Editing United States presidential line of succession

{{Short description|Order of assuming powers of US presidency}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2021}}
[[File:Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office, November 1963.jpg|thumb | upright=.90|[[United States federal judge|Federal judge]] [[Sarah T. Hughes]] administering the presidential oath of office to President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] following the [[assassination of John F. Kennedy]], November 22, 1963 ]]
[[File:Gerald R. Ford is sworn in as President - NARA - 6923692.jpg|thumb|upright=.90|[[Chief Justice of the United States|Chief Justice]] [[Warren Burger]] administering the presidential oath of office to President [[Gerald Ford]] following the [[Watergate scandal#Resignation|resignation]] of [[Richard Nixon]], August 9, 1974 ]]
{{Presidential orders of succession}}

The '''United States presidential line of succession''' is the [[order of succession|order]] in which the [[vice president of the United States]] and other [[Officer of the United States|officers]] of the [[United States federal government]] assume the powers and duties of the [[President of the United States|U.S. presidency]] (or the office itself, in the instance of succession by the vice president) upon an elected president's death, resignation, removal from office, or incapacity.

The order of succession specifies that the office passes to the vice president; if the vice presidency is simultaneously vacant, the powers and duties of the presidency pass to the [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|speaker of the House of Representatives]], [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|president pro tempore of the Senate]], and then [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet secretaries]], depending on eligibility.

Presidential succession is referred to multiple times in the [[U.S. Constitution]]: [[Article II, Section 1, Clause 6]], the [[Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution|12th Amendment]], [[Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution|20th Amendment]], and [[Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|25th Amendment]]. The vice president is designated as first in the presidential line of succession by the Article II succession clause, which also authorizes [[United States Congress|Congress]] to provide for a line of succession beyond the vice president. It has done so on three occasions. The [[Presidential Succession Act]] was adopted in 1947, and last revised in 2006. The 25th Amendment, adopted in 1967, also establishes procedures for filling an intra-term vacancy in the office of the vice president.

The Presidential Succession Act refers specifically to officers beyond the vice president [[Acting president of the United States|''acting as'' president]] rather than ''becoming'' president when filling a vacancy. The Cabinet has 15 members, of which the [[Secretary of State of the United States|secretary of state]] is highest and fourth in line (after the Senate president pro tem); the other Cabinet secretaries follow in the order of when their departments (or the department of which their department is the successor) were created. Those heads of department who are constitutionally not "eligible to the Office of President" are disqualified from assuming the powers and duties of the president through succession and skipped to the next in line. Since 1789, the vice president has succeeded to the presidency intra-term on nine occasions: eight times due to the incumbent's death, and once due to resignation. No one lower in the line of succession has ever been called upon to act as president.

Widely considered a settled issue during the late 20th century, the [[September 11 attacks|terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001]] demonstrated the potential for a [[decapitation strike]] that would kill or incapacitate multiple individuals in the presidential line of succession in addition to many members of Congress and the federal judiciary. In the years immediately following the attacks, numerous wide-ranging discussions were started, in Congress, among academics and within the public policy community about [[continuity of government]] concerns including the existing constitutional and statutory provisions governing presidential succession. These discussions remain ongoing. One effort put forward by the [[Continuity of Government Commission]], a [[Nonpartisanism in the United States|nonpartisan]] [[think tank]], produced three reports (2003, 2009, and 2011), the second of which focused on the implicit ambiguities and limitations in the succession act, and contained recommendations for amending the laws for succession to the presidency.
{{TOC limit|3}}

== Current order of succession ==
The presidential order of succession is set by the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, as amended.<ref>{{cite web | title=Title 3 – The President: Chapter 1 – Presidential Elections and Vacancies | url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2017-title3/pdf/USCODE-2017-title3-chap1.pdf | year=2017 | page=6 | publisher=U.S. Government Publishing Office | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=January 18, 2019 | archive-date=February 9, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230209032853/https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2017-title3/pdf/USCODE-2017-title3-chap1.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref> The order consists of congressional officers, followed by the members of the cabinet in the order of the establishment of each department, provided that each officer satisfies the constitutional requirements for serving as president.<ref>{{cite web | title=Order of Presidential Succession | url=https://www.usa.gov/presidential-succession | website=USA.gov | publisher=US General Services Administration | access-date=November 27, 2024 | archive-date=November 21, 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241121165925/https://www.usa.gov/presidential-succession | url-status=live }}</ref> In the table below, the absence of a number in the first column indicates that the office is either vacant, or that the incumbent is ineligible<!-- add ", and an italicized number indicates that the incumbent's eligibility is uncertain" back in when needed-->.

{|class=wikitable
|-
! <abbr title="Number in line">No.</abbr>
! Office<ref name=wftvAPOTUS>{{cite news| last=Lord| first=Debbie| title=A president resigns, dies or is impeached: What is the line of succession?| url=https://www.wftv.com/news/trending-now/a-president-resigns-dies-or-is-impeached-what-is-the-line-of-succession/772080208| publisher=[[Cox Media Group]]| website=WFTV.com| date=June 18, 2018| access-date=June 18, 2018| archive-date=November 11, 2020| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111175501/https://www.wftv.com/news/trending-now/a-president-resigns-dies-or-is-impeached-what-is-the-line-of-succession/772080208/| url-status=live}}</ref>
! Incumbent
! colspan=2 |Party
|-
| 1
| [[Vice President of the United States|Vice President]]
| [[Kamala Harris]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
|-
| 2
| [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House of Representatives]]
| [[Mike Johnson]]
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (United States)}}" | 
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
|-
| 3
| [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| [[Chuck Grassley]]
| style="background: {{party color|Republican  Party (US)}}" |
| Republican
|- 
| 4
| [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| [[Antony Blinken]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|-
| 5
| [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|Secretary of the Treasury]]
| [[Janet Yellen]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|-
| 6
| [[United States Secretary of Defense|Secretary of Defense]]
| [[Lloyd Austin]]
| style="background: {{party color|Unknown Party (US)}}" | 
| None
|- 
| 7
| [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]]
| [[Merrick Garland]]
| style="background: {{party color|Unknown Party (US)}}" |
| None
|- 
| 8
| [[United States Secretary of the Interior|Secretary of the Interior]]
| [[Deb Haaland]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|-
| 9
| [[United States Secretary of Agriculture|Secretary of Agriculture]]
| [[Tom Vilsack]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- 
| 10
| [[United States Secretary of Commerce|Secretary of Commerce]]
| [[Gina Raimondo]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- style="background:#f0eef2"
| ''11''{{efn-ua | name=eligibleif|Eligible if [[acting (law)|acting]] officers whose prior executive branch appointment required Senate confirmation are included in the line of succession, which is unclear. The current succession act states that the list of eligible cabinet officers includes only "officers appointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate," whereas the previous act stated that the list (of eligible cabinet secretaries) only applied to persons confirmed to "the offices therein named," thus excluded acting secretaries. Many officials who serve as acting secretaries have previously received Senate confirmations for deputy-level posts, and so might be eligible under the more ambiguous wording of the current law.<ref name=continuity2brookings>{{cite web | title=The Continuity of the Presidency: The Second Report of the Continuity of Government Commission | url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2009/06_continuity_of_government/06_continuity_of_government.pdf | series=Preserving Our Institutions | page=34 | publisher=Continuity of Government Commission | location=Washington, D.C. | date=June 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304060729/http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/reports/2009/7/06%20continuity%20of%20government/06_continuity_of_government.pdf | archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status = dead| via=WebCite | accessdate=May 23, 2012}}</ref>}}
| [[United States Secretary of Labor|Secretary of Labor]]
| [[Julie Su]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|-
| 12
| [[United States Secretary of Health and Human Services|Secretary of Health and Human Services]]
| [[Xavier Becerra]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- style="background:#f0eef2"
| ''13''{{efn-ua | name=eligibleif}}
| [[United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development|Secretary of Housing and Urban Development]]
| [[Adrianne Todman]]
| style="background: {{party color|Unknown Party (US)}}" |
| None
|-
| 14
| [[United States Secretary of Transportation|Secretary of Transportation]]
| [[Pete Buttigieg]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- style="background:#dddddd"
| –{{efn-ua|name=naturalized|Ineligible due to being a [[Naturalized citizen of the United States|naturalized]] citizen, not [[Natural-born-citizen clause (United States)|natural-born]].}}
| [[United States Secretary of Energy|Secretary of Energy]]
| [[Jennifer Granholm]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- 
| 15
| [[United States Secretary of Education|Secretary of Education]]
| [[Miguel Cardona]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- 
| 16
| [[United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs|Secretary of Veterans Affairs]]
| [[Denis McDonough]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|- style="background:#dddddd"
| –{{efn-ua|name=naturalized}}
| [[United States Secretary of Homeland Security|Secretary of Homeland Security]]
| [[Alejandro Mayorkas]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| Democratic
|}

