The United States has a determined hierarchy for the presidential line of succession. If the elected president dies, resigns, is temporarily incapacitated, or is removed from office, the office of the president passes to the vice president. But what happens next?
What is the U.S. order of succession?
The U.S. Constitution and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947 detail the U.S. order of succession—what would happen if the president is incapacitated, dies, resigns, is unable to hold their office, or is removed from office. The president would be replaced in the following order:
- Vice President
- Speaker of the House
- President Pro Tempore of the Senate (typically, the Senator with the longest tenure in 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
The cabinet secretaries are listed in the order these departments were founded. For example, the Department of State has been around since 1790, when Thomas Jefferson was Secretary of State, but the Department of Veterans Affairs was founded in 1989.
Has it ever been put into action?
Yes, nine times in American history. Eight of those instances were due to the death of a president in office, and one (Richard Nixon) was due to a resignation. The eight presidents who died in office are, in chronological order: William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley, Warren G. Harding, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy.
In addition, three vice presidents—George H. W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Kamala Harris—have temporarily assumed the powers of the presidency while the president is temporarily incapacitated due to a medical procedure.
However, the offices of the president and vice president have never been simultaneously vacant, so the U.S. has never had to go further down the line of the succession.
What is a "designated survivor"?
While the U.S. Constitution does not directly call for a designated survivor, it has been common practice since the 1950s. In essence, when the entire Cabinet is gathered, one Cabinet member in the direct line of succession is not present—in case of a disaster, attack, or another unforeseen event. This typically is most noticeable during the State of the Union, when one Cabinet member is absent in an undisclosed location.
What is the current order of succession?
Two of President Biden's Cabinet members are naturalized citizens (Jennifer Granholm, Secretary of Energy, and Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security), making them ineligible to hold the office of U.S. president. Therefore, Biden's line of succession only has 16 members in it, instead of 18.
As of August 2023, here is the current U.S. presidential line of succession:
- Vice President Kamala Harris
- Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy
- President Pro Tempore of the Senate Patty Murray
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken
- Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen
- Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin
- Attorney General Merrick Garland
- Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland
- Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack
- Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo
- Secretary of Labor Julie Su
- Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra
- Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge
- Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg
- Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona
- Secretary of Veterans Affairs Denis McDonough
Emily Burack (she/her) is the Senior News Editor for Town & Country, where she covers entertainment, culture, the royals, and a range of other subjects. Before joining T&C, she was the deputy managing editor at Hey Alma, a Jewish culture site. Follow her @emburack on Twitter and Instagram.
