Vlogging through history presidents ranking



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

The presidency of William Henry Harrison, who died 31 days after taking office in 1841, was the shortest in American history. Franklin D. Roosevelt served the longest, over twelve years, before dying early in his fourth term in 1945. He is the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms. Since the ratification of the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1951, no person may be elected president more than twice, and no one who has served more than two years of a term to which someone else was elected may be elected more than once.

Four presidents died in office of natural causes (William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Warren G. Harding, and Franklin D. Roosevelt), four were assassinated (Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley and John F. Kennedy), and one resigned (Richard Nixon, facing impeachment and removal from office). John Tyler was the first vice president to assume the presidency during a presidential term, and set the precedent that a vice president who does so becomes the fully functioning president with his presidency.

Throughout most of its history, American politics has been dominated by political parties. The Constitution is silent on the issue of political parties, and at the time it came into force in 1789, no organized parties existed. Soon after the 1st Congress convened, political factions began rallying around dominant Washington administration officials, such as Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. Concerned about the capacity of political parties to destroy the fragile unity holding the nation together, Washington remained unaffiliated with any political faction or party throughout his eight-year presidency. He was, and remains, the only U.S. president never affiliated with a political party.

Presidents
{| class="wikitable sortable" style=text-align:center; ! scope=col | No. ! scope=col class=unsortable | Portrait ! scope=col | Name (Birth–Death) ! scope=col class=unsortable | Term ! scope=col colspan=2 | Party ! scope=col class=unsortable | Election ! scope=col class=unsortable | Vice President ! scope=row | 40
 * Andrew_johnson2.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Johnson, Andrew" | Andrew Johnson (1808–1875)
 * April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869
 * style="background: linear-gradient( 50%, 50%);" |
 * National Union

Democratic
 * Vacant throughout presidency
 * Vacant throughout presidency

! scope=row | 39
 * James_Buchanan_(2).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Buchanan, James" | James Buchanan (1791–1868)
 * March 4, 1857 – March 4, 1861
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1856
 * John C. Breckinridge

! scope=row | 38
 * Mathew_Brady_-_Franklin_Pierce_-_alternate_crop.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Pierce, Franklin" | Franklin Pierce (1804–1869)
 * March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1852
 * William R. King

Vacant after April 18, 1853

! scope=row | 37
 * Millard_Fillmore_by_Brady_Studio_1855-65-crop.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Fillmore, Millard" | Millard Fillmore (1800–1874)
 * July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Whig
 * Vacant throughout presidency
 * Vacant throughout presidency

! scope=row | 36
 * Woodrow_Wilson_1902_cph.3b11773.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Wilson, Woodrow" | Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)
 * March 4, 1913 – March 4, 1921
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1912

1916
 * Thomas R. Marshall

! scope=row | 35
 * Warren_G_Harding-Harris_&_Ewing_(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Harding, Warren G." | Warren G. Harding (1865–1923)
 * March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1920
 * Calvin Coolidge

! scope=row | 34 – March 4, 1933
 * Herbert_Hoover_1917.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Hoover, Herbert" | Herbert Hoover (1874–1964)
 * March 4, 1929
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1928
 * Charles Curtis

! scope=row| 33
 * Tyler_Daguerreotype_(restoration)(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Tyler, John" |John Tyler (1790–1862)
 * April 4, 1841 – March 4, 1845
 * style="background: linear-gradient( 50%, 50%);" |
 * Whig

Unaffiliated
 * Vacant throughout presidency
 * Vacant throughout presidency

! scope=row | 32
 * Martin_Van_Buren_circa_1837_crop.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Van Buren, Martin" | Martin Van Buren (1782–1862)
 * March 4, 1837 – March 4, 1841
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1836
 * Richard Mentor Johnson

! scope=row | 31
 * Chester_Arthur_1880.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Arthur, Chester A." | Chester A. Arthur (1829–1886)
 * September 19, 1881 – March 4, 1885
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * Vacant throughout presidency
 * Vacant throughout presidency

