Since the passage of the 25th Amendment in 1967, we have not had to worry about the line of succession to the presidency. That much needed amendment added clarity to the topic of succession which had changed multiple times since the beginning of our nation in 1789.
In the course of our history, there have been 18 instances of the office of Vice President being vacant. Half of those vacancies were caused by the death or resignation of the president, upon which the Vice President automatically ascended to the presidency as per Article II, Section 1 of the Constitution. The other half of the vacancies were caused by the death or resignation of the Vice President, leaving the office vacant.
In all the 18 instances, a line of succession was tapped to put in place an ‘acting president’ should the president die or become unable to serve. And that’s where the story gets interesting.
There were three occasions where there was a vacancy, with no person in line at all!
The first line of succession law was signed in 1792, placing the President Pro Tempore of the Senate as first in line, followed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives. A Georgian, William H. Crawford, was the first to fill this role in 1812 due to the death of Vice President George Clinton. Crawford, then President Pro Tempore of the Senate, served 11 months as first in line while James Madison was president.
In 1841, President William Henry Harrison died after 30 days in office, elevating Vice President John Tyler. This first ever occurrence of the death of the president was not at all clear cut in terms of succession. Some felt that Tyler was merely the temporary acting president, not fully The President. Tyler was convinced the framers of the Constitution meant for him to be fully empowered as president. He took the presidential oath of office. He returned unopened, any correspondence that did not address him as President of the United States. Ultimately, the House and Senate voted to accept his title as President, ending the drama and ensuring smooth ascensions in future years.
Following the death of President Zachary Taylor in 1850, Vice President Millard Fillmore stepped up to be the president. So, the office of VP was open. However, at that moment, there was no President Pro Tempore of the Senate in office, nor was there an eligible Speaker of the House. This vacancy lasted only 3 days before William King was elected President Pro Tempore of the Senate and becoming first in line.
In 1881, the same scenario played out. President Garfield was assassinated, elevating Vice President Chester Arthur. Without a President Pro Tempore of the Senate nor a Speaker of the House, the vacancy lasted 3 weeks.
During the first term of Grover Cleveland in 1885, the Vice President, Thomas Hendricks, died in office. It took 2 weeks this time to fill the vacancy with John Sherman, President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
A second Succession Act was signed into law in 1886. This legislation dropped the President Pro Tempore and Speaker of the House off the list entirely, putting non-elected cabinet officers in the line of succession for the first time. The Secretary of State was first in line, followed by the Secretary of the Treasury. John Hay, Secretary of State, who initially served as an executive secretary for Abraham Lincoln, was tapped on two occasions to be the next in line for the presidency, once for 16 months under William McKinley, and once for 43 months under Theodore Roosevelt.
A third Succession Act was passed in 1947, signed by Harry Truman. Truman, serving without a Vice President due to the death of Franklin Roosevelt in 1945, wished to see the line of succession changed back to elected officials vs. appointed cabinet secretaries. He was able to get the Speaker of the House placed in first position, followed by the President Pro Tempore of the Senate.
As you could tell, there was no mechanism to put in place a new Vice President if that office became vacant. The 25th Amendment became law in 1967. It allows for the president to nominate a new Vice President and seek approval from both houses of Congress.
Since then, the office of Vice President has been vacant twice, both under Richard Nixon. In 1973, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned. 8 weeks later, Gerald Ford was approved as the new Vice President. In 1974, Richard Nixon resigned the presidency, elevating Ford. 5 months went by before former New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller was approved as the new Vice President.
While much of this may seem of small importance, for the majority of our 234 years as a nation, we suffered uncertainty about who might succeed a president. Now, given the importance of the president as leader of the free world, we can more fully appreciate the value of the 25th amendment, offering clarity to this most important topic.
Interested in learning more about the presidents? Visit the Carolyn & James Millar Presidential Gallery on the upper level of the Booth Western Art Museum. The gallery features original letters and photographs of every U.S. president. Learn more at www.boothmuseum.org.
