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Who is ranked as the worst US president by historians?
Executive Summary
Historians do not unanimously name a single “worst” U.S. president; recent expert surveys commonly place Donald Trump and James Buchanan among the lowest-rated presidents, with Trump ranked last in several 2024 specialist polls and Buchanan frequently ranked worst in aggregated historical surveys dating back decades. Which name appears “worst” depends on the poll, its respondent pool, and the criteria used—contemporary presidential specialist polls put Trump at 45th with very low effectiveness scores, while long-standing historian rankings and aggregated lists continue to single out Buchanan for catastrophic pre–Civil War leadership failures [1] [2] [3] [4].
1. Extracted Claim: Two competing “worsts” vie for the title
The reviewed materials advance two primary claims: one set of recent specialist polls identifies Donald Trump as the worst U.S. president based on aggregated scores from presidential historians and political scientists in 2024, while a separate, longer-running historical consensus often identifies James Buchanan as the worst because of his failure to address sectional crisis before the Civil War. Both claims rest on expert surveys, but they reflect different respondent pools and timeframes. The specialist polls that rank Trump last report average scores in the low teens on effectiveness scales, while C-SPAN–style historical rankings rate Buchanan lowest on crisis leadership and overall effectiveness [1] [2] [3] [4].
2. Recent surveys: Why Trump appears as the lowest-ranked in 2024 polls
Multiple polls conducted and reported in February 2024 show Donald Trump rated lowest among presidents by panels of contemporary presidential historians and political scientists, with average numeric ratings near 11 out of 100 and a 45th-place ranking in compilations of former presidents. These 2024 specialist surveys sampled historians and political scientists focused on modern presidential performance and polarization metrics, and they explicitly name Trump as the bottom placement in those exercises. The timing—immediately after Trump’s presidency and amid intensely polarized debate—correlates with especially low contemporary ratings in these specialist polls [1] [2] [5].
3. Historical consensus: Why James Buchanan remains a perennial “worst”
Longer-term surveys and aggregated historical rankings compiled by historians and institutions often place James Buchanan at the bottom for his inaction and poor crisis leadership in the run-up to the Civil War. C-SPAN and other historical aggregation efforts that weigh leadership qualities across many presidents repeatedly give Buchanan the lowest crisis-leadership and overall scores, making him the canonical “worst” in multi-decade historical assessments. These historical rankings emphasize longer-term consequences, institutional failure, and context from the 19th century, not the immediate political polarization that shapes modern specialist polls [3] [4].
4. Why rankings diverge: methodology, timing, and political lens matter
Rankings diverge because polls differ in respondent selection, criteria, and temporal proximity to presidencies. Contemporary polls of presidential scholars and political scientists in 2024 emphasize recent events, public persuasion, and polarization, which penalize very recent presidents. Aggregated historical rankings consider longer-term consequences, crisis management, and institutional legacy, which penalize failures like Buchanan’s that precipitated national catastrophe. Additionally, media outlets and think tanks framing the surveys may have differing emphases and audiences, producing variation in headline conclusions. Understanding “worst” requires examining the survey’s design and the questions asked, not only the headline ranking [6] [7].
5. Alternative viewpoints and potential agendas to note
Some outlets and fact-checkers highlight that naming a single “worst” president can serve political messages: contemporary polls placing Trump last are sometimes used in partisan narratives about recent administrations, while historical lists singling out Buchanan are used to emphasize long-term institutional failures. Both uses are factual but can be selectively amplified to support political claims. Readers should note whether a source reports raw survey methodology and respondent composition; surveys of active political scientists, presidential historians, or mixed academic panels will yield systematically different outcomes [6] [1].
6. Bottom line and where to read the primary surveys
There is no single uncontested answer: recent 2024 specialist polls most often rank Donald Trump as the worst president, while multi-decade historian aggregations most often rank James Buchanan as the worst. For the contemporary specialist view, see the February 2024 polling reports of presidential historians and political scientists that place Trump last [1] [2]. For the long-term historian consensus, consult C-SPAN–style historical rankings and historical aggregations that consistently rate Buchanan lowest for crisis leadership [3] [4].