Immediate Presidential Succession After Lyndon B Johnson
Lyndon B Johnson left the presidency on January 20, 1969, and Richard Nixon became president after LBJ. Nixon took office following the 1968 election, defeating Democrat Hubert Humphrey with 43.4% of the popular vote and 301 electoral votes. His inauguration marked the first peaceful transfer of power after the Vietnam War escalation era under Johnson. The transition followed the 20th Amendment and standard Electoral College procedures documented by the National Archives. For more on U.S. presidential succession rules, see the official National Archives page on the 20th Amendment here.
Johnson had assumed the presidency on November 22, 1963, after the assassination of John F Kennedy. He won a full term in 1964 with 61.1% of the popular vote, the highest share since 1820. Johnson chose not to run again in 1968 amid rising Vietnam War opposition and internal party divisions. His decision shaped the 1968 Democratic primary field, which included Senators Eugene McCarthy and Robert F Kennedy, Vice President Hubert Humphrey, and Governor George Wallace. The 1968 election results are summarized by the Federal Election Commission here.
Richard Nixon's Background Before the Presidency
Richard Milhous Nixon was born on January 9, 1913, in Yorba Linda, California. He graduated from Whittier College in 1934 and from Duke University School of Law in 1937. Nixon served as a naval officer in World War II, then represented California in the U.S. House and Senate. He was the 36th Vice President under Dwight D Eisenhower from 1953 to 1961. His career before the presidency is detailed on the Nixon Presidential Library site here.
Key Offices Held Before 1969
U.S. Representative and Senator from California
Nixon served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1951 and in the U.S. Senate from 1950 to 1953. He gained national attention as a member of the House Un-American Activities Committee during the Alger Hiss case. His Senate term focused on foreign policy and labor issues. These offices built the political profile that led to his vice presidential nomination in 1952.
Vice President Under Eisenhower
As vice president from 1953 to 1961, Nixon chaired the Cabinet and National Security Council meetings. He represented the administration in diplomatic missions, including a trip to the Soviet Union in 1959. He ran for president in 1960 but lost to John F Kennedy by a narrow margin in the Electoral College. The 1960 contest is reviewed by the American Presidency Project here.
Key Actions and Legacy of Nixon's First Term
Nixon took office on January 20, 1969, with a focus on ending the Vietnam War through "Vietnamization," which transferred combat roles to South Vietnamese forces. He expanded diplomatic ties with the People's Republic of China in 1972 and signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT I) treaty with the Soviet Union. Domestically, he created the Environmental Protection Agency in