[65] Ford's leadership was instrumental in shepherding revenue sharing through Congress, and resulted in a bipartisan coalition that supported the bill with 223 votes in favor (compared with 185 against).[58][66]
During the eight years (1965–1973) that Ford served as minority leader, he won many friends in the House because of his fair leadership and inoffensive personality.[58]

Vice presidency (1973–1974)
Gerald and Betty Ford with the President and First Lady Pat Nixon after President Nixon nominated Ford to be vice president, October 13, 1973
In his effort to become House Speaker, Ford worked to help Republicans across the country get a majority in the chamber, often traveling on the rubber chicken circuit. After a decade of failing to do so, he promised his wife that he would try again in 1974 then retire in 1976.[31] On October 10, 1973, Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned and then pleaded no contest to a single count of tax evasion over his failure to report $29,500 in income received while he was governor of Maryland.[67] According to The New York Times, Nixon "sought advice from senior Congressional leaders about a replacement."The advice was unanimous. 