== Constitutional provisions ==

=== Presidential eligibility ===
[[Article Two of the United States Constitution#Clause 5: Qualifications for office|Article II, Section 1, Clause 5]] of the Constitution sets three qualifications for holding the presidency: One must be a [[Natural-born-citizen clause (United States)|natural-born citizen]] of the United States (or a citizen at the time of the adoption of the Constitution, in 1788), be at least 35 years of age and have been a [[Residency (domicile)#United States|resident in the United States]] for at least fourteen years.<ref>{{cite web | title=Article II. The Executive Branch, Annenberg Classroom | url=https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/articles/article-ii/article-ii-annenberg/interp/19 | work=The Interactive Constitution | publisher=The National Constitution Center | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | access-date=June 15, 2018 | archive-date=April 17, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417095830/https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/articles/article-ii/article-ii-annenberg/interp/19 | url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn-ua|The final sentence of the [[Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution|12th Amendment]] explicitly states that the constitutional qualifications for holding the presidency also apply to being vice president.<ref>{{cite journal | last1=Peabody | first1=Bruce G. | last2=Gant | first2=Scott E. | date=February 1999 | title=The Twice and Future President: Constitutional Interstices and the Twenty-Second Amendment | url=http://alpha.fdu.edu/~peabody/Twice_and_Future_President.html | journal=Minnesota Law Review | publisher=University of Minnesota Law School | location=Minneapolis | volume=83 | issue=3 | pages=565–635 | access-date=June 12, 2015 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115121046/http://alpha.fdu.edu/~peabody/Twice_and_Future_President.html | archive-date=January 15, 2013}}</ref>}}

=== Presidential succession ===

The presidential line of succession is mentioned in four places in the Constitution:

* [[Article II, Section 1, Clause 6]] makes the vice president first in the line of succession and allows the [[United States Congress|Congress]] to provide by law for cases in which neither the president nor vice president can serve.<ref name=A2essayPS>{{cite web | last=Feerick | first=John | title=Essays on Article II: Presidential Succession | work=The Heritage Guide to the Constitution | url=https://www.heritage.org/constitution/#!/articles/2/essays/83/presidential-succession | publisher=The Heritage Foundation | access-date=June 12, 2018 | archive-date=August 22, 2020 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20200822232208/https://www.heritage.org/constitution/%23!/amendments/8/essays/161/cruel-and-unusual-punishment#!/articles/2/essays/83/presidential-succession | url-status=live }}</ref>
* The [[Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution|12th Amendment]] provided that the vice president would also fill any vacancy of the presidency arising from failure of the House of Representatives to choose a president in a [[contingent election]].<ref name=Feerick2011FLR>{{cite journal | last=Feerick | first=John D. | date=2011 | title=Presidential Succession and Inability: Before and After the Twenty-Fifth Amendment | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4695&context=flr | journal=Fordham Law Review | volume=79 | issue=3 | pages=907–949 | access-date=June 18, 2018 | archive-date=October 11, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201011081029/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4695&context=flr | url-status=live }}</ref>
* The [[Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution|20th Amendment]], Section 3, supersedes the above 12th Amendment provision, by declaring that if the [[President-elect of the United States|president-elect]] dies before his term begins, the vice president-elect becomes president on [[United States presidential inauguration|Inauguration Day]] and serves for the full term to which the president-elect was elected, and also that, if on Inauguration Day, a president has not been chosen or the president-elect does not qualify for the presidency, the vice president-elect acts as president until a president is chosen or the president-elect qualifies. It also authorizes Congress to provide for instances in which neither a president-elect nor a vice president-elect have qualified.<ref>{{cite web | title=The Twentieth Amendment | last1=Larson | first1=Edward J. | last2=Shesol | first2=Jeff | url=https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-xx | work=The Interactive Constitution | publisher=The National Constitution Center | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | access-date=June 15, 2018 | archive-date=August 28, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190828202655/https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-xx | url-status=live }}</ref>
* The [[Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution|25th Amendment]], Section 1, clarifies Article II, Section 1, Clause 6, by stating unequivocally that the vice president is the direct successor of the president, and becomes president if the incumbent dies, resigns or is removed from office. It also, in sections 3 and 4, provides for situations where the president is temporarily disabled, such as if the president has a surgical procedure or becomes mentally unfit, establishing procedures whereby the vice president can become acting president. Additionally, in Section 2, the amendment provides a mechanism for intra-term vice presidential succession, establishing that a [[Vice President of the United States#Vacancies|vice presidential vacancy]] will be filled by a president's nominee upon confirmation by a majority vote of both houses of Congress.{{efn-ua|This section 2 of the 25th Amendment has been invoked twice: {{Nowrap|1973—}}[[Gerald Ford]] was [[1973 United States vice presidential confirmation|nominated and confirmed]] to office following [[Spiro Agnew]]'s resignation. {{Nowrap|1974—}}[[Nelson Rockefeller]] was [[1974 United States vice presidential confirmation|nominated and confirmed]] to office after Ford became president upon [[Richard Nixon]]'s resignation.<ref name=CRSsuccession05>{{cite web | last=Neale | first=Thomas H. | title=Presidential and Vice Presidential Succession: Overview and Current Legislation | page=5 | work=CRS Report for Congress | url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31761.pdf | publisher=[[Congressional Research Service]], the [[Library of Congress]] | location=Washington, D.C. | date=September 27, 2004 | access-date=June 16, 2018 | archive-date=November 14, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114173057/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31761.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref>}} Previously, whenever a vice president had succeeded to the presidency or had died or resigned from office, the vice presidency remained vacant until the next presidential and vice presidential terms began; there were 16 such vacancies prior to 1967.<ref name=NCC25th>{{cite web | title=The Twenty-fifth Amendment | last1=Kalt | first1=Brian C. | last2=Pozen | first2=David | url=https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-xxv | work=The Interactive Constitution | publisher=The National Constitution Center | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | access-date=June 15, 2018 | archive-date=September 4, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190904214749/https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-xxv | url-status=live }}</ref>

== Succession acts ==
{{Main|Presidential Succession Act}}

===Act of 1792===
The Presidential Succession Act of 1792 ({{Cws | title=Full text | link=Presidential Succession Act 1792 | nobullet=yes}}) provided for succession after the president and vice president: first, the president pro tempore of the Senate, followed by the speaker of the House.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://time.com/4071416/house-speaker-presidential-succession/ | title=America's System for Presidential Succession is Ridiculous | last=Spivak | first=Joshua | date=October 14, 2015 | magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | access-date=June 18, 2018 | archive-date=May 13, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190513221553/http://time.com/4071416/house-speaker-presidential-succession/ | url-status=live }}</ref> The statute provided that the presidential successor would serve in an acting capacity, holding office only until a new president could be elected.<ref name=CRS2005continuity>{{cite web | last=Relyea | first=Harold C. | title=Continuity of Government: Current Federal Arrangements and the Future | work=CRS Report for Congress | url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/secrecy/RS21089.pdf | publisher=[[Congressional Research Service]], the [[Library of Congress]] | location=Washington, D.C. | pages=2–4 | date=August 5, 2005 | access-date=June 16, 2018 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114194610/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/secrecy/RS21089.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref> A special election was to be held in November of the year in which dual vacancies occurred (unless the vacancies occurred after the first Wednesday in October, in which case the election would occur the following year; or unless the vacancies occurred within the last year of the presidential term, in which case the next election would take place as regularly scheduled). The persons elected president and vice president in such a special election would have served a full four-year term beginning on March 4 of the next year. No such election ever took place.<ref name=HLR1905>{{cite journal| last=Hamlin| first=Charles S.| title=The Presidential Succession Act of 1886| journal=Harvard Law Review| date=January 1905| volume=18| issue=3| pages=182–195| publisher=The Harvard Law Review Association| doi=10.2307/1323239| jstor=1323239| url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1323239| access-date=March 13, 2021|archive-date=January 2, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102143720/https://www.jstor.org/stable/1323239| url-status=live}}</ref>

