Presidency Firsts
The presidential firsts related to the duties of the office of the President.
For more information, visit these pages on Vetoes, Executive Orders, and Pardons.
| President | Note | |
|---|---|---|
| First president of the United States | George Washington | |
| First president of all 48 contiguous states | William H. Taft | |
| First president of all 50 states | Dwight D. Eisenhower | |
| First president younger than his predecessor | Thomas Jefferson | |
| First president to cite executive privilege | Thomas Jefferson | |
| First president to expand the territory of the United States | Thomas Jefferson | Louisiana Purchase |
| First president to ask Congress for a Declaration of War | James Madison | War of 1812 |
| First president to pay off the entire National Debt | Andrew Jackson | |
| First President to approve a National Park | Ulysses S. Grant | |
| First president to serve less than one full term in office | William Henry Harrison | |
| First president to ascent to the presidency after the death of his predecessor | John Tyler | |
| First president to ascent to the presidency after the assassination of his predecessor | Andrew Johnson | |
| First president to ascent to the presidency after the resignation of his predecessor | Gerald R. Ford | |
| First president to serve two non-consecutive terms | Grover Cleveland | |
| First president to serve more than two terms | Franklin D. Roosevelt | |
| First president to resign the presidency | Richard M. Nixon | |
| First president to declare a national emergency | Woodrow Wilson | |
| First president to authorize the use of nuclear weapons against a foreign nation | Harry S. Truman | |
| First president to grant honorary U.S. citizenship upon a non-citizen | John F. Kennedy | Winston Churchill |
| First president to nominate a vice president during his term | Richard M. Nixon | |
| First president to pardon another president | Gerald R. Ford | Richard M. Nixon |
| First president to host the pope | Jimmy Carter | |
| First president to use the 25th Amendment to temporarily relinquish the powers of the presidency | Ronald Reagan | to George H. W. Bush |
Speeches | ||
| First president to deliver a State of the Union address | George Washington | |
| First president to deliver a State of the Union address in writing | Thomas Jefferson | |
| First president to deliver a Farewell Address | George Washington | |
| First president to have his Farewell Address broadcast from the Oval Office | Harry S. Truman | |
Veto | ||
| First president to issue a veto | George Washington | |
| First president to issue a pocket veto | James Madison | |
| First president to issue more than 20 vetoes | Andrew Johnson | |
| First president to issue more than 50 vetoes | Ulysses S. Grant | |
| First president to issue more than 100 vetoes | Grover Cleveland | Actually, over 500 |
| First president to have a veto overridden by Congress | John Tyler | |
| First president to have more than 10 vetoes overridden | Andrew Johnson | |
Executive Order | ||
| First president to issue an executive order | George Washington | |
| First president to issue more than 100 executive orders | Ulysses S. Grant | |
| First president to issue more than 1,000 executive orders | Theodore Roosevelt | |
| First president to not issue an executive order | William Henry Harrison | |
Pardons | ||
| First president to grant a pardon | George Washington | |
| First president to grant more than 100 pardons | Thomas Jefferson | |
| First president to grant more than 1,000 pardons | Ulysses S. Grant | |
| First president to not grant a pardon | William Henry Harrison |
Return to Presidential Firsts