List of vice presidents of the United States by age

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This is a list of vice presidents of the United States by age. The first table charts the age of each vice president of the United States at the time of that person's inauguration (first inauguration if that person was elected to multiple and consecutive terms), at the time that that person left office, and at the time of that person's death. Each vice president's age at death and that person's lifespan are measured in two ways; this is to allow for the differing number of leap days occurring within each one's life. The first figure is the number of days between date of birth and date of death, allowing for leap days; in parentheses the same period given in years and days, with the years being the number of whole years that the vice president lived, and the days being the number of days after that person's last birthday. Where the vice president is still living, lifespan is calculated through December 7, 2024.

Contents

Age of vice presidents

Bar graph depicting the age of vice presidents when assuming office Age of VPs Graph.png
Bar graph depicting the age of vice presidents when assuming office

The median age upon accession to the vice presidency is around 54 years and 10 months. This is about how old John Adams and Hubert Humphrey were at the time they entered office. The youngest person to assume office was John C. Breckinridge, at the age of 36 years, 47 days. Serving only one term, he became and remains the youngest at the time of leaving office; the oldest at the time of entering office was Alben W. Barkley, at the age of 71 years, 57 days. He was also the oldest when he left office.

Born on January 16, 1821, John C. Breckinridge was younger than five of his successors, the greatest number to date: Andrew Johnson (12 years and 18 days); Hannibal Hamlin (11 years, 4 months, and 20 days); Henry Wilson (8 years and 11 months); William A. Wheeler (1 year, 6 months, and 17 days); and Thomas A. Hendricks (1 year, 4 months, and 9 days).

Born on July 8, 1908, Nelson Rockefeller was older than five of his predecessors, the greatest number to date: Lyndon B. Johnson (1 month and 19 days); Hubert Humphrey (2 years, 10 months, and 19 days); Richard Nixon (4 years, 6 months, and 1 day); Gerald Ford (5 years and 6 days); and Spiro Agnew (10 years, 4 months, and 1 day). [1]

Three vice presidents—Hannibal Hamlin, Charles G. Dawes, and Lyndon B. Johnson—were born on August 27 (in 1809, 1865, and 1908 respectively). This is the only day of the year having the birthday of multiple vice presidents. [1]

The oldest living vice president is Dick Cheney, born on January 30, 1941 (age 83 years, 312 days). The youngest living vice president is the incumbent, Kamala Harris, born on October 20, 1964 (age 60 years, 48 days). The shortest-lived vice president was Daniel D. Tompkins, who died at the age of 50 years, 355 days, only 99 days after leaving office. The longest-lived was John Nance Garner, who died on November 7, 1967, at the age of 98 years, 350 days. He is one of six U.S. vice presidents (along with Levi P. Morton, George H. W. Bush, Gerald Ford, Walter Mondale and John Adams) to have lived into their 90s.

Daniel D. Tompkins had the shortest post-vice-presidency timespan, dying just three months after leaving office. Walter Mondale had the longest post-vice-presidency timespan, dying 40 years after leaving office.