Various framers of the Constitution, such as [[James Madison]], criticized the arrangement as being contrary to their intent. The decision to build the line of succession around those two officials was made after a long and contentious debate. In addition to the president pro tempore and the speaker, both the secretary of state and the [[Chief Justice of the United States|chief justice]] of the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] were also suggested.<ref name=HLR1905/> Including the secretary of state was unacceptable to most [[Federalist Party|Federalists]], who did not want the then secretary of state, [[Thomas Jefferson]], who had become the leader of the opposition [[Democratic-Republican Party|Democratic-Republicans]], to follow the vice president in the succession, and many objected to including the chief justice due to [[separation of powers]] concerns.<ref name=A2essayPS/><ref name=65FFH5762>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=57–62 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Act of 1886===
The Presidential Succession Act of 1886 ({{Cws | title=Full text | link=Presidential Succession Act 1886 | nobullet=yes}}) established succession to include the members of the President's cabinet in the order of the establishment of the various departments, beginning with the Secretary of State,{{efn-ua|Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of War, Attorney-General, Postmaster-General, Secretary of the Navy, and Secretary of the Interior.}} and stipulated that any official discharging the powers and duties of the presidency must possess the constitutional qualifications to hold the office.<ref name=CRS2005continuity/> The president pro tempore and Speaker were excluded from the new line, and the provision mandating a special presidential election when a double vacancy arose was also dropped.<ref name=HLR1905/>

The need for increasing the number of presidential successors was abundantly clear to Congress, for twice within the span of just over four years it happened that there was no one in the presidential line of succession. In September 1881, when [[Chester A. Arthur]] succeeded to the presidency following [[James A. Garfield]]'s death, there was no vice president, no president pro tempore of the Senate, and no Speaker of the House of Representatives.<ref name=Feerick2011FLR/> Then, in November 1885, [[Grover Cleveland]] faced a similar situation, following the death of Vice President [[Thomas A. Hendricks]], as the Senate and the House had not convened yet to elect new officers.<ref name="harpers">{{cite book | title=Harper's Book of Facts: a Classified History of the World; Embracing Science, Literature, and Art | last1=Lewis | first1=Charlton Thomas | last2=Willsey | first2=Joseph H. | year=1895 | publisher=Harper & Brothers | location=New York | page=884 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UcwGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA884 | access-date=April 24, 2011 | lccn=01020386 | archive-date=January 2, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230102135548/https://books.google.com/books?id=UcwGAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA884 | url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Act of 1947 ===
The Presidential Succession Act of 1947 ({{Cws | title=Full text | link=Presidential Succession Act 1947 | nobullet=yes}}), which was signed into law on July 18, 1947,<ref name=CRS2005continuity/> restored the speaker of the House and president pro tempore of the Senate to the line of succession—but in reverse-order from their 1792 positions—and placed them ahead of the members of the Cabinet, positioned, as before, in the order of the establishment of their department.<ref name=wftvAPOTUS/>{{efn-ua|Secretary of State, Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of War, Attorney General, Postmaster General, Secretary of the Navy, Secretary of the Interior, Secretary of Agriculture, Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Labor.}}

Placing the speaker and the president pro tempore (both elected officials) back in the succession and placing them ahead of cabinet members (all of whom are appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate), was [[Harry S. Truman]]'s idea. Personally conveyed to Congress in June 1945, two months after becoming president upon [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s death, the proposal reflected Truman's belief that the president should not have the power to appoint to office "the person who would be my immediate successor in the event of my own death or inability to act", and that the presidency should, whenever possible, "be filled by an elective officer."<ref name=CRS2005continuity/><ref>{{cite web | last=Truman | first=Harry S. | title=Special Message to the Congress on the Succession to the Presidency | date=June 19, 1945 | others=Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project | url=https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/special-message-the-congress-the-succession-the-presidency | access-date=January 22, 2018 | archive-date=January 23, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190123010822/https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/special-message-the-congress-the-succession-the-presidency | url-status=live }}</ref>

===Further amendments===
The 1947 act has been modified several times, with changes being made as the face of the federal bureaucracy has changed over the ensuing years. Its most recent change came about in 2006, when the [[USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act]] added the [[United States Secretary of Homeland Security|secretary of homeland security]] to the presidential line of succession.<ref name=CNN10242017>{{cite news | title=Succession: Presidential and Vice Presidential Fast Facts | url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/08/27/us/succession-presidential-and-vice-presidential-fast-facts/index.html | publisher=Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. | website=CNN.com | date=August 27, 2013 | access-date=June 20, 2018 | archive-date=October 3, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201003005913/https://www.cnn.com/2013/08/27/us/succession-presidential-and-vice-presidential-fast-facts/index.html | url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn-ua|{{Nowrap|1947—}}substituted Secretary of Defense for Secretary of War and struck out Secretary of the Navy. {{Nowrap|1965—}}added Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare and also Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. {{Nowrap|1966—}}added Secretary of Transportation. {{Nowrap|1970—}}removed Postmaster General. {{Nowrap|1977—}}added Secretary of Energy. {{Nowrap|1979—}}substituted Secretary of Health and Human Services for Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare and added Secretary of Education. {{Nowrap|1988—}}Secretary of Veterans Affairs. {{Nowrap|2006—}}Secretary of Homeland Security.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://law.justia.com/codes/us/2016/title-3/chapter-1/sec.-19/ | title=2016 US Code Title 3 – The President Chapter 1 – Presidential Elections and Vacancies Sec. 19 – Vacancy in offices of both President and Vice President; officers eligible to act | work=US Law | publisher=Justia | location=Mountain View, California | access-date=June 19, 2018 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114220247/https://law.justia.com/codes/us/2016/title-3/chapter-1/sec.-19/ | url-status=live }}</ref>}}

== Ambiguities regarding succession and inability ==
[[File:John Tyler.jpg|thumb | upright=.80|In April 1841, [[John Tyler]] became the first person to succeed to the presidency intra-term upon the death of [[William Henry Harrison]].]]
Although the Presidential Succession Clause in Article II of the Constitution clearly provided for the vice president to take over the "powers and duties" of the presidency in the event of a president's removal, death, resignation, or inability, left unclear was whether the vice president became president of the United States or simply [[Acting (law)|temporarily acted]] as president in a case of succession.<ref name=A2essayPS/> Some historians, including [[Edward Samuel Corwin|Edward Corwin]] and [[John Feerick|John D. Feerick]],<ref name="Schlesinger"/> have argued that the framers' intention was that the vice president would remain vice president while executing the powers and duties of the presidency until a new president could be elected.<ref name=justiaPS>{{cite web | url=https://law.justia.com/constitution/us/article-2/05-presidential-succession.html | title=Presidential Succession | work=US Law | publisher=Justia | location=Mountain View, California | access-date=June 15, 2018 | archive-date=August 3, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803113608/https://law.justia.com/constitution/us/article-2/05-presidential-succession.html | url-status=live }}</ref>

The hypothetical debate about whether the office or merely the powers of the office devolve upon a vice president who succeeds to the presidency between elections became an urgent constitutional issue in 1841, when President [[William Henry Harrison]] died in office. Vice President [[John Tyler]] claimed a constitutional mandate to carry out the full powers and duties of the presidency, asserting he was the president and not merely a temporary acting president, by taking the [[Oath of office of the President of the United States|presidential oath of office]].<ref name=JTDA>{{cite web | title=John Tyler: Domestic Affairs | last=Freehling | first=William | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/tyler/domestic-affairs | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 15, 2018 | archive-date=November 26, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211126110932/https://millercenter.org/president/tyler/domestic-affairs | url-status=live }}</ref>

