Special US Presidential Election

[Tim Thomason]

I'm curious, realistically, how a special election for President would or could occur in American history. In a recent post, it was hypothesized that Congress could have declared one in 1841, and elect someone for four years.

Now, I know the Constitution declares that a president serve for four years, so would a special election permanently off-set the election cycle? Does Congress even have the authority to call such an election outside of the strict four-year cycle?

Now, I'm sure we can come up with a doomsday scenario where the President, Vice President, and Cabinet are destroyed by a bomb, and the designated survivor is killed by a machete or something, but I was wondering what realistic chances there were in the past (1841? 1974?) or, not that I need to vote again, could be in the future (2025? 883250?).

 

[Mark E.]

Congress does not have the authority to set an off-year presidential election. The succession pattern is already set, and it DC gets nuked away, the presidency goes through the cabinet members (if there are survivors) and the state governors, starting with Delaware (state no. 1) and ending with Hawaii.

 

[Derek Jackson]

Firstly you need to lose the Vice Presidential vacancy provision of the 25th amendment

In that event I think a "Watergate" election in 1974 is quite likely.


In the 1790s Congress certainly believed it had the power to order such an election in the event of a double vacancy.

Such an election would presumably have happend if the guy Booth asigned to murder Andrew Johnson had carried out his purpose.