Popular opinion about the Presidents

George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Franklin D. Roosevelt are consistently ranked at the top of the lists. Often ranked just below those three are Presidents Thomas Jefferson and Theodore Roosevelt. The remaining places in the top 10 are often rounded out by Harry S. Truman, Woodrow Wilson, Dwight Eisenhower, and Andrew Jackson. The bottom ten often include Warren G. Harding, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Franklin Pierce, William Henry Harrison, Millard Fillmore, Ulysses Grant, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor and Richard Nixon. Both William Henry Harrison (32 days) and James A. Garfield (incapacitated after 119 days) died shortly after taking office, and are therefore sometimes omitted from the rankings as a result. It is not clear if their lower quartile rankings are meant to show that they are considered poor performers or rather that they have no record by which to rank them any higher.

Political scientist Walter Dean Burnham noted the "dichotomous or schizoid profiles" of presidents, which can make some hard to classify. Historian Alan Brinkley said, "There are presidents who could be considered both failures and great or near great (for example, Nixon)". James MacGregor Burns observed of Nixon, "How can one evaluate such an idiosyncratic president, so brilliant and so morally lacking?"

David H. Donald, noted biographer of Lincoln, relates that when he met John F. Kennedy in 1962, Kennedy voiced his deep dissatisfaction and resentment with historians who had rated some of his predecessors. Kennedy said, "No one has a right to grade a President—even poor James Buchanan—who has not sat in his chair, examined the mail and information that came across his desk, and learned why he made his decisions."



C-SPAN poll

In addition to conducting a historian survey, C-Span also conducted a presidential leadership survey of 1145 viewers in December 1999.

1.Abraham Lincoln
2.George Washington
3.Theodore Roosevelt
4.Franklin D. Roosevelt
5.Thomas Jefferson
6.Ronald Reagan
7.Harry S. Truman
8.Dwight D. Eisenhower
9.James Monroe
10.James Madison
11.John Adams
12.John F. Kennedy
13.Woodrow Wilson
14.Andrew Jackson
15.John Quincy Adams
16.George H.W. Bush
17.James K. Polk
18.William McKinley
19.Lyndon B. Johnson
20.Richard Nixon
21.Grover Cleveland
22.Calvin Coolidge
23.Gerald Ford
24.William Howard Taft
25.Zachary Taylor
26.Rutherford B. Hayes
27.Jimmy Carter
28.James A. Garfield
29.Ulysses S. Grant
30.Martin Van Buren
31.Benjamin Harrison
32.John Tyler
33.Herbert Hoover
34.Chester A. Arthur
35.William Henry Harrison
36.Bill Clinton
37.Millard Fillmore
38.Andrew Johnson
39.Franklin Pierce
40.Warren G. Harding
41.James Buchanan

ABC poll

An ABC News poll about presidential greatness, taken 16–20 February 2000, asked 1,012 adults in the US, "Who do you think was the greatest American president?"

1.Abraham Lincoln (19%)
2.John F. Kennedy (17%)
3.Franklin Roosevelt (11%)
4.No opinion (10%)
5.Ronald Reagan (9%)
6.George Washington (8%)
7.Bill Clinton (7%)
8.Theodore Roosevelt (4%)
9.George H.W. Bush (4%)
10.Thomas Jefferson (3%)
11.Harry Truman (2%)
12.Richard Nixon (2%)
13.Jimmy Carter (1%)
14.Dwight Eisenhower (1%)

Washington College poll

A Washington College poll about presidential greatness, taken February 11, 2005, asked 800 adults in the US, "Thinking about all the presidents of the United States throughout history to the present, who would you say was America's greatest president?"

1.Abraham Lincoln (20%)
2.Ronald Reagan (15%)
3.Franklin D. Roosevelt (12%)
4.John F. Kennedy (11%)
5.Bill Clinton (10%)
6.Other/Don't Know (9%)
7.George W. Bush (8%)
8.George Washington (6%)
9.Theodore Roosevelt (3%)
10.Dwight Eisenhower (3%)
11.Jimmy Carter (2%)
12.Thomas Jefferson (2%)
13.Richard Nixon (1%)
14.John Adams (<1%) 15.Andrew Jackson (<1%) 16.Lyndon B. Johnson (<1%) Gallup poll A Gallup poll about presidential greatness, taken February 2–5, 2011, asked 1015 adults in the US, "Who do you regard as the greatest United States president?" 1.Ronald Reagan (19%) 2.Abraham Lincoln (14%) 3.Bill Clinton (13%) 4.John F. Kennedy (11%)
5.George Washington (10%)
6.Franklin Roosevelt (8%)
7.Barack Obama (5%)
8.No opinion (5%)
9.Theodore Roosevelt (3%)
10.Harry Truman (3%)
11.George W. Bush (2%)
12.Thomas Jefferson (2%)
13.Jimmy Carter (1%)
14.Dwight Eisenhower (1%)
15.George H. W. Bush (1%)
16.Other(1%)
17.None (1%)
18.Andrew Jackson (0%)
19.Lyndon Johnson (0%)
20.Richard Nixon (0%)

Rasmussen Reports poll

A Rasmussen Reports poll taken June 13–24 of 2007 asked 1,000 randomly selected adults to rate America's presidents. Six presidents—George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy—were rated favorably by at least 80% of respondents.

