This article provides an overview of the President’s Responsibilities and a list of Presidents and Vice Presidents of the United States.
Roles & Responsibilities of the American President
The President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The office of the Presidency is the highest political office in the United States in terms of influence and recognition.
A person who serves as President leads the federal government’s executive branch and is one of only two nationally elected federal officers (the other being the vice president).
Official Powers
Among other powers and responsibilities, Article II of the United States Constitution charges the president with the following responsibilities:
- To “faithfully execute” federal law
- Be the president and the commander-in-chief of the United States armed forces.
- Nominate executive and judicial officers with the advice and consent of the Senate
- To grant pardons and reprieves
Due to the United State’s status as the only true remaining superpower, the president of the United States is generally regarded as the most powerful person in the world.
How is the U.S. President Elected?
The country’s people indirectly elect the president of the USA through the Electoral College to serve a four-year term in office.
Length of Service / Term Limits
Since 1951, all presidents have been limited to two terms by the Twenty-second Amendment to the Constitution. Learn more about Constitutional Amendments.
As you can see from the list in the next section, there have been 46 U.S. American presidents. American presidents are elected to a term of four years and may serve a maximum of two terms (a total of eight years).
However, some U.S. American presidents on the list served a more extended period before the term limitation was implemented. Also, some of the Presidents on the list only served a year or two of their term due to death in office.
List of Presidents
Following is a list of Presidents of the United States of America. The following is a list of all United States Presidents’ names in order of service. The list shows the President’s name, the years they served in office, and the presidential party they belonged to.
| # | Name | Years in Office | Party |
| 1 | George Washington | 1789 – 1797 | |
| 2 | John Adams | 1797 – 1801 | Federalist Party |
| 3 | Thomas Jefferson | 1801 – 1809 | Democratic-Republican |
| 4 | James Madison | 1809 – 1817 | Democratic-Republican |
| 5 | James Monroe | 1817 – 1825 | Democratic-Republican |
| 6 | John Quincy Adams | 1825 – 1829 | Democratic-Republican |
| 7 | Andrew Jackson | 1829 – 1837 | Democrat |
| 8 | Martin Van Buren | 1837 – 1841 | Democrat |
| 9 | William Henry Harrison | 1841 – 1841 | Whig |
| 10 | John Tyler | 1841 – 1845 | Whig |
| 11 | James K. Polk | 1845 – 1849 | Democrat |
| 12 | Zachary Taylor | 1849 – 1850 | Whig |
| 13 | Millard Fillmore | 1850 – 1853 | Whig |
| 14 | Franklin Pierce | 1853 – 1857 | Democrat |
| 15 | James Buchanan | 1857 – 1861 | Democrat |
| 16 | Abraham Lincoln | 1861 – 1865 | Republican |
| 17 | Andrew Johnson | 1865 – 1869 | Democrat / National Union |
| 18 | Ulysses S. Grant | 1869 – 1877 | Republican |
| 19 | Rutherford B. Hayes | 1877 – 1881 | Republican |
| 20 | James A. Garfield | 1881 (died in office) | Republican |
| 21 | Chester A. Arthur | 1881 – 1885 | Republican |
| 22 | Grover Cleveland | 1885 – 1889 | Democrat |
| 23 | Benjamin Harrison | 1889 – 1893 | Republican |
| 24 | Grover Cleveland | 1893 – 1897 | Democrat |
| 25 | William McKinley | 1897 – 1901 | Republican |
| 26 | Theodore Roosevelt | 1901 – 1909 | Republican |
| 27 | William Howard Taft | 1909 – 1913 | Republican |
| 28 | Woodrow Wilson | 1913 – 1921 | Democrat |
| 29 | Warren G. Harding | 1921 – 1923 | Republican |
| 30 | Calvin Coolidge | 1923 – 1929 | Republican |
| 31 | Herbert Hoover | 1929 – 1933 | Republican |
| 32 | Franklin D. Roosevelt | 1933 – 1945 | Democrat |
| 33 | Harry S. Truman | 1945 – 1953 | Democrat |
| 34 | Dwight D. Eisenhower | 1953 – 1961 | Republican |
| 35 | John F. Kennedy | 1961 – 1963 | Democrat |
| 36 | Lyndon B. Johnson | 1963 – 1969 | Democrat |
| 37 | Richard M. Nixon | 1969 – 1974 | Republican |
| 38 | Gerald R. Ford | 1974 – 1977 | Republican |
| 39 | Jimmy Carter | 1977 – 1981 | Democrat |
| 40 | Ronald Reagan | 1981 – 1989 | Republican |
| 41 | George Bush | 1989 – 1993 | Republican |
| 42 | Bill Clinton | 1993 – 2001 | Democrat |
| 43 | George W. Bush | 2001 – 2009 | Republican |
| 44 | Barack H. Obama | 2009 – 2017 | Democrat |
| 45 | Donald Trump | 2017 – 2021 | Republican |
| 46 | Joe R. Biden | 2021 – Present | Democrat |
Note: William Henry Harrison, the 8th President, died after only 31 days in office. Harrison had the shortest presidency in U.S. history.