No.Vice presidentBornAge at start
of vice presidency
Age at end
of vice presidency
Post-VP timespanLifespan
DiedAge
1 John Adams Oct 30, 173553 years, 173 days
Apr 21, 1789
61 years, 125 days
Mar 4, 1797
29 years, 122 daysJul 4, 182690 years, 247 days
2 Thomas Jefferson Apr 13, 174353 years, 325 days
Mar 4, 1797
57 years, 325 days
Mar 4, 1801
25 years, 122 daysJul 4, 182683 years, 82 days
3 Aaron Burr Feb 6, 175645 years, 26 days
Mar 4, 1801
49 years, 26 days
Mar 4, 1805
31 years, 194 daysSep 14, 183680 years, 221 days
4 George Clinton Jul 26, 173965 years, 221 days
Mar 4, 1805
72 years, 269 days
Apr 20, 1812
0 days [a] Apr 20, 181272 years, 269 days
5 Elbridge Gerry Jul 17, 174468 years, 230 days
Mar 4, 1813
70 years, 129 days
Nov 23, 1814
0 days [a] Nov 23, 181470 years, 129 days
6 Daniel D. Tompkins Jun 21, 177442 years, 256 days
Mar 4, 1817
50 years, 256 days
Mar 4, 1825
99 daysJun 11, 182550 years, 355 days
7 John C. Calhoun Mar 18, 178242 years, 351 days
Mar 4, 1825
50 years, 285 days
Dec 28, 1832 [b]
17 years, 93 daysMar 31, 185068 years, 13 days
8 Martin Van Buren Dec 5, 178250 years, 89 days
Mar 4, 1833
54 years, 89 days
Mar 4, 1837
25 years, 142 daysJul 24, 186279 years, 231 days
9 Richard M. Johnson Oct 17, 178056 years, 138 days
Mar 4, 1837
60 years, 138 days
Mar 4, 1841
9 years, 260 daysNov 19, 185070 years, 33 days
10 John Tyler Mar 29, 179050 years, 340 days
Mar 4, 1841
51 years, 6 days
Apr 4, 1841 [c]
20 years, 289 daysJan 18, 186271 years, 295 days
11 George M. Dallas Jul 10, 179252 years, 237 days
Mar 4, 1845
56 years, 237 days
Mar 4, 1849
15 years, 302 daysDec 31, 186472 years, 174 days
12 Millard Fillmore Jan 7, 180049 years, 56 days
Mar 4, 1849
50 years, 183 days
Jul 9, 1850 [c]
23 years, 242 daysMar 8, 187474 years, 60 days
13 William R. King Apr 7, 178666 years, 331 days
Mar 4, 1853
67 years, 11 days
Apr 18, 1853
0 days [a] Apr 18, 185367 years, 11 days
14 John C. Breckinridge Jan 16, 182136 years, 47 days
Mar 4, 1857
40 years, 47 days
Mar 4, 1861
14 years, 74 daysMay 17, 187554 years, 121 days
15 Hannibal Hamlin Aug 27, 180951 years, 189 days
Mar 4, 1861
55 years, 189 days
Mar 4, 1865
26 years, 122 daysJul 4, 189181 years, 311 days
16 Andrew Johnson Dec 29, 180856 years, 65 days
Mar 4, 1865
56 years, 107 days
Apr 15, 1865 [c]
10 years, 107 daysJul 31, 187566 years, 214 days
17 Schuyler Colfax Mar 23, 182345 years, 346 days
Mar 4, 1869
49 years, 346 days
Mar 4, 1873
11 years, 315 daysJan 13, 188561 years, 296 days
18 Henry Wilson Feb 16, 181261 years, 16 days
Mar 4, 1873
63 years, 279 days
Nov 22, 1875
0 days [a] Nov 22, 187563 years, 279 days
19 William A. Wheeler Jun 30, 181957 years, 247 days
Mar 4, 1877
61 years, 247 days
Mar 4, 1881
6 years, 92 daysJun 4, 188767 years, 339 days
20 Chester A. Arthur Oct 5, 182951 years, 150 days
Mar 4, 1881
51 years, 349 days
Sep 19, 1881 [c]
5 years, 60 daysNov 18, 188657 years, 44 days
21 Thomas A. Hendricks Sep 7, 181965 years, 178 days
Mar 4, 1885
66 years, 75 days
Nov 25, 1885
0 days [a] Nov 25, 188566 years, 79 days
22 Levi P. Morton May 16, 182464 years, 292 days
Mar 4, 1889
68 years, 292 days
Mar 4, 1893
27 years, 73 daysMay 16, 192096 years, 0 days
23 Adlai Stevenson I Oct 23, 183557 years, 132 days
Mar 4, 1893
61 years, 132 days
Mar 4, 1897
17 years, 102 daysJun 14, 191478 years, 234 days
24 Garret Hobart Jun 3, 184452 years, 274 days
Mar 4, 1897
55 years, 171 days
Nov 21, 1899
0 days [a] Nov 21, 189955 years, 171 days
25 Theodore Roosevelt Oct 27, 185842 years, 128 days
Mar 4, 1901
42 years, 322 days
Sep 14, 1901 [c]
17 years, 114 daysJan 6, 191960 years, 71 days
26 Charles W. Fairbanks May 11, 185252 years, 297 days
Mar 4, 1905
56 years, 297 days
Mar 4, 1909
9 years, 92 daysJun 4, 191866 years, 24 days
27 James S. Sherman Oct 24, 185553 years, 131 days
Mar 4, 1909
57 years, 6 days
Oct 30, 1912
0 days [a] Oct 30, 191257 years, 6 days
28 Thomas R. Marshall Mar 14, 185458 years, 355 days
