Presidents and Speakers: An Electoral Overview, 1789-2020

Abstract

The two highest ranking official in the United States federal government are the President who is atop the Executive Branch and whose powers are described in Article Two of the U.S. Constitution and the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives who is identified in Article One and has authority over the legislative branch that has the all-important taxing power. Unlike parliamentary systems, presidential systems separate the two posts from one another. They have different term lengths, different electoral constituencies and even different age requirements. Since neither depends upon the other, their relationships can be supportive or contentious. A key factor in those relationships is their respective political party affiliations. This 232 year overview identifies the names of those two key political actors and their respective affiliations. With divided party government between the presidency and the House increasing, identifying these two political actors and their affiliations provides a useful guide to whether cooperation or conflict may exist between these two major governmental institutions.