Who takes over when a president can no longer serve?
If a sitting president can no longer serve, the vice president is first in the line of succession.
The Constitution and federal laws ensure continuity in leadership when a president can no longer serve — if they die, resign, are removed from office, or are permanently incapacitated — by codifying an order of succession.
Transfers of power for temporary incapacity, such as when a president undergoes surgery, are handled differently and usually involve naming a temporary acting president.
Presidential succession ensures continuity of power
Presidential succession is the process of passing on the powers of the presidency if the office becomes permanently vacant. Federal legislation establishes the order of the succession, beginning with the vice president and extending through congressional leaders and Cabinet members, so that if multiple high-ranking government officials are incapacitated there’s still a clear and continuous transfer of power.
If a president is no longer able to serve, the order of succession is:
- Vice President
- Speaker of the House
- President pro tempore of the Senate
- Secretary of State
- Secretary of the Treasury
- Secretary of Defense
- Attorney General
- Secretary of the Interior
- Secretary of Agriculture
- Secretary of Commerce
- Secretary of Labor
- Secretary of Health and Human Services
- Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
- Secretary of Transportation
- Secretary of Energy
- Secretary of Education
- Secretary of Veterans Affairs
- Secretary of Homeland Security
This order is based on when each agency was established, from oldest to newest.
To date, the presidency has been filled by a successor nine times.
To date, the presidency has been filled by a successor nine times. Eight of those successions followed the death of a sitting president, while one occurred after a president resigned. In every case, the vice president assumed the presidency, most recently in 1974 when Gerald Ford succeeded Richard Nixon after his resignation.
Nine successors have filled presidential vacancies.
Presidential successions by vice presidents, 1841–present
The rules for presidential succession have evolved over time
Presidential succession was first established in the Constitution. Article II states that the vice president becomes the acting president if the president dies, resigns, or is removed from office.
Later amendments and laws added clarity. The Twentieth Amendment (1933) set start and end dates for presidential and congressional terms and explained what should happen if a president-elect died or couldn’t serve before taking office, and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 created a line of succession beyond the vice president. It puts the Speaker of the House and the president pro tempore of the Senate next in line, followed by Cabinet members in the order their departments were created.
A brief timeline of presidential succession
After President Kennedy’s assassination in 1963, the US passed the Twenty-Fifth Amendment (1967) to fill in more gaps. It clarifies that when a president dies, resigns, or is removed, the vice president becomes the president, not just an acting president.
It also established a process for filling a vacant vice presidency and for handling times when a president is temporarily unable to serve. Section 3 allows a president to voluntarily transfer power to the vice president, such as during a medical procedure. Section 4 allows the vice president and a majority of the Cabinet to declare the president unable to perform the duties of the office if the president is incapacitated but cannot or will not admit inability to serve.
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