Living presidents and vice presidents of the United States

This article chronicles the number of living presidents and vice presidents of the United States at each moment in United States history since the presidency and vice presidency were established in 1789. The following tables include all persons who have taken either the presidential oath of office, or the vice presidential oath of office. (Persons who served as Acting President of the United States or as President of the Continental Congress are not included.) Currently there are six living presidents (the incumbent, Donald Trump, plus five former presidents), and seven living vice presidents (the incumbent, Mike Pence, plus six former vice presidents).

Timeline of living presidents

Fewest and most living presidents

There have been six time periods when there was only one living President, no former president being alive:

• From April 1789 to March 1797, the entirety of George Washington's term as the first President
• From December 1799 to March 1801, at the end of John Adams' presidency following Washington's death
• From July 1875 to March 1877, at the end of Ulysses S. Grant's presidency following Andrew Johnson's death
• From June 1908 to March 1909, at the end of Theodore Roosevelt's presidency following Grover Cleveland's death
• From January 1933 to March 1933, at the end of Herbert Hoover's presidency following Calvin Coolidge's death
• From January 1973 to August 1974, at the end of Richard Nixon's presidency following Lyndon B. Johnson's death

There have been four time periods when six presidents (the incumbent and five former presidents) co-existed:

• From March 1861 to July 1862, when Martin Van Buren, John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, and Abraham Lincoln were alive.
• From January 1993 to April 1994, when six consecutive presidents, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, G. H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, were alive.
• From January 2001 to June 2004, when six consecutive presidents, Ford, Carter, Reagan, G. H. W. Bush, Clinton, and G. W. Bush, were alive.
• From January 2017 to the present day, with Carter, G. H. W. Bush, Clinton, G. W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump alive.

Notably, Richard Nixon is the only person to have been both the only living U.S. president (from January 1973 to August 1974) and one of six living presidents (from January 1993 to April 1994).

Living presidents gallery

There have been several gatherings of all the living presidents. Below are photographs of groups of persons who, at one time or another, comprised all living presidents (although several of these photographs were taken prior to or after the time period in which the persons depicted were the only living presidents).

Timeline of living vice presidents

Fewest and most living vice presidents

There have been three time periods when the only living Vice President was the incumbent, no former vice president being alive:

• From April 1789 to March 1797, the entirety of John Adams' term as the first Vice President
• From July 1891 to March 1893, at the end of Levi Morton's vice presidency following Hannibal Hamlin's death
• From May 1920 to March 1921, at the end of Thomas R. Marshall's vice presidency following Levi Morton's death

Additionally, there was one time period when the only living vice president was a former vice president, the office being vacant: From June 1887 to March 1889, following incumbent William A. Wheeler's death only former vice president Hannibal Hamlin was still alive.

There have been two time periods when seven vice presidents (the incumbent and six former vice presidents) co-existed:

• From January 1993 to April 1994, when Richard Nixon, Spiro Agnew, Gerald Ford, Walter Mondale, George H. W. Bush, Dan Quayle, and Al Gore were alive.
• From January 2017 to the present day, with Mondale, G. H. W. Bush, Quayle, Gore, [...] Cheney, Joe Biden, and Mike Pence alive.

See also

• Lifespan timeline of Presidents of the United States
• United States presidential line of succession
• Living Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom

External links

• Library of Congress information: presidents, vice presidents