If you have any questions regarding this List of Presidents of the United States, please leave a comment below.
List of Assassinated U.S. American Presidents
Throughout history, the President of the United States has been one of the world’s most sought-after targets for assassination. With the heightened state of terrorism and tense foreign relations, many politicians are under constant threat of being assassinated. Most attempts fail altogether, primarily due to the protective work of the United States Secret Service, responsible for protecting the first family 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and three hundred and sixty-five days a year.
- 1865: Abraham Lincoln. John Wilkes Booth assassinated Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865.
- 1881: James A. Garfield. Charles J. Guiteau shot and killed James A. Garfield on July 2, 1881
- 1901: William McKinley. Leon Czolgosz assassinated William McKinley on September 6, 1901, in Buffalo, New York.
- 1963: John F. Kennedy. Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated JFK in Dallas, Texas, on November 22, 1963.
To date, there have been 13 failed assassination attempts (in order of presidency):
- Andrew Jackson
- Abraham Lincoln
- Theodore Roosevelt
- Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Harry S. Truman
- John F. Kennedy
- Richard Nixon
- Gerald Ford
- Jimmy Carter
- Ronald Reagan
- George H. W. Bush
- Bill Clinton
- George W. Bush
- Donald Trump
List of U.S. Vice Presidents (in Chronological Order)
- John Adams (1789-1797)
- Thomas Jefferson (1797-1801)
- Aaron Burr (1801-1805)
- George Clinton (1805-1809)
- George Clinton (1809-1812)
- None (1812-1813)
- Elbridge Gerry (1813-1814)
- None (1814-1817)
- Daniel D. Tompkins (1817-1825)
- John C. Calhoun (1825-1829)
- John C. Calhoun (1829-1832)
- None (1832-1833)
- Martin Van Buren (1833-1837)
- Richard M. Johnson (1837-1841)
- John Tyler (1841)
- None (1841-1845)
- George M. Dallas (1845-1849)
- Millard Fillmore (1849-1850)
- No Vice President served during the period from 1850 to 1853.
