elected in their own right: Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry S. Truman, and Lyndon B. Johnson. Only 3 vice presidents have been elected president once, and then defeated in reelection: John Adams, Martin Van Buren, and George H.W. Bush. Only 2 vice presidents have ever been elected and reelected president: Thomas Jefferson and Richard Nixon (only Jefferson served two full terms). Richard Nixon is the only one on this list who was not serving as vice president when he was elected. Gerald Ford was the only vice president who became president by ascension, secured his party's nomination, and then lost in the general election.

Vice presidents who later served in other offices

• John C. Calhoun, US Senator and US Secretary of State
• Richard M. Johnson, Kentucky House of Representatives
• John Tyler, Provisional Confederate States Congress
• George M. Dallas, US Ambassador to Great Britain
• John C. Breckinridge, US Senator and Confederate States Secretary of War
• Hannibal Hamlin, US Senator and US Ambassador to Spain
• Andrew Johnson, US Senator
• Levi P. Morton, Governor of New York
• Thomas R. Marshall, Federal Coal Commission
• Charles G. Dawes, US Ambassador to Great Britain, Chairman of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation.
• Henry Wallace, US Secretary of Commerce
• Alben W. Barkley, US Senator
• Hubert H. Humphrey, US Senator
• Walter F. Mondale, US Ambassador to Japan.

Miscellaneous

Information about age difference between vice-presidents and their presidents:^[4]

1. Almost half of vice presidents (22 out of 46) were older than their presidents. Of those older VPs who later became president, none began their presidency by election, and only one of them, Lyndon B. Johnson, was later elected.
2. Incumbent (47th) vice president Joe Biden is also older than president Barack Obama, and he is the oldest vice-president compared to his president (18 years, 8 months, 15 days).
3. The biggest age difference between a president and a vice president was between president James Buchanan, and vice president John C. Breckinridge (Breckinridge was younger by 29 years, 8 months, 29 days). This also makes Breckinridge the youngest vice president compared to his president.
4. The least age difference between a president and a vice president was between president Abraham Lincoln, and vice president Andrew Johnson (Johnson was older by 45 days).
5. John C. Breckinridge (at 36) is the youngest person to become vice president.
6. Alben W. Barkley (at 71) is the oldest person to become vice president.

Other information:

1. Al Gore (1992, 1996), Dick Cheney (2000, 2004), and Joe Biden (2008, 2012) are the first three consecutive vice presidents to be elected to two terms.
2. More presidents (8) (William Henry Harrison, Taylor, Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, Franklin Roosevelt, Kennedy) than vice presidents (7) (Clinton, Gerry, King, Wilson, Hendricks, Hobart, Sherman) have died in office. The last death of a sitting vice president was in 1912 (James S. Sherman).
3. Nelson Rockefeller (1974-1977) is the only private citizen to become Vice President who was neither elected to the office, nor was serving in any public office (either elected or appointed) when nominated and confirmed. (Rockefeller had resigned as Governor of New York in 1973 to become Chairman of the "Commission on Critical Choices for Americans." He was serving in this private position up until he was sworn in as the 41st Vice President of the United States. All other Vice Presidents were either elected to the office with the President, or in the case of Gerald Ford, was a member of the House of Representatives when he became Vice President).
4. George Clinton and John C. Calhoun are the only vice presidents who have served under more than one president.
5. There have only been 12 men elected Vice President twice: Adams, Tompkins, Marshall, Garner, Nixon, Agnew, Bush, Gore, Cheney, Biden (each serving under one president), and Clinton and Calhoun (with different presidents.) Clinton, Calhoun, and Agnew did not complete their second terms.
6. From the end of Daniel Tompkins's second term in 1825, no vice president served two complete terms until Thomas Marshall took office in 1913, a gap of 88 years.

See also

• List of Presidents of the United States
• Alexander H. Stephens, the only Vice President of the Confederate States of America

Notes

1. For the purposes of numbering, a presidency is defined as an uninterrupted period of time in office served by one 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 period during which a vice-president temporarily becomes acting president under the Twenty-fifth Amendment is not a presidency, because the president remains in office during such a period.
2. The only Vice President to be sworn in outside of the United States of America (in Havana, Cuba), with special dispensation from Congress; twenty days after the original vice-presidential inauguration.
3. Dawes was an experienced economist whose first elected office was Vice President.
4. Office of Vice President filled under provisions of 25th Amendment.

References

1. "Vice President of the United States (President of the Senate)". United States Senate. Retrieved June 10, 2009.
2. Blumenthal, Sidney (June 28, 2007). "The imperial vice presidency". Salon.com. Retrieved September 22, 2007.
3. Served as Acting President under section 3 of the 25th Amendment on July 13, 1985, from 11:28 a.m. until 7:22 p.m.
4. Calculations made by contributor depending primarily on lists shown in Webster's New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, Barnes and Noble, 2003.

External links

• Official White House website for the Vice President
• Vice Presidents.com
• A New Nation Votes: American Election Returns 1787–1825
• Amendment25.com
• AboutGovernmentStates.com