Introduction - Official Vice-Presidential Inaugural Medals

Short History
of the
Official Vice-President Inaugural Medal
and the
Vice-Presidency

The history of the vice-presidential inaugural medal is a short and rather recent one. It was not until the inauguration of Gerald R. Ford as vice-president on December 6, 1973 had our nation ever inaugurated a vice-president on a date other than the day the newly elected president was inaugurated. Prior to the ratification of the 25th amendment to the Constitution of the United States on February 10, 1967, Spiro T. Agnew's resignation in the face of criminal charges of extortion, tax evasion, and bribery on October 11, 1973 would have just left the office vacant. The 25th amendment (printed in its entirety below) besides spelling out the procedures for the temporary or permanent removal of a seated president who for health or mental reasons was no longer able to perform the duties of the office also put in place in Section 2 the procedures necessary to fill the vacant vice-presidency should the vice-president be required to assume the presidency, died, or resigned from office.

This procedure has only been used twice since its ratification. The first, mentioned above was when Gerald R. Ford was nominated by President Nixon to fill the void left by the resignation of Vice-President Agnew. Ford was quite fortunate as his name was given to the President by Democratic and Republican leaders on the hill indicating he was the only Republican of any stature who could be confirmed, thus Nixon named Ford as his choice on October 11 in a White House ceremony. After several weeks of testimony, both houses of Congress approved Ford's appointment, and he was sworn in as vice president on December 6, 1973. Vice-President Ford was honored with an official vice-presidential inaugural medal commemorating his being the first to rise to the office under the 25th amendment.

The second was when Vice-President Ford assumed the Office of President when Richard M. Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974 in the wake of the controversy surrounding the Watergate break-ins and subsequent cover-up. Ford's good fortune had continued as he became the first President of the United States to achieved that high office without being elected by the people either as president or vice-president first. The responsibility fell to newly inaugurated President Ford to nominate his replacement as vice-president. His choice was Nelson A. Rockefeller, who was confirmed by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress and duly inaugurated as the 41st Vice-President on December 19, 1974. In honor of the occasion the newly inaugurated vice-president was honored with an official vice-presidential inaugural medal.

Perhaps as interesting as how these two men came to serve our nation as vice-president is how many times the office of the second most powerful position in our government has been vacant. The chronology below is quite interesting.

Years the Office of Vice-President Has Been Vacant
1812 - 1813	Vice-President George Clinton, former Governor of New York, served one full term under President Thomas Jefferson but died in office April 20, 1812 as he neared the end of his second term as vice-president this time under James Madison. His death left the office vacant for over 10 months until the inauguration of March 4, 1813.
1814 - 1817	Vice-President Elbridge Gerry, former Governor of Massachusetts, was inaugurated vice-president in 1813 as James Madison's running mate. He faired no better than Madison's first VP dying in office the following year.
1832 - 1833	Vice-President John C. Calhoun resigned his vice-presidency to become a Senator from his home state of South Carolina.
1841 - 1845	President William Henry Harrison died in office one month after taking the oath of office leaving John Tyler to fill the remainder of his term and the vice-presidency vacant.
1850 - 1853	President Zachary Taylor died in office elevating Millard Fillmore to the presidency again leaving the vice-president's office empty.
1853 - 1857	Millard Fillmore was elected president in 1852 and inaugurated in March of 1853 along with running mate William R. King as vice-president. Vice-President King did not survive the year leaving the vice-presidency vacant again.
1865 - 1869	President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated April 14, 1865 and died the next day. Vice-President Andrew Johnson a Democrat that had been nominated for vice-president by the Republicans completed Lincoln's second term and once again the vice-president's office was vacant.
1875 - 1877	Ulysses S. Grant's vice-president during his second term was New Hampshire native Henry Wilson. Vice-President Wilson died in office in 1877 creating another vacancy.
1881 - 1885	James A. Garfield held the office of president only four months before he was fatally shot by an assassin. Yet another vacancy in the vice-president's office as Chester A. Arthur completed Garfield's term
1885 - 1889	Grover Cleveland's vice-president was Ohio native Thomas A. Hendricks. Vice-President Hendricks did not survive the first year of their term.
1899 - 1901	William McKinley's vice-president during his first term, Garret A. Hobart died in 1899 leaving the office vacant once more.
1901 - 1905	On September 6, 1901 President William McKinley was shot twice in Buffalo, New York. He died of his wounds on September 14 and his second term vice-president Theodore Roosevelt completed their term.
1912 - 1913	President William Howard Taft's vice-president James Schoolcraft Sherman died in the last year of their term.
1923 - 1925	President Warren G. Harding died in office of complications of pneumonia in 1923 leaving the remainder of his term to be filled by Calvin Coolidge.
1945 - 1949	President Franklin D. Roosevelt died early in his fourth term as president leaving Harry S. Truman to finish it out creating yet another vacancy in the vice-presidency.
1963 - 1965	The assassination of President John F. Kennedy elivated Vice-President Lyndon B. Johnson to the presidency creating the last vacancy in the vice-president's office.

Twenty-Fifth Amendment
[Proposed 1965; Ratified 1967]
Section. 1.	In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the Vice President shall become President.
Section. 2.	Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall nominate a Vice President who shall take office upon confirmation by a majority vote of both Houses of Congress.
Section. 3.	Whenever the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and until he transmits to them a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged by the Vice President as Acting President.
Section. 4.	Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive departments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting President.
	Thereafter, when the President transmits to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives his written declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive department or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit within four days to the President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their written declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office. Thereupon Congress shall decide the issue, assembling within forty-eight hours for that purpose if not in session. If the Congress, within twenty-one days after receipt of the latter written declaration, or, if Congress is not in session, within twenty-one days after Congress is required to assemble, determines by two-thirds vote of both Houses that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice President shall continue to discharge the same as Acting President; otherwise, the President shall resume the powers and duties of his office.