- William King (1853)
- None (1853-1857)
- John C. Breckinridge (1857-1861)
- Hannibal Hamlin (1861-1865)
- Andrew Johnson (1865)
- None (1865-1869)
- Schuyler Colfax (1869-1873)
- Henry Wilson (1873-1875)
- No Vice President served during the period 1875 to 1877
- William Wheeler (1877-1881)
- Chester Arthur (1881)
- None (1881-1885)
- Thomas Hendricks (1885)
- None (1885-1889)
- Levi P. Morton (1889-1893)
- Adlai E. Stevenson (1893-1897)
- Garret Hobart (1897-1899)
- None (1899-1901)
- Theodore Roosevelt (1901)
- None (1901-1905)
- Charles Fairbanks (1905-1909)
- James S. Sherman (1909-1912)
- None (1912-1913)
- Thomas R. Marshall (1913-1921)
- Calvin Coolidge (1921-1923)
- None (1923-1925)
- Charles Dawes (1925-1929)
- Charles Curtis (1929-1933)
- John Nance Garner (1933-1941)
- Henry A. Wallace (1941-1945)
- Harry S. Truman (1945)
- None (1945-1949)
- Alben Barkley (1949-1953)
- Richard Nixon (1953-1961)
- Lyndon B. Johnson (1961-1963)
- None (1963-1965)
- Hubert Humphrey (1965-1969)
- Spiro Agnew (1969-1973)
- None (1973)
- Gerald Ford (1973-1974)
- None (1974)
- Nelson Rockefeller (1974-1977)
- Walter Mondale (1977-1981)
- George Bush (1981-1989)
- Dan Quayle (1989-1993)
- Al Gore (1993-2001)
- Dick Cheney (2001-2009)
- Joe Biden (2009-2017)
- Mike Pence (2017-2021)
- Kamala Harris (2021-present)
Other Presidential Facts and Information
There have been 46 U.S. American Presidents to date.
Theodore Roosevelt was the youngest president to take office at age 42. Joe Biden was the oldest at 78.
The average age of a president at the inauguration is 55.
Three presidents were impeached while in office. However, the Senate acquitted all three. They are Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump (twice). The House of Representatives performed the impeachment.
Many people believe that Richard Nixon was impeached, which is incorrect. In reality, the impeachment process against Nixon was initiated, but he resigned from office before its completion. He was the only president in U.S. history to resign from office.
Questions and Comments
If you have questions about the list of presidents, please post a message below. Also, learn how to send an email to the President. Please note that the comment section on this page cannot be used to send emails.
Want more lists? View our library of Lists of Lists.
I was wondering why they protect the judges and not the elementary kids how many shootouts happen in court house
Did not receive any check any stimulus check first one second one come on now please help me I really text paired with 30 years I need someone to help me file the paperwork filled out the paperwork and walk me through the steps
President Trump,
You have been a very good President for us. I am sad to see you go. We will miss you.
Donald Trump you were the best president this country has had in my 68 years on this earth I pray for your family ever day.we have so many deamons in that white house God will have to sort them out
Mr President,
Sir In the long run you will come out ahead. We are praying for you, and your family. This morning the Governor of Pennsylvania stated he did not know of
any wrong doings in there election process, then admitted that at first the people
that run the elections wouldn’t let the observers in, but finally they got to go in and watch. By that time they could have run who ever they wanted in and no one would know.The feds need to seize all ballots ad check to make sure all are legal, in every state. GOD bless this country. John Barnhouse from AZ.
Hello. I would like to know if you can tell all of these bill collectors need to stop sending me letters telling me that they are going to take me to court in an attempt to collect blood from a stone. John Coyne Attorney out of New Bedford Massachusetts will not stop sending me bills during a pandemic. I can barely afford to feed my dog and here I am receiving letters from the District Court about some hearing. Really
I had it but it’s not there anymore
I want to just email Donald Trump Sr at the White House
Mr. President, Donald Trump,
I am one of your supporters and I intend to vote for you in the 2020 elections. I appreciate everything you have done for the United States since elected and I have supported you in every decision you have made on behalf of the American people. I have a very big concern about the recent order you signed cutting Federal tax. I know you have assured us that you would protect our Social Security, Social Security Disability, Medicare, and Medicaid and I trust that you will continue to do so. My concern, as a disabled citizen, is if the Federal Tax is cut what does that mean will happen to the financial support of Social Security and the other programs mentioned above? How will these programs be funded if you make this a permanent decision? Please explain this to me and put my mind, and every American on these programs, at ease. Trusting that you have a plan in mind.
Sincerely,
Stephanie L. Jordan
This is very important to many. I need to speak or email our President about our insurance under “Choice” No one seems to be honoring the card. I was told that the name has changed to “Mission” Maybe it’s fake. Please check on it or many of us will be forgotten again.
I hate to assume but this email can be relaid to congress, Yes?