kids encyclopedia robot

List of vice presidents of the United States facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
1OC2003
Number One Observatory Circle, the official home of the Vice President of the United States

The vice president of the United States is the second-highest leader in the U.S. government, right after the president of the United States. The Vice President also leads the Senate and can cast a special vote to break a tie if senators are evenly split on a decision. This power has been used differently by various Vice Presidents over time. Two Vice Presidents, George Clinton and John C. Calhoun, served under more than one president.

JD Vance is the current Vice President. He became the 50th Vice President on January 20, 2025.

Since the office was created in 1789, there have been 50 U.S. Vice Presidents. At first, the person who came in second place in the Electoral College election for president became Vice President. But after the election of 1800, there was a tie between Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr. The House of Representatives had to choose the winner. To prevent this from happening again, the Twelfth Amendment was added to the Constitution in 1804. This amendment created the system we have today, where voters choose the President and Vice President separately.

The Vice President is the first person in the line to become president. This means if the President dies, resigns, or is removed from office, the Vice President takes over. Nine Vice Presidents have become president this way. Also, many Vice Presidents have later been elected as president on their own.

Before the Twenty-fifth Amendment was added in 1967, if the Vice President's office became empty during a term, it stayed empty until the next election. This happened several times: seven Vice Presidents died, one resigned, and eight became president. The 25th Amendment changed this. It allowed the President to choose a new Vice President, who then had to be approved by both parts of Congress. Since 1967, the Vice President's office has been empty twice. Both times, new Vice Presidents were chosen using this process. The amendment also set up a way for the Vice President to temporarily act as president if the President is unable to do their job. Three Vice Presidents have briefly acted as president under the 25th Amendment: George H. W. Bush on July 13, 1985; Dick Cheney on June 29, 2002, and on July 21, 2007; and Kamala Harris on November 19, 2021.

Who Are the Vice Presidents?

Here is a list of all the Vice Presidents of the United States.


See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Anexo:Vicepresidentes de los Estados Unidos para niños

kids search engine
List of vice presidents of the United States Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.