Many around him—including [[John Quincy Adams]],<ref name="Schlesinger">{{cite journal | last=Schlesinger | first=Arthur M. Jr. | title=On the Presidential Succession | journal=Political Science Quarterly | date=Autumn 1974 | volume=89 | issue=3 | pages=475, 495–496 | doi=10.2307/2148451 | jstor=2148451}}</ref><ref name="Rankin">{{cite journal | last=Rankin | first=Robert S. | title=Presidential Succession in the United States | journal=The Journal of Politics | date=Feb 1946 | volume=8 | issue=1 | jstor=2125607 | pages=44–56 | doi=10.2307/2125607| s2cid=153441210 }}</ref> [[Henry Clay]]<ref name="Abbott">{{cite journal | doi=10.1111/j.1741-5705.2005.00269.x | last=Abbott | first=Philip|author-link = Philip Abbott (academic)| title=Accidental Presidents: Death, Assassination, Resignation, and Democratic Succession | journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly | date=Dec 2005 | volume=35 | issue=4 | pages=627–645 | jstor=27552721}}</ref> and other members of Congress,<ref name="Rankin"/><ref name="Abbott"/> along with Whig party leaders,<ref name="Abbott"/> and even Tyler's own cabinet<ref name="Rankin"/><ref name="Abbott"/>—believed that he was only acting as president and did not have the office itself. He was nicknamed "His Accidency" and excoriated as a usurper.<ref name=JTDA/> Nonetheless, Tyler adhered to his position, even returning, unopened, mail addressed to the "Acting President of the United States" sent by his detractors.<ref>{{cite book | last=Crapol | first=Edward P. | title=John Tyler: the accidental president | year=2006 | publisher=UNC Press Books | isbn=978-0-8078-3041-3 | oclc=469686610 | page=[https://archive.org/details/johntyleracciden00edwa/page/10 10] | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/johntyleracciden00edwa/page/10 }}</ref> Tyler's view ultimately prevailed when the House and Senate voted to accept the title "President",<ref name="Abbott"/> setting a precedent for an orderly transfer of presidential power following a president's death,<ref name=JTDA/> one that was subsequently written into the Constitution as section 1 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment.<ref name=justiaPS/>

Even after the precedent regarding presidential succession due to the president's death was set, the part of the Presidential Succession Clause that provided for replacing a disabled president remained unclear. What constituted an "inability"? Who determined the existence of an inability? Did a vice president become president for the rest of the presidential term in the case of an inability; or was the vice president merely "acting as President"? Due to this lack of clarity, later vice presidents were hesitant to assert any role in cases of presidential inability.<ref name=XXVHeritage>{{cite web | title=Essays on Amendment XXV: Presidential Succession | work=The Heritage Guide to the Constitution | last=Feerick | first=John | url=https://www.heritage.org/constitution/#!/amendments/25/essays/187/presidential-succession | publisher=The Heritage Foundation | access-date=June 22, 2018 | archive-date=August 22, 2020 | archive-url=https://archive.today/20200822232208/https://www.heritage.org/constitution/%23!/amendments/8/essays/161/cruel-and-unusual-punishment#!/amendments/25/essays/187/presidential-succession | url-status=live }}</ref> Two situations are noteworthy:

*  On July 2, 1881, President [[James A. Garfield]] was shot; hit from behind by two bullets (one grazing his arm and the other lodging in his back).<ref name=65FFH11827>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=118–127 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref> The president wavered between life and death for 80 days after the shooting; it was the first time that the nation as a whole experienced the uncertainties associated with a prolonged period of presidential inability.<ref name=Feerick2011FLR/> Most disconcerting, especially for [[Garfield administration]] personnel and members of Congress, was the lack of constitutional guidance on how to handle the situation. No one was sure who, if anyone, should exercise presidential authority while the president was disabled; many urged Vice President [[Chester A. Arthur]] to step up, but he declined, fearful of being labeled a usurper. Aware that he was in a delicate position and that his every action was placed under scrutiny, Arthur remained secluded in his [[Chester A. Arthur Home|New York City home]] for most of the summer. Members of the Garfield Cabinet conferred daily with the president's doctors and kept the vice president informed of significant developments on the president's condition.<ref name=65FFH11827/>
*  In October 1919, President [[Woodrow Wilson]] suffered a debilitating [[stroke]]. Nearly blind and partially paralyzed, he spent the final 17 months of [[Presidency of Woodrow Wilson|his presidency]] sequestered in the White House.<ref>{{cite web | last=Amber | first=Saladin | title=Woodrow Wilson: Life After The Presidency | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/wilson/life-after-the-presidency | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 23, 2018 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114215847/https://millercenter.org/president/wilson/life-after-the-presidency | url-status=live }}</ref> Vice President [[Thomas R. Marshall]], the cabinet, and the nation were kept in the dark over the severity of the president's illness for several months. Marshall was pointedly afraid to ask about Wilson's health, or to preside over cabinet meetings, fearful that he would be accused of "longing for his place". Though members of both parties in Congress pledged to support him if he asserted his claim to the presidential powers and duties, Marshall declined to act, or to do anything that might seem ambitious or disloyal to Wilson.<ref>{{cite web | title=Thomas R. Marshall, 28th Vice President (1913–1921) | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_Thomas_Marshall.htm | work=Biographical Dictionary of the United States Congress 1774{{snd}}Present | publisher=United States Congress | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 23, 2018 | archive-date=March 4, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230304054354/https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/general/one_item_and_teasers/file_not_found.htm | url-status=live }}</ref> At a time when the fight over joining the [[League of Nations]] was reaching a climax, and domestic issues such as strikes, unemployment, inflation and the threat of Communism were demanding action, the operations of the executive branch were once more hampered due to the fact that there was no constitutional basis for declaring that the president was unable to function.<ref>{{cite book | last=Cooper | first=John M. | author-link=John M. Cooper (historian) | title=Woodrow Wilson: A Biography | page=555 | date=2009 | publisher=Alfred A. Knopf | isbn=978-0-307-26541-8}}</ref>

When President [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] suffered a heart attack in September 1955, he and Vice President [[Richard Nixon]] developed an informal plan authorizing Nixon to assume some administrative duties during Eisenhower's recovery. Although it did not have the force of law, the plan helped to reassure the nation. The agreement also contained a provision whereby Eisenhower could declare his own inability and, if unable to do so, empowered Nixon, with appropriate consultation, to make the decision.<ref name=XXVHeritage/> Had it been invoked, Nixon would have served as acting president until the president issued a declaration of his recovery. Moved forward as a consequence of President Kennedy's November 1963 assassination, this informal plan evolved into constitutional procedure a decade later through Sections 3 and 4 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment, which resolved the uncertainties surrounding presidential disability.<ref name=NCC25th/>