Mar 4, 1913
66 years, 355 days
Mar 4, 1921
4 years, 89 daysJun 1, 192571 years, 79 days
29 Calvin Coolidge Jul 4, 187248 years, 243 days
Mar 4, 1921
51 years, 29 days
Aug 2, 1923 [c]
9 years, 156 daysJan 5, 193360 years, 185 days
30 Charles G. Dawes Aug 27, 186559 years, 189 days
Mar 4, 1925
63 years, 189 days
Mar 4, 1929
22 years, 50 daysApr 23, 195185 years, 239 days
31 Charles Curtis Jan 25, 186069 years, 38 days
Mar 4, 1929
73 years, 38 days
Mar 4, 1933
2 years, 341 daysFeb 8, 193676 years, 14 days
32 John Nance Garner Nov 22, 186864 years, 102 days
Mar 4, 1933
72 years, 59 days
Jan 20, 1941
26 years, 291 daysNov 7, 196798 years, 350 days
33 Henry A. Wallace Oct 7, 188852 years, 105 days
Jan 20, 1941
56 years, 105 days
Jan 20, 1945
20 years, 302 daysNov 18, 196577 years, 42 days
34 Harry S. Truman May 8, 188460 years, 257 days
Jan 20, 1945
60 years, 339 days
Apr 12, 1945 [c]
27 years, 258 daysDec 26, 197288 years, 232 days
35 Alben W. Barkley Nov 24, 187771 years, 57 days
Jan 20, 1949
75 years, 57 days
Jan 20, 1953
3 years, 101 daysApr 30, 195678 years, 158 days
36 Richard Nixon Jan 9, 191340 years, 11 days
Jan 20, 1953
48 years, 11 days
Jan 20, 1961
33 years, 92 daysApr 22, 199481 years, 103 days
37 Lyndon B. Johnson Aug 27, 190852 years, 146 days
Jan 20, 1961
55 years, 87 days
Nov 22, 1963 [c]
9 years, 61 daysJan 22, 197364 years, 148 days
38 Hubert Humphrey May 27, 191153 years, 238 days
Jan 20, 1965
57 years, 238 days
Jan 20, 1969
8 years, 358 daysJan 13, 197866 years, 231 days
39 Spiro Agnew Nov 9, 191850 years, 72 days
Jan 20, 1969
54 years, 335 days
Oct 10, 1973 [b]
22 years, 343 daysSep 17, 199677 years, 313 days
40 Gerald Ford Jul 14, 191360 years, 145 days
Dec 6, 1973 [d]
61 years, 26 days
Aug 9, 1974 [c]
32 years, 139 daysDec 26, 200693 years, 165 days
41 Nelson Rockefeller Jul 8, 190866 years, 164 days
Dec 19, 1974 [d]
68 years, 196 days
Jan 20, 1977
2 years, 6 daysJan 26, 197970 years, 202 days
42 Walter Mondale Jan 5, 192849 years, 15 days
Jan 20, 1977
53 years, 15 days
Jan 20, 1981
40 years, 89 daysApr 19, 202193 years, 104 days
43 George H. W. Bush Jun 12, 192456 years, 222 days
Jan 20, 1981
64 years, 222 days
Jan 20, 1989
29 years, 314 daysNov 30, 201894 years, 171 days
44 Dan Quayle Feb 4, 194741 years, 351 days
Jan 20, 1989
45 years, 351 days
Jan 20, 1993
31 years, 322 days(living)77 years, 307 days
45 Al Gore Mar 31, 194844 years, 295 days
Jan 20, 1993
52 years, 295 days
Jan 20, 2001
23 years, 322 days(living)76 years, 251 days
46 Dick Cheney Jan 30, 194159 years, 356 days
Jan 20, 2001
67 years, 356 days
Jan 20, 2009
15 years, 322 days(living)83 years, 312 days
47 Joe Biden Nov 20, 194266 years, 61 days
Jan 20, 2009
74 years, 61 days
Jan 20, 2017
7 years, 322 days(living)82 years, 17 days
48 Mike Pence Jun 7, 195957 years, 227 days
Jan 20, 2017
61 years, 227 days
Jan 20, 2021
3 years, 322 days(living)65 years, 183 days
49 Kamala Harris Oct 20, 196456 years, 92 days
Jan 20, 2021
(incumbent)(living)60 years, 48 days
#Vice presidentBornAge at start
of vice presidency
Age at end
of vice presidency
Post-VP timespanDiedAge
Lifespan

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Died in office.
  2. 1 2 Resigned from office.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Succeeded to the presidency.
  4. 1 2 Confirmed by U.S. Congress to fill an intra-term vacancy in the vice presidency.

Graphical representation

The following chart shows vice presidents by their age (living vice presidents in green), with the years of their presidency in blue. The vertical blue line at 35 years indicates the minimum age to be vice president.

List of vice presidents of the United States by age

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Strock, Ian Randal (2016). Ranking the Vice Presidents: True Tales and Trivia, from John Adams to Joe Biden. Skyhorse Publishing. pp. 11, 16. ISBN   978-1-63144-061-8 . Retrieved January 8, 2017.