Presidents Who Survived Political Scandals

Bill Clinton

Impeached by the House over the Lewinsky affair and perjury allegations, Clinton became only the second president impeached yet was acquitted by the Senate and left office with sky-high approval ratings. His survival is the gold standard of scandal comebacks, turning a sex scanda

Scandal Severity: 8/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: ✓Approval Rating Drop: 10 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 7/10

added by IJRin 11 rankingsBill Clinton

Richard Nixon

Nixon is the cautionary counterexample — he survived Watergate right up until he didn't, resigning in disgrace before certain impeachment and removal. Yet his earlier Checkers speech in 1952 saved his vice-presidential spot after a funding scandal, showing he was a repeat survivo

Scandal Severity: 10/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 40 %Years in Office: 5 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 3/10

added by IJRin 13 rankings

Andrew Jackson

Jackson's presidency was engulfed by the Petticoat Affair cabinet scandal and fierce corruption charges over the spoils system, yet his populist appeal and iron will let him dominate two full terms. He turned scandal into a rallying cry against the Washington elite, a playbook la

Scandal Severity: 6/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 15 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 6/10

added by IJRin 9 rankings

Ulysses S. Grant

Grant's administration was riddled with scandals — the Whiskey Ring, Credit Mobilier, and Belknap's bribery case — yet his personal integrity remained largely untouched, letting him finish two terms. His survival came from being seen as naive rather than corrupt, a distinction th

Scandal Severity: 7/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 20 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 5/10

added by IJRin 8 rankingsUlysses S. Grant

Andrew Johnson

The first president ever impeached, Johnson survived removal by a single Senate vote after firing his Secretary of War in defiance of the Tenure of Office Act. His razor-thin acquittal remains one of the most dramatic scandal survivals in American history, though it crippled the

Scandal Severity: 9/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: ✓Approval Rating Drop: 25 %Years in Office: 4 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 3/10

added by IJRin 6 rankings

Ronald Reagan

The Iran-Contra affair threatened to define his legacy as an illegal arms-for-hostages scheme run out of the White House basement, but Reagan's folksy apology and delegation of blame to aides let him finish his term popular. He emerged as the 'Teflon President,' a nickname earned

Scandal Severity: 7/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 21 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 8/10

added by IJRin 12 rankingsRonald Reagan

Warren Harding

Harding died in office before the full extent of the Teapot Dome bribery scandal became public, so he never had to personally survive it — his reputation collapsed posthumously instead. He's included here as the president whose 'survival' was really just timing, dying before the

Scandal Severity: 8/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: —Years in Office: 2 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 2/10

added by IJRWarren Harding

Donald Trump

Impeached twice by the House — over Ukraine dealings and January 6 — and acquitted both times in the Senate, Trump turned scandal into political fuel rather than a liability, later winning a second term despite ongoing legal battles. No president has survived more formal impeachm

Scandal Severity: 9/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: ✓Approval Rating Drop: 8 %Years in Office: 4 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 5/10

added by IJRin 10 rankings

Thomas Jefferson

Jefferson faced the Sally Hemings paternity allegations published by a hostile journalist, allegations he never publicly addressed and that swirled without derailing his second term. His silence proved an effective, if imperfect, survival strategy in an era before modern media sc

Scandal Severity: 6/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: —Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 8/10

added by IJRin 11 rankings

George W. Bush

The Valerie Plame leak scandal and questions over the Iraq War's justification dogged his presidency, culminating in the conviction of his chief of staff aide Scooter Libby. Bush survived by compartmentalizing the fallout to subordinates and riding out a second term despite plumm

Scandal Severity: 6/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 30 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 6/10

added by IJRin 8 rankingsGeorge W. Bush

Franklin D. Roosevelt

FDR's court-packing scheme scandalized Congress and even his own party, seen as a naked power grab against the judiciary, yet he weathered the political backlash and still won an unprecedented four terms. His survival shows how wartime leadership and economic recovery can oversha

Scandal Severity: 5/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 10 %Years in Office: 12 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 9/10

added by IJRin 16 rankingsFranklin D. Roosevelt

Herbert Hoover

Hoover faced accusations of mishandling the Bonus Army protest, ordering a violent military crackdown on WWI veterans camped in Washington, which scandalized the public conscience during the Depression. He survived the immediate backlash in office but it cemented an image of call

Scandal Severity: 5/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 25 %Years in Office: 4 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 3/10

added by IJRin 5 rankingsHerbert Hoover

Lyndon B. Johnson

Johnson faced the Bobby Baker corruption scandal tied to his Senate years and mounting credibility issues over Vietnam War reporting, epitomized by the 'credibility gap.' He survived formal accountability but the cumulative scandal fatigue contributed to his shocking decision not

Scandal Severity: 5/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 35 %Years in Office: 5 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 6/10

added by IJRin 9 rankingsLyndon B. Johnson

Bill Taft

Taft weathered the Ballinger-Pinchot affair, a conservation scandal that split the Republican Party and pitted him against his own former mentor Theodore Roosevelt. He survived the term but the rift helped cost him reelection when Roosevelt ran against him as a third-party spoile

Scandal Severity: 4/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 15 %Years in Office: 4 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 5/10

added by IJRBill Taft

Grover Cleveland

Cleveland faced a paternity scandal during his first presidential campaign, memorably answering the accusation with the blunt strategy of 'Tell the truth.' His candor helped him survive the controversy and still win the presidency, then win it again after losing reelection in bet

Scandal Severity: 4/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: —Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 6/10

added by IJRin 6 rankingsGrover Cleveland

James Buchanan

Buchanan faced accusations of financial impropriety tied to the Lecompton Constitution controversy and bribery allegations in Congress that nearly triggered impeachment proceedings. He survived the immediate threat but his weak, scandal-adjacent leadership is often blamed for fai

Scandal Severity: 6/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: —Years in Office: 4 yearsReelected After Scandal: —Historical Legacy Rating: 2/10

added by IJRin 3 rankings

Barack Obama

Obama's presidency saw the IRS targeting scandal and the Benghazi controversy generate fierce congressional investigations and calls for accountability from his administration. He survived both without personal implication, maintaining relatively strong approval ratings through t

Scandal Severity: 4/10Survived Impeachment/Removal Attempt: —Approval Rating Drop: 10 %Years in Office: 8 yearsReelected After Scandal: ✓Historical Legacy Rating: 7/10

added by IJRin 12 rankingsBarack Obama