== Presidential succession by vice presidents ==

Nine vice presidents have succeeded to the presidency intra-term, eight due to the president's death, and one due to the president's resignation from office.<ref name=Feerick2011FLR/><ref name=CNN10242017/>
{| class="wikitable sortable"
!scope="col"| Successor<ref name=CRSsuccession22>{{cite web | last=Neale | first=Thomas H. | title=Presidential and Vice Presidential Succession: Overview and Current Legislation | page=22 | work=CRS Report for Congress | url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31761.pdf | publisher=[[Congressional Research Service]], the [[Library of Congress]] | location=Washington, D.C. | date=September 27, 2004 | access-date=June 16, 2018 | archive-date=November 14, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201114173057/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31761.pdf | url-status=live }}</ref>
!scope="col" colspan="2" |Party<ref name=CRSsuccession22/>
!scope="col"| President
!scope="col"| Reason
!scope="col"| Date of succession<ref name=CRSsuccession22/><ref name=VP-PS>{{cite web | title=Vice President of the United States (President of the Senate) | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Vice_President.htm | publisher=Office of the Secretary, United States Senate | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 20, 2018 | archive-date=November 15, 2002 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021115191818/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Vice_President.htm | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|tylerj|[[John Tyler]]}}
| style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |
| [[Whig Party (United States)|Whig]]
| [[William&nbsp;Henry Harrison]] 
| [[List of presidents of the United States who died in office#1841: William Henry Harrison|Death]]
| {{dts|1841|4|4}}, {{age in days|1841|03|04|1841|04|04}} days into Harrison's presidency.<ref>{{cite web | title=William Harrison: Death of the President | last=Freehling | first=William | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/harrison/death-of-the-president | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=August 18, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818234023/https://millercenter.org/president/harrison/death-of-the-president | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|fillmorem|[[Millard Fillmore]]}}
| style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |
| [[Whig Party (United States)|Whig]]
| [[Zachary Taylor]]
| [[List of presidents of the United States who died in office#1850: Zachary Taylor|Death]]
| {{dts|1850|7|9}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1849|03|04|1850|07|09}} into Taylor's presidency.<ref>{{cite web | title=Zachary Taylor: Death of the President | last=Holt | first=Michael | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/taylor/death-of-the-president | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=June 19, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619012711/https://millercenter.org/president/taylor/death-of-the-president | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|johnsona|[[Andrew Johnson]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|National Union Party (US)}}" |
| [[National Union Party (United States)|National Union]]
| [[Abraham Lincoln]]
| [[Assassination of Abraham Lincoln|Death]]
| {{dts|1865|4|15}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1865|03|04|1865|04|15}} into Lincoln's 2nd term.<ref>{{cite web | title=Abraham Lincoln: Death of the President | last=Burlingame | first=Michael | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/lincoln/death-of-the-president | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=June 20, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620232032/https://millercenter.org/president/lincoln/death-of-the-president | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|arthurc|[[Chester A. Arthur]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| [[James A. Garfield]] 
| [[Assassination of James A. Garfield|Death]]
| {{dts|1881|9|19}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1881|03|04|1881|09|19}} into Garfield's presidency.<ref>{{cite web | title=James Garfield | website=WhiteHouse.gov | others=From "The Presidents of the United States of America". (2006) Washington, D.C.: White House Historical Association | last1=Freidel | first1=Frank | last2=Sidey | first2=Hugh | url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/james-garfield/ | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=May 15, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210515191039/https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/james-garfield/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|rooseveltt|[[Theodore Roosevelt]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| [[William McKinley]] 
| [[Assassination of William McKinley|Death]]
| {{dts|1901|9|14}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1901|03|04|1901|09|14}} into McKinley's 2nd term.<ref>{{cite web | title=William McKinley | url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/william-mckinley/ | website=WhiteHouse.gov | last1=Freidel | first1=Frank | last2=Sidey | first2=Hugh | others=From "The Presidents of the United States of America". (2006) Washington D.C.: White House Historical Association. | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=March 9, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230309154551/https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/william-mckinley/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|coolidgec|[[Calvin Coolidge]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| [[Warren G. Harding]]
| [[List of presidents of the United States who died in office#1923: Warren G. Harding|Death]]
| {{dts|1923|8|2}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1921|03|04|1923|08|02}} into Harding's presidency.<ref>{{cite web | title=Warren G. Harding: Death of the President | last=Trani | first=Eugene P. | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/harding/death-of-the-president | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=June 20, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620232020/https://millercenter.org/president/harding/death-of-the-president | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|trumanh|[[Harry S. Truman]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]
| [[List of presidents of the United States who died in office#1945: Franklin D. Roosevelt|Death]]
| {{dts|1945|4|12}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1945|01|20|1945|04|12}} into Roosevelt's 4th term.<ref>{{cite web | title=Franklin D. Roosevelt | url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/franklin-d-roosevelt/ | website=WhiteHouse.gov | last1=Freidel | first1=Frank | last2=Sidey | first2=Hugh | others=From "The Presidents of the United States of America". (2006) Washington D.C.: White House Historical Association. | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=December 19, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171219130407/https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/franklin-d-roosevelt/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|johnsonl|[[Lyndon B. Johnson]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| [[John F. Kennedy]]
| [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|Death]]
| {{dts|1963|11|22}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1961|01|20|1963|11|22}} into Kennedy's presidency.<ref>{{cite web | title=John F. Kennedy | url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/john-f-kennedy/ | website=WhiteHouse.gov | last1=Freidel | first1=Frank | last2=Sidey | first2=Hugh | others=From "The Presidents of the United States of America". (2006) Washington D.C.: White House Historical Association. | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=May 5, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230505002146/https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/john-f-kennedy/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|scope="row"| {{sort|fordg|[[Gerald Ford]]}}
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| [[Richard Nixon]]
| [[Resignation of Richard Nixon|Resignation]]
| {{dts|1974|8|9}}, {{Age in years, months and days|1973|01|20|1974|08|09}} into Nixon's 2nd term.<ref>{{cite web | title=Richard Nixon: Life After the Presidency | last=Hughes | first=Ken | date=October 4, 2016 | url=https://millercenter.org/president/nixon/life-after-the-presidency | publisher=Miller Center of Public Affairs, University of Virginia | location=Charllotesville, Virginia | access-date=June 17, 2018 | archive-date=June 20, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180620232030/https://millercenter.org/president/nixon/life-after-the-presidency | url-status=live }}</ref>
|}

Additionally, three vice presidents have temporarily assumed the powers and duties of the presidency as acting president, as authorized by Section 3 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment: [[George H. W. Bush]] did so once, on July 13, 1985; [[Dick Cheney]] did so twice, on June 29, 2002 and again on July 21, 2007; and [[Kamala Harris]] did so once, on November 19, 2021.<ref>{{cite news|last=Olsen|first=Jillian|title=How many other vice presidents have temporarily taken over presidential powers?|date=November 19, 2021|url=https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/history/presidential-transfer-of-power-biden-bush-reagan/67-17f1fa96-f44a-4050-a53c-593f55e4949f|publisher=[[WTSP]]|location=St. Petersburg, Florida|access-date=November 19, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Sullivan|first=Kate|title=For 85 minutes, Kamala Harris became the first woman with presidential power|date=November 19, 2021|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/19/politics/kamala-harris-presidential-power/index.html|publisher=CNN|access-date=November 19, 2021|archive-date=May 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510101502/https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/19/politics/kamala-harris-presidential-power/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

