How Political Experts Rank the Best and Worst US Presidents

Published: October 29, 2024 by Lori Kinney

The role of an American president isn’t to seek popularity. Key responsibilities include representing the nation in foreign and domestic affairs, serving as commander-in-chief of the armed forces, signing or vetoing legislation, managing crucial government departments, and ensuring laws passed by the Congress are enforced. While effective leadership in these areas may lead to public approval, gaining popularity should never be the primary objective.

Over the course of American history, presidents have varied in popularity, with many falling along a spectrum from widely admired to deeply criticized. However, with the passage of time, public perception of these leaders often shifts. Historians and political scientists regularly evaluate presidents, focusing not on their popularity but on how effectively they carried out their presidential duties and the lasting impact of their legacies.

To determine the worst (and best) U.S. presidents, 24/7 Tempo reviewed the latest such assessment, a ranking called the 2024 Presidential Greatness Project Expert Survey, conducted by Brandon Rottinghaus, a professor of political science at the University of Houston, and Justin S. Vaughn, an associate professor of political science at Coastal Carolina University. Conducted between Nov. 15 and Dec. 31, 2023, the survey is based on some 154 responses from, to quote its authors, “current and recent members of the Presidents & Executive Politics Section of the American Political Science Association, which is the foremost organization of social science experts in presidential politics, as well as scholars who had recently published peer-reviewed academic research in key related scholarly journals or academic presses.”

Respondents were asked to rate each president on a scale of 1 to 100, with the maximum score (which no one achieved) indicating true greatness. For the most part, the results echoed those of two previous surveys conducted by the same professors, published in 2015 and 2018, but there were several notable exceptions: Barack Obama rose from No. 16 in 2015 to No. 7 in the latest computation. Ulysses S. Grant also climbed nine places, from No. 26 to No. 17. One president’s score plummeted, with Andrew Jackson descending from No. 9 to No. 21.

Abraham Lincoln held onto first place, the same position he occupied in the two previous surveys, with a score of 93.87. George Washington dropped from No. 2 to No. 3, with Franklin D. Roosevelt switching spots with him. Though his term in office is not yet finished, Joe Biden managed a respectable 14th place ranking, with a score of 62.66. The president given the lowest score by far was Donald Trump, who finished in 45th place, scoring 10.92. Interestingly, the self-described Republicans who responded to the survey rated him only slightly higher than the group as a whole, at No. 41 — but it’s entirely possible that in the future, as with some other presidents, his reputation will improve. (To see where Trump’s wife, Melania, stands among her peers, see America’s most popular first ladies.)

The survey also asked respondents who the next president to join Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Teddy Roosevelt on Mt. Rushmore should be. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the first choice by far, winning 65.4% of the votes, followed by Barack Obama with 11%.