As we consider the election of the next President of the United States, lets not forget that their Vice Presidential running mate, in this case Governor Sarah Palin and Senator Joe Biden, stand a 1 in 3 chance of eventually becoming president.
This is especially true in the case of John McCain given the fact that he’d be the oldest person to ever take office, were he elected. And in case you haven’t noticed, Obama is half-black and there are some crazies running around who might not take kindly to a non-white President either.
For a little history, there have been Fourteen Vice Presidents who ascended to the Presidency.
- Five were elected
- John Adams was a two term vice president and one term president. Adams served as vice president for George Washington from 1789 to 1797, and served as president from 1797-1801.
- George Bush was a two term vice president and one term president. Bush served as vice president for Ronald Reagan from 1981-1989 and served as president from 1989-1993.
- Thomas Jefferson was the only person to serve one term as vice president [John Adams 1797-1801] and two terms as president, 1801 to 1809. In addition Jefferson was the only incumbent VP to run against an incumbent president.
- Martin Van Buren is the only person to serve one term in each capacity. He was vice president for Andrew Jackson, 1833 to 1837 and elected president from 1837-1841.
- Richard Nixon is the only person to serve two terms as Vice President and be elected to two terms as President. He was vice president for Dwight Eisenhower from 1953-1961, and elected president from 1969-1973. He won re-election but resigned from office on August 9, 1974.
- Four inherited the office because of assassination
- Andrew Johnson for Abraham Lincoln in 1865
- Chester Arthur for James Garfield in 1881
- Theodore Roosevelt for William McKinley in 1901
- Lyndon Johnson for John Kennedy in 1963
- Four inherited the office through the natural death of the incumbent
- John Tyler for William Henry Harrison in 1841
- Millard Fillmore for Zachary Taylor in 1850
- Calvin Coolidge for Warren Harding in 1923
- Harry Truman for Franklin Roosevelt in 1945
- One became President due to resignation
- Gerald Ford was nominated to become Vice President after the resignation of Spiro Agnew in 1973, and then became President after the resignation of Nixon in 1974 – thus making him the only person to serve as Vice President and President without having been elected to either office.
The Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States now permits the succeeding President to name a second in command upon the consent of the Senate. This means that Sarah Palin or Joe Biden would be able to appoint their own VP without a popular vote, should either of them ascend to the Presidency.
