rutherford b. hayes took the presidential oath of office in 1881 following the death of the president.
which man took the presidential oath of office in 1881 following the death of the president?
rutherford b. hayes
this understanding was first tested in 1841, following the death of president william henry harrison, only days into his term. harrison's vice president, john tyler, asserted that he had succeeded to the office of president, not just to its powers and duties. he took the presidential oath of office, and declined to acknowledge documents referring to him as "acting president." although some in congress denounced tyler's claim as a violation of the constitution, he adhered to his position. tyler's view ultimately prevailed when the senate and house voted to acknowledge him as president, setting a momentous precedent for an orderly transfer of presidential power following a president's death, one made explicit by section 1 of the twenty-fifth amendment in 1967. in total, nine vice presidents have succeeded to the presidency intra-term. in addition to tyler, they are millard fillmore, andrew johnson, chester a. arthur, theodore roosevelt, calvin coolidge, harry s. truman, lyndon b. johnson, and gerald ford.
vice president of the united states
while the constitution does not mandate that anyone in particular should administer the presidential oath of office, it has been administered by the chief justice beginning with john adams, except following the death of a sitting president. george washington was sworn into office during his first inauguration, on april 30, 1789, by chancellor of new york robert livingston. william cranch, chief judge of the u.s. circuit court, administered the oath to millard fillmore on july 10, 1850, when he became president after the death of zachary taylor. upon being informed of warren harding's death, while visiting his family home in plymouth notch, vermont, calvin coolidge was sworn in as president by his father, john calvin coolidge sr., a notary public. federal judge sarah t. hughes administered the oath of office to lyndon b. johnson aboard air force one after john f. kennedy's assassination on november 22, 1963; the only time a woman has administered the oath of office. overall, the presidential oath has been administered by 15 chief justices (one of whom—william howard taft—was also a former president), one associate justice, four federal judges, two new york state judges, and one notary public.
oath of office of the president of the united states