Greatest Vice Presidents Ranked

Thomas Jefferson

Serving under his political rival John Adams, Jefferson used the vice presidency as a launching pad rather than a partnership, quietly organizing opposition that would sweep him into the presidency in 1800. His tenure proved the office could be a stepping stone to power rather th

Years in Office: 1797–1801Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 6/10Overall Legacy: 9.5/10

added by IJRin 11 rankings

John Adams

America's first vice president famously called the job 'the most insignificant office,' but he set precedents for the role and used his tie-breaking Senate votes more than any VP since. His frustration became the founding template every successor measured themselves against.

Years in Office: 1789–1797Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 5.5/10Overall Legacy: 8/10

added by IJRin 8 rankings

Theodore Roosevelt

McKinley's running mate was meant to be sidelined in a powerless post, but an assassin's bullet in 1901 turned the young Rough Rider into the youngest president in history. His brief VP stint is a footnote; what it unlocked reshaped the 20th century.

Years in Office: 1901Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 3/10Overall Legacy: 8.5/10

added by IJRin 12 rankingsTheodore Roosevelt

Lyndon B. Johnson

The former Senate Majority Leader chafed under Kennedy, feeling marginalized despite his legislative genius, until Dallas thrust him into the presidency where he passed the Civil Rights Act. His VP years are remembered as a cautionary tale of wasted talent before tragedy revealed

Years in Office: 1961–1963Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 4/10Overall Legacy: 8/10

added by IJRin 9 rankingsLyndon B. Johnson

Richard Nixon

Eisenhower's VP modernized the office, chairing National Security Council meetings and traveling the world as a de facto diplomat, most famously sparring with Khrushchev in the 1959 Kitchen Debate. He lost the 1960 election narrowly but returned eight years later to win the presi

Years in Office: 1953–1961Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 7/10Overall Legacy: 7/10

added by IJRin 13 rankings

Dick Cheney

Widely considered the most powerful vice president in American history, Cheney ran a shadow national security apparatus, championed the Iraq War, and expanded executive power in ways that redefined the office itself. Supporters call him the most consequential VP ever; critics cal

Years in Office: 2001–2009Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 9.5/10Overall Legacy: 7/10

added by IJRin 2 rankingsDick Cheney

Al Gore

Clinton's VP was a genuine governing partner on tech policy and 'reinventing government,' then reinvented himself after a bruising 2000 loss into a Nobel Peace Prize-winning climate crusader with 'An Inconvenient Truth.' Few VPs have had a bigger second act outside the office.

Years in Office: 1993–2001Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 7.5/10Overall Legacy: 7.5/10

added by IJRAl Gore

Joe Biden

Obama's VP became his closest confidant, brokering deals on Capitol Hill and delivering the viral 'big f***ing deal' line at the ACA signing. Eight years later he became only the second sitting or former VP in decades to win the presidency outright.

Years in Office: 2009–2017Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 7/10Overall Legacy: 8/10

added by IJRin 2 rankings

Harry S. Truman

FDR's third-term VP barely knew about the Manhattan Project when Roosevelt's death in April 1945 suddenly handed him the atomic bomb decision and the end of World War II. Truman's 82 days as VP are the shortest of any president-to-be, making his ascension one of history's steepes

Years in Office: 1945Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 2.5/10Overall Legacy: 7.5/10

added by IJRin 2 rankings

George H. W. Bush

Reagan's VP was a loyal, steady presence for eight years, chairing crisis teams and quietly building the coalition that carried him to a first-ballot presidential win in 1988 — the first sitting VP to do so since 1836. His tenure is the model of the office as a disciplined appren

Years in Office: 1981–1989Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 6/10Overall Legacy: 7/10

added by IJRin 3 rankingsGeorge H. W. Bush

Martin Van Buren

Jackson's chosen successor and VP, Van Buren was the ultimate political operator of his era, effectively running the Democratic Party machine while serving. He rode Jackson's endorsement straight into the White House in 1836, becoming the first sitting VP elected president since

Years in Office: 1833–1837Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 6.5/10Overall Legacy: 6.5/10

added by IJRin 3 rankingsMartin Van Buren

John C. Calhoun

Serving under two different presidents, Calhoun was the most ideologically forceful VP of the early republic, using the office to champion states' rights and defend slavery so fiercely he later resigned to take a Senate seat instead. His legacy is towering in influence and infamo

Years in Office: 1825–1832Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 7/10Overall Legacy: 4/10

added by IJRin 2 rankings

Aaron Burr

Jefferson's first-term VP is remembered less for governing than for killing Alexander Hamilton in a duel and later standing trial for treason over an alleged plot to carve out his own western empire. No vice presidency in American history has a wilder, darker story arc.

Years in Office: 1801–1805Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 3/10Overall Legacy: 2.5/10

added by IJRAaron Burr

Calvin Coolidge

Harding's quiet VP was famously nicknamed 'Silent Cal' for his terse public demeanor, but when Harding died suddenly in 1923, Coolidge was sworn in by his own father in a farmhouse by kerosene lamp — one of the office's most cinematic transition moments. He went on to win the pre

Years in Office: 1921–1923Later Became President: ✓Influence While VP: 3/10Overall Legacy: 6/10

added by IJRin 4 rankingsCalvin Coolidge

Hubert Humphrey

Johnson's VP was a tireless civil rights champion who nonetheless became trapped defending an unpopular Vietnam War, costing him the razor-thin 1968 presidential race to Nixon. His humanitarian legacy and the tragedy of his near-miss make him one of the most sympathetic figures t

Years in Office: 1965–1969Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 4.5/10Overall Legacy: 6/10

added by IJRin 2 rankingsHubert Humphrey

Walter Mondale

Carter's VP redefined the modern office by moving into the West Wing and becoming a true policy partner, a template every VP since has followed. He later lost the 1984 election in a landslide to Reagan but is remembered as the architect of vice-presidential relevance.

Years in Office: 1977–1981Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 6.5/10Overall Legacy: 6.5/10

added by IJRWalter Mondale

Spiro Agnew

Nixon's combative VP became famous for slashing attacks on the press and anti-war protesters before resigning in disgrace in 1973 amid a bribery and tax evasion scandal — the only VP to resign under criminal threat rather than assassination. His fall is one of the office's great

Years in Office: 1969–1973Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 4/10Overall Legacy: 2/10

added by IJRSpiro Agnew

Kamala Harris

Biden's VP became the first woman, first Black, and first South Asian vice president, casting a record number of tie-breaking Senate votes during a deadlocked chamber. Her tenure culminated in an unexpectedly rushed 2024 presidential run after Biden stepped aside, making her tenu

Years in Office: 2021–2025Later Became President: —Influence While VP: 5/10Overall Legacy: 6/10

added by IJRKamala Harris