Vice President of the United States

• 1. Constitutional Origins And Evolution

  ›

  The 1787 Constitutional Convention debated the vice presidency only near its conclusion. An eleven-member committee on Leftover Business proposed a method of electing the chief executive that included a second vote for vice president. Delegates had previously considered selecting the Senate's presiding officer and agreed this official would be the executive's immediate successor. On September 4, the committee recommended that each state have electors equal to its combined Senate and House membership. The framers assumed individual electors would choose a candidate from their own state over one from another state. They created the office of vice president to guard against strategic voting by requiring electors to cast two votes without differentiation. The person receiving the greatest number of votes became president while the runner-up became vice president. This system produced bitter rivalries like John Adams winning the presidency in 1796 with Thomas Jefferson as his vice president. The Twelfth Amendment overhauled the system after the election of 1800 left Aaron Burr as vice president following a tie with Jefferson. For much of the nation's history, the office remained insignificant until the Office of the Vice President was created in 1939.

  1420

• 2. Legislative Powers And Senate Duties

  ›

  Article I, Section 3, Clause 4 confers upon the vice president the title President of the Senate. In this capacity, the vice president is responsible for maintaining order and decorum during Senate meetings. The role includes recognizing members to speak and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices, and precedent. With this position comes the authority to cast a tie-breaking vote when the Senate is equally divided. Kamala Harris holds the record at 33 such votes, followed by John C. Calhoun who had previously held the record at 31 votes. John Adams ranks third with 29 tie-breaking votes. Twelve vice presidents did not cast any tie-breaking votes during their tenure. Rule XIX does not authorize the vice president to participate in debate or address the Senate directly. Time magazine wrote in 1925 that once every four years the vice president can make a little speech before returning to silence. The Constitution provides that the Senate may elect a president pro tempore if the vice president is unavailable. Since the early 20th century, neither the president of the Senate nor the pro tempore regularly presides over sessions. Instead, the president pro tempore usually delegates the task to other Senate members.

  194452

• 3. Succession Precedents And The Tyler Doctrine

  ›

  Article II, Section 1, Clause 6 stipulates that the vice president takes over the powers and duties of the presidency upon removal, death, resignation, or inability. Debate records from the 1787 Constitutional Convention show framers intended only temporary exercise of power, not actual succession. This understanding was first tested in 1841 following the death of President William Henry Harrison just days into his term. Harrison's vice president, John Tyler, asserted he had succeeded to the presidency rather than acting as one. He refused to acknowledge documents referring to him as Acting President despite congressional denunciation. His view ultimately prevailed when both the Senate and House voted to acknowledge him as president. The Tyler Precedent codified through the Twenty-fifth Amendment in 1967 established that a vice president assumes full title and role upon predecessor departure. Altogether nine vice presidents have succeeded to the presidency intra-term including Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester A. Arthur, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry S. Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Gerald Ford. Four of them were later elected to full terms of their own. Sections 3 and 4 of the Twenty-fifth Amendment provide for situations where the president is temporarily unable to lead due to illness or injury.

  636070

• 4. Modern Executive Authority And Advisory Roles

  ›

  Harry S. Truman recognized that upon assuming the presidency a vice president needed to be already informed on war and post-war plans. Having been told nothing about the Manhattan Project during his three-month tenure, Truman made the vice president a member of the National Security Council in 1949. Modern vice presidents participate in meetings in the Situation Room with the president and receive daily intelligence briefings. Richard Nixon attracted media attention while presiding at Cabinet meetings in Dwight Eisenhower's absence after the president suffered heart attacks and strokes. Jimmy Carter gave Walter Mondale an office in the West Wing which all vice presidents have since retained because Carter viewed the historical office as wasted asset. Dick Cheney held much power within the administration making policy decisions without presidential knowledge from 2001 to 2009. Joe Biden asked Barack Obama to let him always be the last person in the room when big decisions were made. Kamala Harris presided over a 50, 50 split Senate during the 117th Congress providing her key role in passing legislation. The extent of roles depends almost entirely on characteristics of the particular administration rather than constitutional mandate alone.

  363972

• 5. Election Mechanics And Selection Criteria

  ›

  The vice president is elected indirectly by voters through the Electoral College body formed every four years for sole purpose of electing concurrent terms. Each state receives number of electors equal to size of total delegation in both houses of Congress. A candidate who receives absolute majority of electoral votes currently 270 of 538 is declared winner. If no candidate has majority, the Senate must meet to elect vice president using contingent election procedure where senators cast votes individually between two candidates receiving most electoral votes. For candidate to win contingent election they must receive votes from absolute majority of senators currently 51 of 100. There has been only one vice presidential contingent election since process created by Twelfth Amendment occurring the 8th of February 1837 after no candidate received majority in 1836 election. Richard M. Johnson was elected nation's ninth vice president over Francis Granger by 33, 17 vote. Presidential nominee now influences decision significantly with mid-20th century custom for that person selecting preferred running mate before convention balloting. Most major-party nominees are current or former United States senators or representatives though occasional nominee may be governor or high-ranking military officer.

  809093

• 6. Office Infrastructure And Daily Operations

  ›

  Number One Observatory Circle became official residence when Congress designated it in 1974 after eight years of stalled implementation following 1966 funding allocation. The three-story Queen Anne style mansion built in 1893 on grounds of U.S. Naval Observatory previously served as home for superintendent then Chief of Naval Operations until turned over to office fifty years later. Primary means of long-distance air travel is Boeing 757 airliner referred to as Air Force Two while vice president aboard. In-country trips typically handled with single plane while overseas trips use both primary and backup aircraft. Short-distance travel utilizes fleet of Marine Corps helicopters including Marine Two when vice president aboard any particular model. Flights handled with up to five helicopters flying together frequently swapping positions to disguise actual location from threats. Vice president supported by personnel in Office of Vice President created in Reorganization Act of 1939 under Executive Office of President. Modern era includes at least five different office spaces including West Wing office, ceremonial office in Eisenhower Executive Office Building, Vice President's Room on Senate side Capitol, Dirksen Senate Office Building office, and residence office. Secret Service protects vice president and second family assigning codenames originally due to security purposes.

  1179