United States vice presidential selection, 1973 Gerald Ford of Michigan, who was popular among the members of Congress and who was good friends with Nixon. Ford won the approval of both houses by huge margins, and was sworn in as the 40th Vice President of the United States on December 6, 1973. In 1974, Ford ascended to the presidency after the Watergate scandal led to the resignation of President Nixon. United States vice presidential selection, 1973 In 1973, Republican Vice President Spiro Agnew was forced to resign following a controversy over his personal taxes. Under the terms of the 25th Amendment, a vice presidential vacancy is
President of the United States from office has never occurred. The Constitution, in , stipulates that the vice president takes over the "powers and duties" of the presidency in the event of a president's removal, death, resignation, or inability. Even so, it does not clearly state whether the vice president would become President of the United States or simply act as president in a case of succession. This ambiguity was alleviated in 1967 by , which unequivocally states that the vice president becomes president upon the removal from office, death, or resignation of the president. Under , the president may transfer the presidential powers and