The presidential line of succession ensures that the US always has a leader, even in a crisis. The Vice-President is first in line, followed by the President of the Chamber of Deputies and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. The line then runs through the Presidential Cabinet. Officials who could succeed to the position can never be in the same place at the same time.
The presidential line of succession is a list of persons legally capable of assuming the office of President of the United States in the event that the president is incapacitated, killed, impeached and must leave office, or otherwise unable to perform. The designation of a formal succession plan is designed to protect the integrity of the president’s office, ensuring that the United States always has a leader, even in the event of a crisis. For the presidential line of succession to run out, 18 people would have to be disqualified, incapacitated or killed, which would be extremely unlikely.
Most nations have some form of line of succession, and the basis for the United States was laid in the Constitution. The first formal law on the subject was passed in 1792 and another in 1886. In 1947, following the death of President Roosevelt, another presidential succession law was passed, and this law governs the current line of succession.
If the president dies, the vice president is first in line for office. After the Vice-President come respectively the President of the Chamber of Deputies and the President Pro Tempore of the Senate. In the event that all three of these individuals are disqualified or incapacitated, the presidential line of succession runs through the Presidential Cabinet, starting with the Secretary of State and continuing through the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of the Interior, Secretary of Agriculture, Secretary of Commerce, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Secretary of Construction and Urban Development, Secretary of Transportation, Secretary of Energy, Secretary of Education, Secretary of Business of Veterans, and finally the Secretary of Homeland Security.
There are several caveats involved in the presidential line of succession. The first is that current officials cannot be considered in the line of succession. For example, if the Secretary of Defense resigns and an interim official is appointed to fill this position, that official is not on the line. Likewise, non-natural citizens are excluded. The Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore top the list thanks to the 1947 Presidential Succession Act, which was buoyed by concerns that the president could potentially nominate his successor if cabinet members were in first place. The Speaker of the House and the President Pro Tempore are elected officials, giving citizens a role in their selection, and Congress has the power to recall cabinet members as it sees fit.
To prevent a catastrophic situation where every person in the presidential line of succession could be incapacitated, such as a terrorist attack, officials who could succeed to the position can never be in the same place at the same time. Even at events where everyone would normally be present, at least one person is taken off-site to a safe location. By convention, line members do not usually travel together or stay in the same resorts, even if they attend the same events.
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