== Presidential succession beyond the vice president ==
[[File:Inauguration of Gerald Ford as Vice-President, undated.jpg|200px|thumb|1st-in-line of succession, new Vice President Gerald Ford addressed Congress in 1973 in front of 2nd-in-line Speaker of the House Carl Albert, and 3rd-in-line President pro tempore of the Senate James Eastland.]]
While several vice presidents have succeeded to the presidency upon the death or resignation of the president, and a number of them have died or resigned, the offices of president and vice president have never been simultaneously vacant;{{efn-ua|Various friends and colleagues of Senator [[David Rice Atchison]] asserted that both offices were vacant on March 4–5, 1849, because the [[Term of office|terms]] of President [[Zachary Taylor]] and Vice President [[Millard Fillmore]] began on March 4, but neither took their oath of office on that day{{snd}}following precedent as the day fell on a Sunday. The [[United States presidential inauguration|inauguration]] was held the next day, Monday, March 5.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/past-inaugural-ceremonies/16th-inaugural-ceremonies/ | title=The 16th Presidential Inauguration: Zachary Taylor, March 5, 1849 | publisher=Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies | access-date=June 28, 2018 | archive-date=March 4, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200304162320/https://www.inaugural.senate.gov/about/past-inaugural-ceremonies/16th-inaugural-ceremonies/ | url-status=dead }}</ref> Consequently, they considered [[David Rice Atchison]], by virtue of being the last [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|president ''pro tempore'' of the Senate]] in the out-going Congress, to have been Acting President of the United States during the day-long [[Interregnum]] in accordance with the [[Presidential Succession Act#Presidential Succession Act of 1792|Presidential Succession Act of 1792]]. Historians, constitutional scholars and biographers all dismiss the claim. Atchison did not take the presidential oath of office either, and his term as president ''pro tempore'' had expired on March 4.<ref>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=100–101 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref>}}{{efn-ua|[[1940 United States presidential election|1940]] Republican presidential nominee [[Wendell Willkie]] and vice presidential nominee [[Charles L. McNary]] both died in 1944 (October 8, and February 25, respectively); the first, and to date only time both members of a major-party presidential ticket died during the term for which they sought election. Had they been elected, Willkie's death would have resulted in the Secretary of State becoming acting president for the remainder of the term ending on January 20, 1945, in accordance with the [[Presidential Succession Act#Presidential Succession Act of 1886|Presidential Succession Act of 1886]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Brewer|first=F.|date=1945|title=Succession to the presidency|work=Editorial research reports 1945 (Vol. II)|publisher=CQ Press|location=Washington, D.C.|url=http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/cqresrre1945092000|url-access=registration|access-date=July 12, 2018|quote=If the Republican ticket had been elected in 1940, the plan of succession adopted in 1886 would probably have come into operation for the first time in 1944. Charles McNary, Republican candidate for Vice President, died on Feb. 25, 1944, With the death of Wendell Willkie, on Oct. 8, his Secretary of State would have been sworn in for the remainder of the term ending on Jan. 20, 1945.|archive-date=January 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114220146/http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre1945092000|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Feinman|first=Ronald L.|title=The Election of 1940 and the Might-Have-Been that Makes One Shudder|url=https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/161880|date=March 1, 2016|publisher=[[History News Network]]|access-date=July 13, 2018|archive-date=January 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114220302/https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/161880|url-status=live}}</ref>}} thus no other officer in the presidential line of succession has ever been called upon to act as president. There was potential for such a ''double vacancy'' when [[John Wilkes Booth]] assassinated President [[Abraham Lincoln]] in 1865, as Vice President [[Andrew Johnson]] was also targeted (along with Secretary of State [[William Seward]] and possibly General [[Ulysses S. Grant]]) as part of Booth's plot to destabilize the Union government.<ref>{{cite web | title=Booth's Reason for Assassination | url=https://www.teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/24242 | website=Teachinghistory.org | publisher=[[Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media]] at George Mason University | location=Fairfax County, Virginia | access-date=January 18, 2019 | archive-date=January 19, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190119174334/https://www.teachinghistory.org/history-content/ask-a-historian/24242 | url-status=live }}</ref> It again became a real possibility three years later, when, with the vice presidency vacant, [[Impeachment of Andrew Johnson|Johnson as president was impeached]] by the House of Representatives and faced removal from office if convicted at trial in the Senate. Johnson was acquitted by a one-vote margin.<ref>{{cite web | title=The forgotten man who almost became President after Lincoln | url=https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/the-forgotten-man-who-almost-became-president-after-lincoln/ | date=April 15, 2018 | work=The constitution Daily | publisher=The National Constitution Center | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | access-date=June 25, 2018 | archive-date=July 4, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704213111/https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/the-forgotten-man-who-almost-became-president-after-lincoln/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

The 25th Amendment's mechanism for filling vice presidential vacancies has reduced the likelihood that the House speaker, Senate president pro tempore, or any cabinet member will need to serve as acting president.<ref name=CRSsuccession05/> In October 1973, the resignation of Vice President [[Spiro Agnew]] made House Speaker [[Carl Albert]] first in line to succeed President [[Richard Nixon]]{{snd}}but only briefly, as [[Gerald Ford]] was sworn in as vice president on December 6, 1973.<ref name=AlbertWasReady>{{cite news | title=Speaker Albert Was Ready to Be President | last=Gup | first=Ted | date=November 28, 1982 | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/11/28/speaker-albert-was-ready-to-be-president/84ebaa61-9cf1-4817-836e-a993e7e0e980/ | newspaper=The Washington Post | access-date=June 25, 2018 | archive-date=July 28, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180728131338/https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1982/11/28/speaker-albert-was-ready-to-be-president/84ebaa61-9cf1-4817-836e-a993e7e0e980/ | url-status=live }}</ref> On August 9, 1974, Nixon resigned the presidency, making Ford president; Albert was then again next in line, but only for the four months it took for [[Nelson Rockefeller]] to be nominated and confirmed as Ford's vice president.<ref name=Feerick2011FLR/>

===Next in line===
Since 1789 there have been eighteen instances of the vice presidency becoming vacant;<ref name=VP-PS/> during those periods, the persons next in line to serve as [[Acting president of the United States|acting president]] were:

====Under the 1792 succession act====
{| class=wikitable

|-
!<abbr title="Occasion number">No.</abbr>
! colspan=2 | Official (party)
! Dates
! Reason
! colspan=2 | President&nbsp;(party)

|-
| 1
| [[William H. Crawford]] [[Democratic-Republican Party|(D-R)]]<ref>{{cite web | title=George Clinton, 4th Vice President (1805–1812) | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_George_Clinton.htm | publisher=Office of the Secretary, United States Senate | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 30, 2018 | archive-date=December 20, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191220222242/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_George_Clinton.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic-Republican Party}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|April 20, 1812 –<br/>March 4, 1813}}
| Death of Vice President [[George Clinton (vice president)|George Clinton]]
| [[James Madison|Madison]] [[Democratic-Republican Party|(D-R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic-Republican Party}}" |

|-
| rowspan=2 | 2
| [[Langdon Cheves]] [[Democratic-Republican Party|(D-R)]]<ref name=65FFH8486>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=84, 86 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic-Republican Party}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|November 23, 1814 –<br/>November 25, 1814}}
| Death of Vice President [[Elbridge Gerry]], and vacancy in office of president pro tempore of the Senate
| rowspan=2 | [[James Madison|Madison]] [[Democratic-Republican Party|(D-R)]]
| rowspan=2 style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic-Republican Party}}" |

|-
| [[John Gaillard]] [[Democratic-Republican Party|(D-R)]]<ref name=65FFH8486/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic-Republican Party}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|November 25, 1814 –<br/>March 4, 1817}}
| John Gaillard elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| 3
| [[Hugh Lawson White]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH8486/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|December 28, 1832 –<br/>March 4, 1833}}
| Resignation of Vice President [[John C. Calhoun]]
| [[Andrew Jackson|Jackson]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| rowspan=2 | 4
| [[Samuel L. Southard]] [[Whig Party (United States)|(W)]]<ref name=JT10th>{{cite web | title=John Tyler, Tenth Vice President (1841) | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_John_Tyler.htm | publisher=Office of the Secretary, United States Senate | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 30, 2018 | archive-date=March 7, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307145505/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_John_Tyler.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|April 4, 1841 –<br/>May 31, 1842}}
| Death of President [[William Henry Harrison]] and accession of Vice President [[John Tyler]] to presidency
| rowspan=2| [[John Tyler|Tyler]] [[Whig Party (United States)|(W)]]
| rowspan=2 style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |

