From national heroes to half-mad men, the United States of America has had many different presidents! Getting to be president in America isn't easy, but the real litmus test is the mandate. Each president marked the country (and the world) in his own way…
1. George Washington (1789-1797)
Counted among the Founding Fathers of the United States, Washington was the general who led the independence revolution. He was unanimously elected by the Electoral College and never joined a party. During his 2 terms, Washington founded several presidential traditions and tried to stabilize the young country. He is one of America's favorite presidents.
2. John Adams (1797-1801)
After serving as the first vice president of the US, John Adams became the second president. During his term, Adams managed to avoid a major war with France, despite many members of the government wanting to join the fight. Adams was also invested in expanding the US military and was the first president to live in the White House.
3. Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)
Jefferson was another of the USA's Founding Fathers and drafted the Declaration of Independence. As president, he purchased the Louisiana region from Napoleon, doubling the country's territory. He also promoted expeditions to explore the western region.
4. James Madison (1809-1817)
Before becoming president, James Madison was the man who spearheaded the creation of the United States Constitution (which remains in force today). During his tenure, he declared war on England, which was attacking American ships. He tried unsuccessfully to invade Canada, but England failed to conquer the US either.
5. James Monroe (1817-1825)
James Monroe's presidency was marked by peace with other countries. Treaties were signed with England and Russia, marking borders with their colonies, and Spain ceded Florida to the US. The United States also recognized the new countries of Latin America, which had gained independence from Spain.
6. John Quincy Adams (1825-1829)
Son of the second president, John Quincy Adams was the first president who was not a Founding Father. He had a great political career, both before and after he was president. But during his term, he faced a lot of opposition. Adams invested in essential infrastructure for the country and maintained peace with other nations.
7. Andrew Jackson (1829-1837)
Before entering politics, Andrew Jackson was a military man who led the US Army to numerous victories. He was reputed to have a quick temper but was popular with the people. As president, he made several government reforms to lessen corruption. Jackson was the only president who managed to pay off the country's entire debt (but for a short time).
8.Martin Van Buren (1837-1841)
Martin Van Buren was the first president to be born in the United States after independence. His mandate was marked by a very serious economic crisis, which he was unable to control. He also faced tensions with England and Canada.
9. William Henry Harrison (1841)
When he came to power, William Henry Harrison had an ambitious agenda to improve the country's situation. But he was not destined. A few weeks after taking office, he caught pneumonia. Harrison died with just one month in power, thus making it the shortest presidency in the country.
10. John Tyler (1841-1845)
John Tyler was vice president and assumed the presidency when Harrison died. His term was complicated, with a lot of political opposition and difficulty in restoring the economy. But one success he achieved was the beginning of the process of annexing Texas to the United States.
11. James K. Polk (1845-1849)
In just one term, Polk managed to reorganize the government's economy, improve the country's infrastructure and expand the US territory to the Pacific! In a treaty with England, he annexed the state of Oregon, and after a war with Mexico, he further expanded the size of the country.
12. Zachary Taylor (1849-1850)
Zachary Taylor was an army officer who became very popular because of his victories against the Mexicans. But his presidency was marked by great tensions between defenders of slavery and those who fought to abolish it. His tenure is one of the shortest in history due to his death from illness.
13. Millard Fillmore (1850-1853)
As Taylor's vice president, Fillmore assumed power when the president died. He inherited political divisions over slavery and spent much of his tenure negotiating a compromise between the two sides.
14. Franklin Pierce (1853-1857)
Franklin Pierce continued the US expansion policy and sought to increase the country's influence in the Americas and Japan. But his support for policies that favored slavery further divided the country.
15. James Buchanan (1857-1861)
James Buchanan's tenure did not go well. His presidency began with a serious economic crisis, caused by the collapse of many banks, which he did not help to solve. Divisions over slavery grew, and in the last months of his term, some pro-slavery southern states seceded from the rest of the country.
16. Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865)
Lincoln's stand against slavery led to the secession of the southern states when he won the election. The breakaway states formed the Confederacy, which caused a civil war. Lincoln's forces won the war and he instituted the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution, leading to the abolition of slavery across the country. He is one of America's favorite presidents.
17. Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)
Andrew Johnson became president when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. Unfortunately, he had none of Lincoln's character and spent much of his term fighting Congress. With the end of the civil war, he passed laws that greatly limited the freedom of former slaves and that maintained racial segregation. During his presidency, Alaska was purchased from Russia.
18. Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
Grant was an important general who had several victories in the civil war. When he became president, he championed the rights of African Americans and tried to improve relations with indigenous peoples. But his government was also marked by a serious economic crisis and a lot of corruption among politicians.
19. Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881)
Hayes' election was controversial, because of votes lost to fraud, but he won (barely). He tried to protect the rights of African Americans and keep the peace in states that favored slavery, but he was not very successful. Hayes also had to deal with a major train workers' strike, which turned violent.
20. James A. Garfield (1881)
During his presidency, Garfield tried to promote basic education for all and the integration of African Americans. He also fought corruption and reorganized government departments. His term lasted less than a year because he was assassinated.
21. Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885)
Chester A. Arthur took Garfield's place when Garfield was murdered. Initially opposed to his predecessor's reforms, Arthur changed his mind and continued with the reorganization of departments, fighting corruption. He also reformed the navy, which became stronger.
22. Grover Cleveland (1885-1889)
Unlike the presidents who came before him, Cleveland was against US expansion. He kept peace with other countries, not getting involved in international conflicts, and focused more on improving the country's defenses and military.
23. Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893)
Benjamin Harrison was the only president who was the grandson of another president, William Henry Harrison. He continued to invest in the navy and became more involved in international politics. However, his internal policies were a failure: he failed to lower taxes, solve economic problems, or enforce the right to vote for African Americans.
24. Grover Cleveland (1893-1897)
Cleveland was the only US president who was elected twice in a row. But his second term was marked by a serious economic crisis, which generated discontent, strikes and violence.
25. William McKinley (1897-1901)
During his tenure, McKinley managed to change the country's economic situation, ending the crisis. He went to war with Spain over Cuba and emerged victorious. It was also during his presidency that Hawaii was annexed to the US. McKinley won a second election but was assassinated shortly thereafter.
26. Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909)
After assuming the presidency when McKinley died, Theodore Roosevelt became one of America's most popular presidents. He gained fame for making fair decisions, fighting corruption and promoting the well-being of the people. Roosevelt also mediated several international disputes, ending some conflicts.
27. William Howard Taft (1909-1913)
Taft was the successor prepared by Roosevelt but he did not have the same presence. He continued the policy of dismantling commercial monopolies and interfered a lot in Central American countries. The Panama Canal was built during his term.
28. Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921)
World War I took place during the presidency of Woodrow Wilson. At first, the USA remained neutral, but in 1917, the country entered the war against Germany, because of the growing threats from that country. This hastened the end of the war and Wilson took an active part in the peace process and the creation of the League of Nations.
29. Warren G. Harding (1921-1923)
During his presidency, Warren G. Harding concluded peace agreements and sought to stabilize the country at war's end. After a brief crisis, the economy grew and evolved, with more investment in novelties such as electricity and the car. Harding's tenure ended abruptly when he died of a heart attack.
30. Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929)
Coolidge took over as President when Harding passed away, but later managed to win an election. Discreet and short-spoken, Coolidge avoided controversy but championed equal rights for people of different races. During his term, the economy grew a lot and taxes were reduced.
31. Herbert Hoover (1929-1933)
Herbert Hoover was unlucky. Shortly after becoming president, there was a complete economic meltdown known as the Great Depression. Instead of solving the problem, several of his measures made the crisis worse! Unemployment and poverty reached frightening levels.
32. Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945)
Franklin Roosevelt, a distant cousin of President Theodore Roosevelt, came with the promise of salvation. His policy of reforms and support for employment became known as the New Deal. During his presidency, the US entered (late, again) the Second World War, which he helped to end. Franklin Roosevelt had the longest presidency in the US, having died shortly after winning his 4th election.