! scope=row | 30 – January 20, 1981
 * Jimmy_Carter_(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Carter, Jimmy" | Jimmy Carter (b. 1924)
 * January 20, 1977
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1976
 * Walter Mondale

! scope=row | 29
 * Benjamin Harrison, head and shoulders bw photo, 1896.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Harrison, Benjamin" | Benjamin Harrison (1833–1901)
 * March 4, 1889 – March 4, 1893
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1888
 * Levi P. Morton

! scope=row | 28
 * President Rutherford Hayes 1870 - 1880 Restored.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Hayes, Rutherford B." | Rutherford B. Hayes (1822–1893)
 * March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1876
 * William A. Wheeler

! scope=row | 27 ! scope=row | 26
 * Zachary_Taylor_2.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Taylor, Zachary" | Zachary Taylor (1784–1850)
 * March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Whig
 * 1848
 * Millard Fillmore
 * Official_Presidential_portrait_of_John_Adams_(by_John_Trumbull,_circa_1792).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Adams, John" | John Adams (1735–1826)
 * March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Federalist
 * 1796
 * Thomas Jefferson

! scope=row | 25 – January 20, 1977
 * Gerald_Ford_presidential_portrait_(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Ford, Gerald" | Gerald Ford (1913–2006)
 * August 9, 1974
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * Vacant through December 19, 1974
 * Vacant through December 19, 1974

Nelson Rockefeller

! scope=row | 24 – August 9, 1974
 * Richard_Nixon_Vice_Presidential_portrait_(cropped).png
 * data-sort-value="Nixon, Richard" | Richard Nixon (1913–1994)
 * January 20, 1969
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1968

1972
 * Spiro Agnew

''Vacant: October 10 – December 6, 1973''

Gerald Ford

! scope=row | 23
 * StephenGroverCleveland.png
 * data-sort-value="Cleveland, Grover, 1" | Grover Cleveland (1837–1908)
 * March 4, 1885 – March 4, 1889
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1884
 * Thomas A. Hendricks

Vacant after November 25, 1885 ! scope=row | 22
 * William_Howard_Taft_-_Harris_and_Ewing.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Taft, William Howard" | William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
 * March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1908
 * James S. Sherman

Vacant after October 30, 1912

! scope=row| 21 – March 4, 1837
 * Andrew_Jackson.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Jackson, Andrew" | Andrew Jackson (1767–1845)
 * March 4, 1829
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1828

1832
 * John C. Calhoun

''Vacant after December 28, 1832

Martin Van Buren

! scope=row | 20
 * George_H._W._Bush_White_House_photo.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Bush, George H. W." | George H. W. Bush (1924–2018)
 * January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1988
 * Dan Quayle

! scope=row | 19
 * Bill_Clinton,_President_of_the_United_States.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Clinton, Bill" | Bill Clinton (b. 1946)
 * January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001
 * style="background-color:"|
 * Democratic
 * 1992

1996
 * Al Gore

! scope=row | 18
 * James Abram Garfield, photo portrait seated.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Garfield, James A" | James A. Garfield (1831–1881)
 * March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1880
 * Chester A. Arthur

! scope=row | 17 – March 4, 1929
 * Calvin_Coolidge_(cropped_&_Greyscaled).png
 * data-sort-value="Coolidge, Calvin" | Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)
 * August 2, 1923
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican

1924
 * Vacant through March 4, 1925

Charles G. Dawes

! scope=row| 16
 * Ulysses_S_Grant_by_Brady_c1870-restored.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Grant, Ulysses S" | Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885)
 * March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1868

1872
 * Schuyler Colfax

Henry Wilson

Vacant after November 22, 1875

! scope=row | 15 Republican]]
 * John_Quincy_Adams_1815_Smithsonian.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Adams, John Quincy" | John Quincy Adams (1767–1848)
 * March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829
 * style="background: linear-gradient( 50%, 50%);" |
 * [[Democratic-Republican Party|Democratic-