President Favorable Unfavorable
George Washington 94 2
Abraham Lincoln 92 4
Thomas Jefferson 89 4
Theodore Roosevelt 84 8
Franklin D. Roosevelt 81 12
John F. Kennedy 80 13
John Adams 74 9
James Madison 73 8
Ronald Reagan 72 22
Dwight D. Eisenhower 72 15
Harry S. Truman 70 14
Andrew Jackson 69 14
Gerald Ford 62 26
John Quincy Adams 59 7
Ulysses S. Grant 58 24
George H.W. Bush 57 41
Jimmy Carter 57 34
William Taft 57 15
Woodrow Wilson 56 19
Bill Clinton 55 41
James Monroe 49 10
Herbert Hoover 48 34
Lyndon B. Johnson 45 42
Andrew Johnson 45 26
Chester Arthur 43 17
James A. Garfield 42 16
William McKinley 42 24
George W. Bush 41 59
Grover Cleveland 40 26
Calvin Coolidge 38 31
Rutherford B. Hayes 38 19
Richard Nixon 32 60
Benjamin Harrison 30 35
Warren Harding 29 33
James Buchanan 28 32
James Polk 27 21
Zachary Taylor 26 18
Martin Van Buren 23 19
William Henry Harrison 21 16
Franklin Pierce 17 25
Millard Fillmore 17 25
John Tyler 9 15

Recent president polls

These polls evaluate Presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower and later succession.

Harris Interactive poll

A Harris poll, taken January 16-23, 2012, asked 2,016 adults what they think of previous U.S. presidents.

"Looking at the list of presidents since World War II, which one do you think is the best president?"

1.Ronald Reagan (25%)
2.Franklin Roosevelt (19%)
3.John F. Kennedy (15%)
4.Bill Clinton (12%)
5.Dwight Eisenhower (4%)
6.Harry Truman (4%)
7.Barack Obama (4%)
8.George W. Bush (2%)
9.Jimmy Carter (2%)
10.Lyndon Johnson (1%)
11.George H.W. Bush (1%)
12.Richard Nixon (1%)
13.Gerald Ford (1%)
14.Not Sure (10%)

"Looking at the list of presidents since World War II, which one do you think is the worst president?"

1.George W. Bush (27%)
2.Barack Obama (22%)
3.Richard Nixon (12%)
4.Bill Clinton (5%)
5.Jimmy Carter (5%)
6.Ronald Reagan (4%)
7.George H.W. Bush (4%)
8.Lyndon Johnson (2%)
9.John F. Kennedy (2%)
10.Harry Truman (2%)
11.Franklin Roosevelt (1%)
12.Gerald Ford (1%)
13.Dwight Eisenhower (1%)
14.Not Sure (12%)

"Which one of the following presidents do you think was the best overall president in our history?"

1.Abraham Lincoln (27%)
2.Ronald Reagan (22%)
3.George Washington (12%)
4.John F. Kennedy (5%)
5.Bill Clinton (5%)
6.Franklin Roosevelt (4%)
7.Barack Obama (4%)
8.Thomas Jefferson (2%)
9.George W. Bush (2%)
10.Harry Truman (2%)
11.Theodore Roosevelt (1%)
12.Dwight Eisenhower (1%)
13.Jimmy Carter (1%)
George H.W. Bush, John Adams, Richard Nixon, Andrew Jackson, Lyndon Johnson, Calvin Coolidge, Woodrow Wilson and Gerald Ford all received less than 0.5 percent. Eight percent of respondents were not sure.

Gallup poll

A Gallup Poll, taken February 2-5, 2012, asked 1029 adults in the US, "How do you think each of the following presidents will go down in history—as an outstanding president, above average, average, below average, or poor?"

Result Barack Obama George W. Bush Bill Clinton George H.W. Bush Ronald Reagan Jimmy Carter Gerald Ford Richard Nixon
Gallup poll 2012 1. outstanding 10% 7% 18% 6% 27% 5% 5% 3%
2. above average 28% 18% 42% 29% 42% 20% 16% 11%
3. average 26% 28% 28% 44% 20% 34% 54% 28%
4. below average 17% 22% 7% 11% 6% 22% 15% 32%
5. poor 18% 25% 5% 9% 4% 16% 4% 23%
no opinion 1% - - 1% 1% 3% 6% 3%

Gallup poll

A Gallup poll, taken on November 19–21, 2010, asked Americans to say, based on what they know or remember about the nine most recent former presidents, whether they approve or disapprove of how each handled his job in office.

1.John F. Kennedy (85% approval/10% disapproval)
2.Ronald Reagan (74% approval/24% disapproval)
3.Bill Clinton (69% approval/30% disapproval)
4.George H. W. Bush (64% approval/34% disapproval)
5.Gerald Ford (61% approval/26% disapproval)
6.Jimmy Carter (52% approval/42% disapproval)
7.Lyndon B. Johnson (49% approval/36% disapproval)
8.George W. Bush (47% approval/51% disapproval)
9.Richard Nixon (29% approval/65% disapproval)

Vision Critical/Angus Reid poll

A Vision Critical/Angus Reid poll, taken on February 18–19, 2011, asked respondents about 12 former and current presidents and whether they were a good or bad president.

1.John F. Kennedy (80% approval/6% disapproval)
2.Ronald Reagan (72% approval/16% disapproval)
3.Bill Clinton (65% approval/24% disapproval)
4.Dwight D. Eisenhower (61% approval/6% disapproval)
5.Harry S. Truman (57% approval/7% disapproval)
6.Jimmy Carter (47% approval/28% disapproval)
7.George H.W. Bush (44% approval/38% disapproval)
8.Barack Obama (41% approval/33% disapproval)
9.Gerald Ford (37% approval/25% disapproval)
10.Lyndon B. Johnson (33% approval/27% disapproval)
11.George W. Bush (30% approval/55% disapproval)
12.Richard Nixon (24% approval/54% disapproval)