Martin Van Buren was an American lawyer, diplomat, and statesman who served as the eighth president of the United States from 1837 to 1841. A primary founder of the Democratic Party, he served as New York's attorney general and U.S. senator, then briefly as the ninth governor of New York before joining Andrew Jackson's administration as the tenth United States secretary of state, minister to Great Britain, and ultimately the eighth vice president when named Jackson's running mate for the 1832 election. Van Buren won the presidency in 1836 against divided Whig opponents. Van Buren lost re-election in 1840, and failed to win the Democratic nomination in 1844. Later in his life, Van Buren emerged as an elder statesman and an important anti-slavery leader who led the Free Soil Party ticket in the 1848 presidential election.
Van Buren in 1855
Van Buren's birthplace by John Warner Barber
Baptism record indicating the Dutch spelling of Van Buren's first name, "Maarten"
Hannah Van Buren
President of the United States
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces.
President of the United States
George Washington, the first president of the United States
President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the 1964 Civil Rights Act at the White House on July 2, 1964, as Martin Luther King Jr. and others look on.
President Donald Trump delivers his 2018 State of the Union Address before Congress.