WASHINGTON, D.C. — Abraham Lincoln’s reputation is holding up well nearly 160 years after he served as president of the United States.
As for Donald Trump, it’s been just over three years since he left office ... and his legacy is lacking.
That’s according to the 2024 Presidential Greatness Project Expert Survey, which asks U.S. historians to rank the nation’s presidents. More than 150 historians participated in the survey.
Lincoln again holds the top spot in the poll, as he did in 2015 and 2018. Right behind Lincoln are Franklin D. Roosevelt, George Washington, Teddy Roosevelt, and Thomas Jefferson.
As for Trump, he finished last, behind such notorious presidents as James Buchanan and Andrew Johnson (the first president to be impeached). Trump did finish first with historians in one category ... most polarizing president ever.
The highest-ranking recent president is Barack Obama, who finished at No. 7, jumping nine spots from 2018. Bill Clinton is at No. 12 and Joe Biden at No. 14. Ronald Reagan, who once was ranked in the top 10, is at No. 16. George H.W. Bush is at No. 19 and George W. Bush at No. 32, while Jimmy Carter is No. 22.
“Biden’s most important achievements may be that he rescued the presidency from Trump, resumed a more traditional style of presidential leadership and is gearing up to keep the office out of his predecessor’s hands this fall,” Justin Vaughn and Brandon Rottinghaus, the college professors who conducted the survey, wrote of the results, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Republican Ulysses S. Grant is the highest-ranking president from Ohio, finishing at No. 19, up four spots from the 2018 poll and nine spots from 2015. The rankings of other presidents from Ohio: William H. Taft was No. 23, William McKinley No. 24, Rutherford B. Hayes No. 29, James A. Garfield No. 30, Benjamin Harrison No. 31, Benjamin Harrison No. 31, Warren G. Harding No. 40, and William Harrison No. 41.
The top 10 presidents, according to the survey:
The 10 worst presidents, according to the survey: