Presidency of Chester A. Arthur

Presidency of Chester A. Arthur September 19, 1881 – March 4, 1885
Cabinet	See list
Party	Republican
Seat	White House
← James A. Garfield Grover Cleveland (1st) →
Presidential coat of arms (1877–1913)

This article is part of a series about Chester A. Arthur
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Chester A. Arthur's tenure as the 21st president of the United States began on September 19, 1881, when he succeeded to the presidency upon the assassination of President James A. Garfield, and ended on March 4, 1885. Arthur, a Republican, had been vice president for 199 days when he succeeded to the presidency. In ill health and lacking the full support of his party by the end of his term, Arthur made only a token effort for the Republican presidential nomination in the 1884 presidential election. He was succeeded by Democrat Grover Cleveland.

Supporters of a third term for Ulysses S. Grant at the 1880 Republican National Convention chose Arthur as the running mate of dark horse nominee James Garfield in the 1880 United States presidential election due to Arthur's association with the Republican Party's Stalwart faction, and Arthur struggled to overcome his reputation as a New York City machine politician. Surprising many, he embraced the cause of U.S. Civil Service Reform, and his advocacy and enforcement of the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act became the centerpiece of his administration. Though patronage remained a powerful force in politics, the Pendleton Act laid the foundations for a professional civil service that would emerge in subsequent decades. Facing a budget surplus, Arthur signed the Tariff of 1883, which reduced tariffs. He also vetoed the Rivers and Harbors Act, an act that would have appropriated federal funds in a manner he thought excessive, and oversaw a building program for the United States Navy. After the Supreme Court struck down the Civil Rights Act of 1875, Arthur favored new civil rights legislation to protect African-Americans, but was unable to win passage of a new bill. In foreign policy, Arthur pursued closer economic and political relations with Latin America, but many of his proposed trade agreements were defeated in the United States Senate.

The 1884 Republican National Convention passed over Arthur in favor of James G. Blaine, but Cleveland defeated Blaine in the 1884 presidential election. Although Arthur's failing health and political temperament combined to make his administration less active than a modern presidency, he earned praise among contemporaries for his solid performance in office. Journalist Alexander McClure later wrote, "No man ever entered the presidency so profoundly and widely distrusted as Chester Alan Arthur, and no one ever retired ... more generally respected, alike by political friend and foe."^[1] Since his death, Arthur's reputation has mostly faded from the public consciousness. Although some have praised his flexibility and willingness to embrace reform, present-day historians and scholars generally rank him as a below-average president. Arthur, historically, has been given credit for initiating the resurgence of the U.S. Navy with all steel ships.