|-
| {{nowrap|[[Willie Person Mangum]] [[Whig Party (United States)|(W)]]}}<ref name=JT10th/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|May 31, 1842 –<br/>March 4, 1845}}
| Willie Person Mangum elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| rowspan=3 | 5
| colspan=2 style="background:#d2d2d2" | {{center|''Vacant''<ref name=65FFH104105>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=104–105 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| nowrap | {{center|July 9, 1850 –<br/>July 11, 1850}}
| Death of President [[Zachary Taylor]] and accession of Vice President [[Millard Fillmore]] to presidency, vacancy in office of president pro tempore of the Senate, and ineligibility of Speaker of the House [[Howell Cobb]]{{efn-ua|Not yet 35 years old.}}
| rowspan=3 | [[Millard Fillmore|Fillmore]] [[Whig Party (United States)|(W)]]
| rowspan=3 style="background-color:{{party color|Whig Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[William R. King]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref>{{cite web | title=William Rufus King, 13th Vice President (1853) | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_William_R_King.htm | publisher=Office of the Secretary, United States Senate | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 30, 2018 | archive-date=September 3, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190903211242/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_William_R_King.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|July 11, 1850 –<br/>December 20, 1852}}
| William R. King elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[David Rice Atchison]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=ProTemporeUSS>{{cite web | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/President_Pro_Tempore.htm | title=President Pro Tempore | publisher=Office of the Secretary, United States Senate | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 29, 2018 | archive-date=November 24, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124200100/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/President_Pro_Tempore.htm | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|December 20, 1852 –<br/>March 4, 1853}}
| David Rice Atchison elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| rowspan=6 | 6
| [[David Rice Atchison]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|April 18, 1853 –<br/>December 4, 1854}}
| Death of Vice President [[William R. King]]
| rowspan=6 | [[Franklin Pierce|Pierce]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| rowspan=6 style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[Lewis Cass]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|December 4, 1854 –<br/>December 5, 1854}}
| Lewis Cass elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[Jesse D. Bright]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|December 5, 1854 –<br/>June 9, 1856}}
| Jesse D. Bright elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[Charles E. Stuart]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|June 9, 1856 –<br/>June 10, 1856}}
| Charles E. Stuart elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[Jesse D. Bright]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|June 11, 1856 –<br/>January 6, 1857}}
| Jesse D. Bright elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[James Murray Mason]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH104105/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|January 6, 1857 –<br/>March 4, 1857}}
| James Murray Mason elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| rowspan=2 | 7
| [[Lafayette S. Foster]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=5littleknown>{{cite web | title=Five little-known men who almost became president | last=Bomboy | first=Scott | date=August 11, 2017 | url=https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/five-little-known-men-who-almost-became-president | work=Constitution Daily | publisher=National Constitution Center | location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | access-date=July 1, 2018 | archive-date=July 4, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704212812/https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/five-little-known-men-who-almost-became-president | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|April 15, 1865 –<br/>March 2, 1867}}
| Death of President [[Abraham Lincoln]] and accession of Vice President [[Andrew Johnson]] to presidency
| rowspan=2 nowrap | [[Andrew Johnson|A. Johnson]] [[National Union Party (United States)|(NU)]]
| rowspan=2 style="background: {{party color|National Union Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[Benjamin Wade]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=5littleknown/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|March 2, 1867 –<br/>March 4, 1869}}
| Benjamin Wade elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| 8
| [[Thomas W. Ferry]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=65FFH116>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=116 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|November 22, 1875 –<br/>March 4, 1877}}
| Death of Vice President [[Henry Wilson]]
| [[Ulysses S. Grant|Grant]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| rowspan=4 | 9
| colspan=2 style="background:#d2d2d2" | {{center|''Vacant''<ref name="SP110–18">{{cite book | title=Pro tem : presidents pro tempore of the United States Senate since 1789 | editor-last=Erickson | editor-first=Nancy | publisher=U.S. Government Printing office | location=Washington, D.C. | date=August 22, 2008 | isbn=978-0-16-079984-6 | pages=[https://archive.org/details/protempresidents00wash/page/55 55–57] | chapter=Chapter 2: A Question of Succession, 1861-1889 | chapter-url=https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/GPO-CPUB-110spub18/pdf/GPO-CPUB-110spub18-1-7.pdf | access-date=June 30, 2018 | url=https://archive.org/details/protempresidents00wash/page/55 }}</ref>}}
| nowrap | {{center|September 19, 1881 –<br/>October 10, 1881}}
| Death of President [[James A. Garfield]] and accession of Vice President [[Chester A. Arthur]] to presidency, and vacancy in office of president pro tempore of the Senate and in office of speaker of the House
| rowspan= 4 | [[Chester A. Arthur|Arthur]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| rowspan=4 style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[Thomas F. Bayard]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH131132>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=131–132 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| {{center| October 10, 1881 –<br/>October 13, 1881}}
| Thomas E. Bayard elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[David Davis (Supreme Court justice)|David Davis]] [[Independent politician|(I)]]<ref name=65FFH131132/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background: {{party color|Independent (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|October 13, 1881 –<br/>March 3, 1883}}
| David Davis elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[George F. Edmunds]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=65FFH131132/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|March 3, 1883 –<br/>March 3, 1885}}
| George F. Edmunds elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| rowspan=2 | 10
| colspan=2 style="background:#d2d2d2" | {{center|''Vacant''<ref name="SP110–18"/>}}
| nowrap | {{center|November 25, 1885 –<br/>December 7, 1885}}
| Death of Vice President [[Thomas A. Hendricks]], and vacancy in office of president pro tempore of the Senate and in office of speaker of the House
| rowspan=2 | [[Grover Cleveland|Cleveland]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| rowspan=2 style="background-color:{{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[John Sherman]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name="SP110–18"/><br>[[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore of the Senate]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|December 7, 1885 –<br/>January 19, 1886}}
| John Sherman elected president pro tempore of the Senate, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|}

====Under the 1886 succession act====
{| class=wikitable

|-
!<abbr title="Occasion number">No.</abbr>
! colspan=2 | Official (party)
! Dates
! Reason
! colspan=2 | President&nbsp;(party)

|-
| 10
| [[Thomas F. Bayard]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name="Rankin"/><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|January 19, 1886 –<br/>March 4, 1889}}
| Succession Act of 1886 is enacted, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency
| [[Grover Cleveland|Cleveland]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 11
| [[John Hay]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=RLF11people>{{cite web | last=Feinman | first=Ronald L. | title=These 11 People Came Close to Being President of the United States … | url=https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/161656 | date=March 22, 2016 | publisher=History News Network | location=Seattle, Washington | access-date=July 1, 2018 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114220143/https://historynewsnetwork.org/article/161656 | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|November 21, 1899 –<br/>March 4, 1901}}
| Death of Vice President [[Garret Hobart]]
| [[William McKinley|McKinley]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 12
| [[John Hay]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=RLF11people/><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|September 14, 1901 –<br/>March 4, 1905}}
| Death of President [[William McKinley]] and accession of Vice President [[Theodore Roosevelt]] to presidency
| nowrap | [[Theodore Roosevelt|T. Roosevelt]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 13
| [[Philander C. Knox]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|October 30, 1912 –<br/>March 4, 1913}}
| Death of Vice President [[James S. Sherman]]
| [[William Howard Taft|Taft]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 14
| [[Charles Evans Hughes]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|August 2, 1923 –<br/>March 4, 1925}}
| Death of President [[Warren G. Harding]] and accession of Vice President [[Calvin Coolidge]] to the presidency
| [[Calvin Coolidge|Coolidge]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background-color:{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| rowspan=4| 15
| [[Edward Stettinius Jr.]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH204205>{{cite book | title=From Failing Hands: the Story of Presidential Succession | last1=Feerick | first1=John D. | last2=Freund | first2=Paul A. | date=1965 | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | publisher=Fordham University Press | location=New York City | pages=204–205 | lccn=65-14917 | access-date=June 24, 2018 | archive-date=November 20, 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201120053125/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1000&context=twentyfifth_amendment_books | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|April 12, 1945 –<br/>June 27, 1945}}
| Death of President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and accession of Vice President [[Harry S. Truman]] to the presidency
| rowspan=4| [[Harry S. Truman|Truman]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| rowspan=4 style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| nowrap | [[Henry Morgenthau Jr.]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH204205/><br>[[United States Secretary of the Treasury|Secretary of the Treasury]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|June 27, 1945 –<br/>July 3, 1945}}
| Resignation of Secretary of State [[Edward Stettinius&nbsp;Jr.]], and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[James F. Byrnes]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=65FFH204205/><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|July 3, 1945 –<br/>January 21, 1947}}
| James F. Byrnes confirmed as Secretary of State, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| [[George Marshall]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=RLF11people/><br>[[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|January 21, 1947 –<br/>July 18, 1947}}
| George Marshall confirmed as Secretary of State, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|}