National Republican
 * 1824
 * John C. Calhoun

! scope=row| 14
 * Lyndon_B._Johnson_-_Official_White_House_Portrait_(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Johnson, Lyndon B" | Lyndon B. Johnson (1908–1973)
 * November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic

1964
 * Vacant through January 20, 1965

Hubert Humphrey

! scope=row| 13
 * Gilbert_Stuart,_James_Madison,_c._1821,_NGA_56914.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Madison, James" | James Madison (1751–1836)
 * March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic- Republican
 * 1808

1812
 * George Clinton

Vacant after April 20, 1812

Elbridge Gerry

Vacant after November 23, 1814

! scope=row| 12
 * James_Monroe_02.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Monroe, James" | James Monroe (1758–1831)
 * March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic- Republican
 * 1816

1820
 * Daniel D. Tompkins

! scope=row| 11 – September 14, 1901
 * Mckin.jpg
 * data-sort-value="McKinley, William" | William McKinley (1843–1901)
 * March 4, 1897
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1896

1900
 * Garret Hobart

Vacant after November 21, 1899

Theodore Roosevelt

! scope=row | 10
 * John_F._Kennedy,_White_House_photo_portrait,_looking_up.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Kennedy, John F." | John F. Kennedy (1917–1963)
 * January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1960
 * Lyndon B. Johnson

! scope=row | 9
 * President_Reagan_poses_at_the_White_House_1984_(cropped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Reagan, Ronald" | Ronald Reagan (1911–2004)
 * January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1980

1984
 * George H. W. Bush

! scope=row | 8
 * Polkpolk.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Polk, James K" | James K. Polk (1795–1849)
 * March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1844
 * George M. Dallas

! scope=row | 7
 * Harry_S._Truman,_president_of_the_United_States_(5279753622).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Truman, Harry S." | Harry S. Truman (1884–1972)
 * April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic

1948
 * Vacant through January 20, 1949

Alben W. Barkley

! scope=row | 6
 * T_Jefferson_by_Charles_Willson_Peale_1791_2.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Jefferson, Thomas" | Thomas Jefferson (1743–1826)
 * March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1809
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic- Republican
 * 1800

1804
 * Aaron Burr

George Clinton

! scope=row | 5
 * Photograph_of_Dwight_D._Eisenhower_-_NARA_-_518138_(croped).jpg
 * data-sort-value="Eisenhower, Dwight D" | Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890–1969)
 * January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican
 * 1952

1956
 * Richard Nixon

! scope=row | 4
 * Franklin_D._Roosevelt_-_NARA_-_196715.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Roosevelt, Franklin D" | Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)
 * March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Democratic
 * 1932

1936

1940

1944
 * John Nance Garner

Henry A. Wallace

Harry S. Truman

! scope=row | 3
 * Abraham_Lincoln_O-77_matte_collodion_print.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Lincoln, Abraham" | Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
 * March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865
 * style="background: linear-gradient( 50%, 50%);" |
 * Republican

National Union
 * 1860

1864
 * Hannibal Hamlin

Andrew Johnson ! scope=row | 2
 * [[File:Gilbert_Stuart_(1755-1828)_(copy_after)_-_George_Washington_(copy_after_an_original_of_1796)_-_NPG_2041_-_National_Portrait_Gallery.jpg|160px|alt=Painting of George Washington]]
 * data-sort-value="Washington, George" | George Washington (1732–1799)
 * April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Unaffiliated
 * class=nowrap | 1788–1789

1792
 * John Adams

! scope=row | 1
 * President_Theodore_Roosevelt,_1904.jpg
 * data-sort-value="Roosevelt, Theodore" | Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)
 * September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909
 * style="background-color:" |
 * Republican

1904
 * Vacant through March 4, 1905

Charles W. Fairbanks