Comparison of Donald Trump's pardon numbers to previous presidents

1. The headline numbers: mass pardons versus individual counts

Reporting describes two different tallies: one is the aggregate of named and unnamed beneficiaries of mass proclamations (roughly 1,500 people pardoned for January 6–related offenses) and other subsequent blanket actions ^{[1] [2]}. Independent trackers that count only individually named proclamations report far smaller totals—Ballotpedia recorded 142 pardons and 28 commutations in Trump’s second term as of Nov. 9, 2025—illustrating how methodology drives the apparent scale of Trump’s clemency output ^[4].

2. How this compares to recent presidents

Analysts say Trump’s 2025 mass action and his overall clemency pace are “historic” compared with recent presidents. Prison Policy’s summary noted “over 1,500 pardons” in 2025, calling it “a huge number compared to the most recent presidents,” while other outlets contrast Trump’s approach with past norms and the Office of the Pardon Attorney’s longstanding review practices ^{[3] [5]}. Available sources do not provide a full, apples‑to‑apples numeric table comparing every president’s totals here; they emphasize the contrast qualitatively and by example ^{[3] [5]}.

3. Why the counts diverge: unnamed beneficiaries and mass proclamations

The disagreement in totals stems from how outlets treat mass proclamations that name categories rather than listing every individual. Wikipedia and Newsweek both describe an inauguration-day proclamation granting near‑blanket pardons to “nearly 1,600” or “approximately 1,500” January 6 defendants; those figures include people not named individually on a published list ^{[1] [6]}. Ballotpedia and other trackers explicitly note they exclude unnamed beneficiaries, which explains the much smaller count they report ^[4].

4. Political patterns and donor/ally ties noted by reporting

Multiple investigations and lists emphasize that many pardon recipients had political or financial connections to Trump and his allies. Forbes and The Marshall Project document pardons given to donors, campaign allies and figures who aided post‑2020 election efforts; watchdog groups tracked dozens of elected officials and political actors who received clemency ^{[7] [8] [9]}. Those outlets frame the pattern as evidence of a clemency strategy that often favored allies.

5. Process and norms: who reviewed these pardons?

Reporting documents deviations from usual DOJ pardon vetting. The Office of the Pardon Attorney’s role appears diminished or bypassed in several accounts: Wikipedia and The Marshall Project report personnel changes and criticisms that the traditional review criteria were not followed, and PBS quoted a former pardon attorney saying Trump has “pardoned historic numbers of elected officials” and used pardons in novel ways ^{[10] [8] [5]}. These sources present two lines of concern: procedural irregularity and political influence.

6. Outcomes and critiques: public‑safety and recidivism concerns

The Guardian and other outlets raised concerns about downstream public‑safety consequences, reporting that some pardoned individuals were later arrested on other alleged crimes and arguing that bypassing review increases that risk ^[11]. Critics in those pieces argue the scale and speed of clemency actions can undermine rule‑of‑law norms ^[11]. Supporters quoted in reporting frame many pardons as correcting perceived injustices or as acts of political reconciliation ^{[1] [2]}.

7. What the sources disagree about and what they don’t say

Sources agree Trump’s second term included an unusually large, high‑profile set of pardons and that methodology matters for totals ^{[1] [4]}. They disagree on interpretation: some frame the actions as corrective and norm‑restoring, others as politicized and procedurally irregular ^{[1] [8]}. Available sources do not provide a fully reconciled, official running total that lists every named and unnamed beneficiary in a single public DOJ table within this set of documents; the Justice Department’s own clemency page is focused on proclamations and specific grants rather than a consolidated, methodology‑explained cumulative figure in these excerpts ^[12].

8. Bottom line for readers

If you compare Trump’s clemency totals to recent presidents, you must pick your counting method: include unnamed beneficiaries of blanket proclamations and the figure exceeds 1,500 ^{[1] [2] [3]}; count only individually named pardon orders and trackers like Ballotpedia report totals in the low hundreds ^[4]. Interpretation depends on values and priorities—restorative justice and correcting sentences versus concerns about process, favoritism, and rule‑of‑law implications—as reflected across the cited coverage ^{[8] [11]}.