====Under the 1947 succession act====
{| class=wikitable

|-
!<abbr title="Occasion number">No.</abbr>
! colspan=2 | Official (party)
! Dates
! Reason
! colspan=2 | President&nbsp;(party)

|-
| rowspan=2| 15
| nowrap | [[Joseph William Martin Jr.|Joseph W. Martin Jr.]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]<ref name=RLF11people/><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|July 18, 1947 –<br/>January 3, 1949}}
| Succession Act of 1947 is enacted, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency
| rowspan=2 | [[Harry S. Truman|Truman]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| rowspan=2 style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| [[Sam Rayburn]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref>{{cite web | url=http://history.house.gov/People/Office/Speakers-List/ | title=List of Speakers of the House | publisher=Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives | location=Washington, D.C. | access-date=June 29, 2018 | archive-date=July 4, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704213120/http://history.house.gov/People/Office/Speakers-List/ | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|January 3, 1949 –<br/>January 20, 1949}}
| Sam Rayburn elected speaker of the House, and continuing intra-term vacancy in vice presidency

|-
| 16
| nowrap | [[John W. McCormack]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref>{{cite web | last=Feinman | first=Ronald L. | title=Three Speakers Of The House Who Were "A Heartbeat Away" From The Presidency! | date=November 1, 2015 | url=http://www.theprogressiveprofessor.com/?p=25842 | work=TheProgressiveProfessor | access-date=July 1, 2018 | archive-date=July 4, 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180704183040/http://www.theprogressiveprofessor.com/?p=25842 | url-status=live }}</ref><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|November 22, 1963 –<br/>January 20, 1965}}
| Death of President [[John F. Kennedy]] and accession of Vice President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] to the presidency
| nowrap | [[Lyndon B. Johnson|L. Johnson]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 17
| [[Carl Albert]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=AlbertWasReady/><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|October 10, 1973 –<br/>December 6, 1973}}
| Resignation of Vice President [[Spiro Agnew]]
| [[Richard Nixon|Nixon]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|-
| 18
| [[Carl Albert]] [[Democratic Party (United States)|(D)]]<ref name=Feerick2011FLR/><br>[[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker of the House]]
| style="background: {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}" |
| nowrap | {{center|August 9, 1974 –<br/>December 19, 1974}}
| Resignation of President [[Richard Nixon]] and accession of Vice President [[Gerald Ford]] to the presidency
| [[Gerald Ford|Ford]] [[Republican Party (United States)|(R)]]
| style="background: {{party color|Republican Party (US)}}" |

|}

== Contemporary issues and concerns ==

In 2003, the [[Continuity of Government Commission]] suggested that the succession law has "at least seven significant issues ... that warrant attention", specifically:

# The reality that all figures in the line of succession work and reside in the vicinity of Washington, D.C. In the event of a disaster such as a nuclear, chemical, or biological attack, it is possible that everyone on the list would be killed or incapacitated. For this concern, one of the listed people is selected as "[[designated survivor]]" and stays at an undisclosed secure location during certain events where all others are present, such as the [[State of the Union]] address.
# Doubt that the speaker of the House and the president pro tempore of the Senate are constitutionally eligible to act as president.
# A concern about the wisdom of including the president pro tempore in the line of succession as the "largely honorific post traditionally held by the longest-serving senator of the majority party". For example, from January 20, 2001, to June 6, 2001, the president pro tempore was then-98-year-old [[Strom Thurmond]].
# A concern that the line of succession can force the presidency to abruptly switch parties mid-term, as the president, speaker, and the president pro tempore are not necessarily of the same party as each other.
# A concern that the succession line is ordered by the dates of creation of the various executive departments, without regard to the skills or capacities of the persons serving as secretary.
# The fact that, should a Cabinet member begin to act as president, the law allows the House to elect a new speaker (or the Senate to elect a new president pro tempore), who could in effect remove the Cabinet member and assume the office themselves at any time.
# The absence of a provision where a president is disabled and the vice presidency is vacant (for example, if an assassination attempt simultaneously wounded the president and killed the vice president).<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.continuityofgovernment.org/pdfs/FirstReport.pdf | title=The Continuity of Congress: The First Report of the Continuity of Government Commission | series=Preserving Our Institutions | page=4 | publisher=Continuity of Government Commission | location=Washington, D.C. | date=May 2003 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080625015852/http://www.continuityofgovernment.org/pdfs/FirstReport.pdf | archive-date=June 25, 2008 |url-status = dead| access-date=December 28, 2008 | via=Internet Archive}}</ref>

In 2009, the Continuity of Government Commission commented on the use of the term "Officer" in the 1947 statute,

{{blockquote|The language in the current Presidential Succession Act is less clear than that of the 1886 Act with respect to Senate confirmation. The 1886 Act refers to "such officers as shall have been appointed by the advice and consent of the Senate to the office therein named …" The current act merely refers to "officers appointed, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate." Read literally, this means that the current act allows for acting secretaries to be in the line of succession as long as they are confirmed by the Senate for a post (even for example, the second or third in command within a department). It is common for a second in command to become acting secretary when the secretary leaves office. Though there is some dispute over this provision, the language clearly permits acting secretaries to be placed in the line of succession. (We have spoken to acting secretaries who told us they had been placed in the line of succession.)<ref>{{cite web | title=The Continuity of the Presidency: The Second Report of the Continuity of Government Commission | url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/reports/2009/06_continuity_of_government/06_continuity_of_government.pdf | series=Preserving Our Institutions | page=34 | publisher=Continuity of Government Commission | location=Washington, D.C. | date=June 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304060729/http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/reports/2009/7/06%20continuity%20of%20government/06_continuity_of_government.pdf | archive-date=March 4, 2016 |url-status = dead| via=WebCite | access-date=May 23, 2012}}</ref>}}
 
In 2016–2017, the Second [[Fordham University School of Law]] Clinic on Presidential Succession developed a series of proposals to "resolve succession issues that have received little attention from scholars and commissions" over the past several decades; its recommendations included:

* Removing legislators and several Cabinet members from the line of succession and adding four officials, or "Standing Successors", outside of Washington, D.C. The line of succession would be: {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|1}}—}}Secretary of State, {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|2}}—}}Secretary of Defense, {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|3}}—}}Attorney General, {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|4}}—}}Secretary of Homeland Security, {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|5}}—}}Secretary of the Treasury, {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|6}}—}}Standing {{Nowrap|Successor 1,}} {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|7}}—}}Standing {{Nowrap|Successor 2,}} {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|8}}—}}Standing {{Nowrap|Successor 3,}} and {{Nowrap|{{ordinal|9}}—}}Standing {{Nowrap|Successor 4;}}
* If legislators are not removed from the line of succession, only designate them as successors in cases where the president dies or resigns, not where he is disabled (to protect legislators from being forced to resign to act as president temporarily) or removed from office;
* Eliminate the "bumping provision" in the Succession Act of 1947;
* Clarify the ambiguity in the Succession Act of 1947 as to whether acting Cabinet secretaries are in the line of succession;
* That the outgoing president nominate and the Senate confirm some of the incoming president's Cabinet secretaries prior to Inauguration Day, which is a particular point of vulnerability for the line of succession;
* Establish statutory procedures for declaring 1) a dual inability of the president and the vice president, including where there is no vice president and 2) a sole inability of the vice president.<ref name=50after25th>{{cite journal | title=Second Fordham University School of Law Clinic on Presidential Succession, Fifty Years After the Twenty-Fifth Amendment: Recommendations for Improving the Presidential Succession System | journal=Fordham Law Review | url=https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5454&context=flr | volume=86 | issue=3 | year=2017 | pages=917–1025 | access-date=June 25, 2018 | archive-date=January 14, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114220156/https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5454&context=flr | url-status=live }}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Law|Politics|United States}}
* [[Central Locator System]]
* [[Designated survivor]]
* [[List of United States presidential assassination attempts and plots]]
{{clear}}

== Notes ==
{{notelist-ua|30em}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
* Baker, M. Miller (December 1, 2001). [https://fedsoc.org/commentary/publications/fools-drunkards-presidential-succession "Fools, Drunkards, & Presidential Succession"]. [[Federalist Society]].
* Feerick, John D. (2011). [https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=4695&context=flr "Presidential Succession and Inability: Before and After the Twenty-Fifth Amendment"]. ''[[Fordham Law Review]]''. '''79''' (3): 907–949. Also available [https://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/flr/vol79/iss3/8 here].
* Neale, Thomas H. (October 3, 2008). [https://2016election.procon.org/sourcefiles/crs_report_presidential_sucession.pdf ''Presidential Succession: Perspectives, Contemporary Analysis, and 110th Congress Proposed Legislation'']. [[Congressional Research Service]] Report for Congress. RL34692.
* Whitney, Gleaves (2004). [https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/ask_gleaves/57/ "Presidential Succession"]. ''Ask Gleaves''. Paper 57. [[Grand Valley State University]].

{{US Presidential Line of Succession | state=autocollapse}}
{{Lists of US Presidents and Vice Presidents}}
{{Orders of succession by country}}
{{US Constitution}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Presidential Line Of Succession, United States}}
[[Category:United States presidential succession| ]]
[[Category:Article Two of the United States Constitution]]
[[Category:Continuity of government in the United States]]
[[Category:Presidency of the United States]]
[[Category:United States administrative law]]
[[Category:Vice presidency of the United States]]