Which Presidents succeeded from the Vice Presidency served out their predecessor's term but were never elected to the Presidency in their own name?

Answer 1

John Tyler became President when William Henry Harrison died (he got sick during his inauguration ceremony, and died a month later). Harrison was the first President to die in office, so it was unclear exactly what was supposed to happen (the Constitution wasn't clear); Tyler was quickly sworn in as President to prevent any fighting. However, Tyler was able to anger both political parties, ensuring that he could not win the 1844 election.

Millard Fillmore became President after Zachary Taylor died from an unknown illness (there are conspiracy theories that he was poisoned). However, his policies were seen as being too pro-slavery, and his party, which was mostly anti-slavery, did not choose him as their candidate for the 1852 election.

Andrew Johnson succeeded Abraham Lincoln after his assassination. Johnson's presidency was difficult (he was a Democrat and Congress was controlled by Republicans), and due to the lingering effects of the Civil War, he was, like Fillmore, unable to obtain his party's nomination to run for President.

James Garfield was assassinated in 1881, making Chester A. Arthur the new President. Arthur was not terribly popular, and in 1884, he made a token effort to gain the nomination, predictably failed, and quietly retired upon his term's completion.

In 1974, Richard Nixon resigned as President because of the Watergate scandal, and the new President was Gerald Ford. When he ran for election in 1976, Ford came close to winning, but hurt his own chances with some blunders, notably saying in a debate that the Soviet Union didn't control Eastern Europe (which was shockingly untrue).

President Ford also holds the distinction of being the only President to never be elected President or Vice President- Nixon's Vice President was originally Spiro Agnew, but Agnew had resigned in 1973 due to scandal involving bribery and tax evasion. Ford was appointed Vice President, and a few months later became President. Lastly, Ford's presidency was only 895 days, the shortest term of any President who did not die in office.