[253] This act reversed the "spoils system" where office seekers paid up or gave political service to obtain or keep federally appointed positions.[253] Under the act, appointments were awarded on merit and competitive examination.[254] To ensure the reform was implemented, Congress and Arthur established and funded the Civil Service Commission. The Pendleton Act, however, covered only 10% of federal government workers.[254] For Arthur, previously known for having been a "veteran spoilsman", civil service reform became his most noteworthy achievement.[255]
A marble statue of Garfield by Charles Niehaus was added to the National Statuary Hall Collection in the Capitol in Washington D.C., a gift from the State of Ohio in 1886.[256]
Garfield is honored with a life-size bronze sculpture inside the Cuyahoga County Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument in Cleveland, Ohio.[257]
On March 2, 2019, the National Park Service erected exhibit panels in Washington to mark the site of his assassination.