US Presidents · 20th century

Gerald Ford

1913–2006 · American

Republican

In office: 1974–1977

Gerald R. Ford, the 38th president, is the only person to have served as both vice president and president without being elected to either office. Appointed vice president in 1973 after Spiro Agnew resigned, he succeeded Richard Nixon in 1974 and controversially pardoned him, then lost the 1976 election to Jimmy Carter.

How to spot them

▸Never elected president or vice president
▸'Our long national nightmare is over'; the pardon of Nixon
▸Born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; University of Michigan football player
▸Two assassination attempts in California in September 1975; 'Whip Inflation Now' buttons

In office

Appointment as vice president under the 25th Amendment (1973)

First person appointed vice president under the amendment, replacing Spiro Agnew

'Our long national nightmare is over' (1974)

Remark on taking the oath of office after Nixon's resignation

The pardon of Richard Nixon (1974)

Full pardon granted on 8 September 1974

The 'Whip Inflation Now' (WIN) campaign (1974)

Voluntary anti-inflation drive promoted with lapel buttons

The fall of Saigon (1975)

Final evacuation of Americans as North Vietnamese forces took the city

The Helsinki Accords (1975)

East–West agreement on European security and human rights

The Mayaguez incident (1975)

Military rescue of a US merchant ship seized by the Khmer Rouge

Quick-fire facts

•38th president; born Leslie Lynch King Jr. in Omaha, Nebraska, and renamed after his stepfather
•Played centre for the University of Michigan football team
•Served as House Minority Leader and was a member of the Warren Commission on Kennedy's assassination
•Survived two assassination attempts in September 1975, by Lynette 'Squeaky' Fromme and by Sara Jane Moore
•Chose Nelson Rockefeller as his vice president, who was also appointed rather than elected
•Died on 26 December 2006, aged 93

Drill it — 6 cards

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Sources

Miller Center, University of Virginia — Gerald Ford
Encyclopaedia Britannica — Gerald Ford