Have Any U.S. Presidents Decided Not to Run For a Second Term? (2024)

Have Any U.S. Presidents Decided Not to Run For a Second Term? (1)

“I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your president,” Lyndon B. Johnson told a shocked national television audience on the evening of March 31, 1968, thus becoming the most recent U.S. president to decide not to run for a second elected term.

Johnson, who had been John F. Kennedy’s vice president, ascended to the presidency upon Kennedy’s assassination in November 1963. Having completed Kennedy’s term, he was elected president in his own right by a landslide in 1964. Johnson’s ambitious Great Society domestic agenda was overshadowed by failures in the increasingly unpopular Vietnam War, in which the Tet Offensive—initiated on January 31, 1968, by the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese—seemed to reveal the futility of continued American involvement in the war. The offensive was finally quelled on February 24, but some three weeks later Johnson only narrowly escaped defeat by peace candidate Eugene McCarthy in the New Hampshire Democratic presidential primary. Suffering ill health, with his public approval rating under 40 percent, and stung by the widespread opposition to his handling of the war, Johnson chose not seek reelection.

Johnson is not the only U.S. president who decided not to seek a second elected term. The others are James K. Polk, James Buchanan, Rutherford B. Hayes, Calvin Coolidge, and Harry S. Truman. (Theodore Roosevelt declined to run in 1908, after being elected president in 1904 and serving one term, but he again sought the office—and lost—as a third-party candidate in 1912.)

Have Any U.S. Presidents Decided Not to Run For a Second Term? (2024)

FAQs

How many presidents didn't get a second term? ›

Ten former U.S. presidents were unable to win second terms, including Jimmy Carter, George H.W. Bush, and Donald Trump. Some presidents, including Trump, were never able to make serious inroads with voters of the other party; others, like George H.W.

Which presidents skipped a term? ›

The first Democrat elected after the Civil War in 1885, our 22nd and 24th President Grover Cleveland was the only President to leave the White House and return for a second term four years later (1885-1889 and 1893-1897).

What president served only one term? ›

Presidents by time in office
RankPresidentNumber of terms
21Abraham LincolnOne full term; assassinated: died 1 month and 11 days into second term, 1 day after being shot
22 tieJohn Quincy AdamsOne full term
Martin Van BurenOne full term
James K. PolkOne full term
41 more rows

Has a president ever lost the nomination? ›

Since the advent of the modern primary election system in 1972, an incumbent president has never been defeated by a primary challenger, though every president who faced a strong primary challenge went on to be defeated in the general election. In the 1992 Republican Party presidential primaries, President George H. W.

Which president broke the 2 term limit? ›

This message was interpreted to mean he was willing to be drafted, and he was renominated on the convention's first ballot. Roosevelt won a decisive victory over Republican Wendell Willkie, becoming the only president to exceed eight years in office. His decision to seek a third term dominated the election campaign.

Which president did not get reelected for a second term? ›

List
Term in officePresidentCountry
1885–1889Grover ClevelandUnited States
1889–1893Benjamin HarrisonUnited States
1909–1913William Howard TaftUnited States
1929–1933Herbert HooverUnited States
81 more rows

Why did LBJ not run again? ›

Johnson did not run for a second full term in the 1968 presidential election because of his low popularity. He was succeeded by Republican Richard Nixon. His presidency marked the high tide of modern liberalism in the 20th century United States.

Which president served 2 terms but not in a row? ›

Born in this modest house in Caldwell, New Jersey on March 18, 1837, Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States, the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms. The house was the residence of the minister at the local Presbyterian Church.

Who was the only president ever elected to four terms? ›

Roosevelt began on January 20, 1941, when he was once again inaugurated as the 32nd president of the United States, and the fourth term of his presidency ended with his death on April 12, 1945.

Who was the oldest president? ›

The oldest president at the end of his tenure was Ronald Reagan at 77; this distinction will eventually fall upon Joe Biden, who is currently 81.

Who was the shortest president? ›

The tallest U.S. president was Abraham Lincoln at 6 feet 4 inches (193 centimeters), while the shortest was James Madison at 5 feet 4 inches (163 centimeters). Joe Biden, the current president, is 6 feet 0 inches (183 centimeters) according to a physical examination summary from February 2024.

Who was the shortest term president of the United States? ›

William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773 – April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration as president in 1841, making his presidency the shortest in U.S. history.

Can an ex-president run as vice president? ›

Additionally, neither the Constitution's eligibility provisions nor the Twenty-second Amendment's presidential term limit explicitly disqualify a twice-elected president from serving as vice president, though it is arguably prohibited by the last sentence of the Twelfth Amendment: "But no person constitutionally ...

Who was the president that was assassinated? ›

Four sitting presidents have been killed: Abraham Lincoln (1865, by John Wilkes Booth), James A. Garfield (1881, by Charles J. Guiteau), William McKinley (1901, by Leon Czolgosz), and John F. Kennedy (1963, by Lee Harvey Oswald).

Which president was a school teacher? ›

President Lyndon Johnson (1963–1969)

Johnson was a teacher as a young man. He believed in education for all children. In 1965, he signed the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).

How many presidents had a second term? ›

There have been twenty-one U.S. presidents who have served a second term, each of whom has faced difficulties attributed to the curse.

Why did most presidents only serve 2 terms? ›

The decision for George Washington – the First President of the United States – to voluntarily step down from office after two terms, established an unofficial tradition for future presidents to serve for no longer than two terms.

What president was elected four times? ›

At the 1924 Democratic Convention he dramatically appeared on crutches to nominate Alfred E. Smith as “the Happy Warrior.” In 1928 Roosevelt became Governor of New York. He was elected President in November 1932, to the first of four terms.

When did presidents only serve 2 terms? ›

Passed by Congress in 1947, and ratified by the states on February 27, 1951, the Twenty-Second Amendment limits an elected president to two terms in office, a total of eight years.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Last Updated:

Views: 6528

Rating: 5 / 5 (50 voted)

Reviews: 81% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Merrill Bechtelar CPA

Birthday: 1996-05-19

Address: Apt. 114 873 White Lodge, Libbyfurt, CA 93006

Phone: +5983010455207

Job: Legacy Representative

Hobby: Blacksmithing, Urban exploration, Sudoku, Slacklining, Creative writing, Community, Letterboxing

Introduction: My name is Merrill Bechtelar CPA, I am a clean, agreeable, glorious, magnificent, witty, enchanting, comfortable person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.