33. Harry S. Truman (1945-1953)
Truman inherited the presidency when Roosevelt passed away. One of his first acts was the order to drop the atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. With the end of the war, he promoted the Marshall Plan, which helped rebuild Europe, was one of the founders of the United Nations and supported the creation of the State of Israel. His presidency marked the beginning of the Cold War.
34. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961)
Before becoming president, Eisenhower was a general who achieved important victories in World War II. During his presidency, the Cold War escalated, leading to the race for nuclear weapons and space exploration. The US began a very aggressive international policy, interfering in many countries in their fight against communism.
35. John F. Kennedy (1961-1963)
Kennedy was a very popular president, who supported the fight for racial equality, led by Martin Luther King. At the international level, his presidency was marked by the continuation of the Cold War, which became quite hot with the missile crisis in Cuba. Kennedy's term ended early due to his assassination, a tragedy that would become one of the most defining events of the XNUMXth century.
36. Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969)
As vice president, Johnson took Kennedy's place when he died. He successfully instituted national laws against racial discrimination and worked hard to reduce poverty in the US. He also gave a lot of funding to education. During his presidency, the war in Vietnam escalated.
37. Richard Nixon (1969-1974)
Early in Nixon's presidency, the US put the first man on the moon. Nixon sought to improve relations with China and managed to make some deals with the Soviet Union. He ordered the withdrawal of Vietnam and America lost the war. Nixon was the only president to resign, before facing impeachment over his involvement in the Watergate scandal.
38. Gerald Ford (1974-1977)
As Vice President, Gerald Ford rose to power when Nixon resigned. He used his power to officially pardon Nixon of his crimes in the Watergate scandal, causing much controversy. His short term was not easy, with a severe economic crisis and two assassination attempts.
39. Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)
Jimmy Carter managed to ease the economic downturn, but then faced another downturn when the price of oil rose. He created two new departments in the government: the Department of Energy and the Department of Education. The end of his presidency was marked by a new escalation of the cold war, which had calmed down before.
40. Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)
During his presidency, Ronald Reagan managed to reverse the US economic crisis. On the other hand, government aid to the most needy people declined and the market suffered huge deregulations that still affect the American economy today. Reagan began an anti-drug campaign and also saw the Soviet Union collapse.
41. George H. W. Bush (1989-1993)
The presidency of the first George Bush began with the total collapse of the Soviet Union and its influence on the world. He involved the US in the Gulf War, fighting Iraq when that country invaded Kuwait. Currently, George HR Bush is the oldest former president in the history of America.
42. Bill Clinton (1993-2001)
Bill Clinton's presidency was marked by a period of prosperity and economic growth. He fought to create a national health care system but failed. Clinton involved the US in several international conflicts, including the fight against Al-Qaeda. For an extramarital affair, Clinton faced impeachment but was exonerated.
43. George W. Bush (2001-2009)
Following in his father's footsteps, George W. Bush launched the "war against terrorism" after the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001. He invaded Iraq and Afghanistan as part of this policy, causing a long war and much instability in the country. region. The end of his presidency was marked by a serious economic crisis.
44. Barack Obama (2009-2017)
Barack Obama was the first black US president. He inherited a serious economic crisis, which was slowly reversed, with the creation of more jobs. Obama was known for championing same-sex marriage, national health care and tighter gun control. He tried to lessen US involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan but ordered military intervention in Libya.
45. Donald Trump (2017-2023)
Donald Trump is possibly the most controversial president in US history. He won elections on a promise to improve the economy and cut immigration, and he generated much controversy for allegations of sexual harassment, racist comments, poor international relations, fights against the press and for promoting hatred. At the end of his term, he contested the election result and urged his supporters to invade the US Congress, at a time when the legislative houses were meeting to ratify the victory of the new US president, Joe Biden.
46º Joe Biden (2023-)
After troubled and highly disputed elections, Joe Biden took office on January 20, 2020 asking Americans to unite. In his inaugural speech, he came out in defense of democracy, stating that his election represented the victory not only of a candidacy, but of a cause. Among the campaign promises of the Democratic candidate are the return to the Paris Agreement, the return to the WHO and the reversal of the immigration policies of his predecessor.
