When was the last time that a sitting US President or sitting Vice President did not run for President?

Question

President Bush can't run again and VP Cheney says he will not run for prez. I'm thinking maybe this happened in the 60's but I can't find out for sure.

Answer 1

1968 is incorrect, because LBJ did try to run at first, but chose to drop out ofter the New Hampshire primary. 1952 is often given as the last instance, but that isn't entirely right either. The sitting VP, Alben Barkley, did try to get support for a run from party leaders, but when it became clear that the party leadership considered Barkley, who was in his 70s, too old, he never became a declared candidate. The actual answer is 1928, when President Coolidge chose not to run and Vice President Dawes, who had been feuding for with Coolidge for most of his term, didn't try to run. Dawes was considered by the Republican Convention as a potential running mate for Herbert Hoover, but was dropped after Coolidge said he wouldn't endorse the ticket if Dawes was on it.

Answer 2

First I'll correct the boy that said Bush "Sr" didn't run "when he could". Bush "Sr" was Reagan's VP for all 8 years, and he was VP when he ran for and won the Presidency in 1988. Seems that Bush Hatred Syndrome somehow causes liberals to say things that are not true, and the boy who said Bush "Sr' didn't run is an example of this.
The answer to this question is 1952 when Eisenhower beat Stevenson. Eisenhower was an Army general. Stevenson was governor of Illinois.
In 1968, Hubert Humphrey, who was Johnson's Vice President, ran and Nixon beat him.

Answer 3

1. John Adams (1789-1797) was elected President in 1796.
2. Thomas Jefferson (1797-1801) was elected President in 1800.
3. Martin Van Buren (1833-1837) was elected President in 1836.
4. George H. W. Bush (1981-1989) was elected President in 1988.
these are 4 sitting vp's who became president by election, Nixon was the only former VP who ran later and I think spiro Agnew is one who obviously never ran, but i am not sure who else didnt try to run because Gore did, Mondale did, quayle did........

Answer 4

Harry S Truman. If you look in Wikipedia. Truman was eligble to run for a third term because of the Grandfather Clause.Since he was in office when the 22nd amendent was created he was still allowed to run for a 3rd term.Too those that gave me a thumbs down look it up. I'll bet a dinner on it.
Quoting Wikipedia below.
In 1951, the U.S. ratified the 22nd Amendment, making a president ineligible to be elected a third time, or to be elected a second time after also having succeeded to the presidency and served more than two years. The latter clause would have applied to Truman in 1952, but he was still eligible to run for a third term since a grandfather clause in the amendment explicitly excluded the current president from its provisions.

At the time of the 1952 New Hampshire primary, no candidate had won Truman's backing. His first choice, Chief Justice Fred Vinson said no; Illinois Governor Adlai Stevenson repeatedly said no; Vice President Barkley was considered too old; and Truman distrusted and disliked Senator Estes Kefauver, whom he privately called "Cowfever."[103]

Truman's name was on the New Hampshire primary ballot, but Kefauver won, so on March 29 Truman announced his decision not to run.[104] Stevenson, having reconsidered his presidential ambitions, received Truman's backing and won the Democratic nomination. Eisenhower crusaded against what he denounced as Truman's failures regarding "Korea, Communism and Corruption" — and won in a landslide.

Answer 5

The last President that didn't re-run for President was Gerald Ford. (CORRECTION: Censoredbyevil is correct on the last president being Eisenhower...Ford did run against Carter and lost in '76).

The last VP that didn't run for President was Gerald Ford's VP, Nelson Rockefeller.

All of the others since then, at least ran in the primaries.

Answer 6

First election without incumbents in the primaries since 1928

Answer 7

I believe It was Lyndon Johnson in 1968. Gerald Ford did run in 1976, but lost to Jimmy Carter.

Answer 8

1952. Eisenhower/Stevenson

EDIT: Ooops... thought you meant as a party's nominee in the general election.

Answer 9

Bush senior didn't run when he could. He like Chenney, read the writing on the wall and knew he would only go down to defeat.

Republicans hate losing but they are so good at it.

Answer 10

LBJ in election for his second term!