- The Speaker of the House
If both the president and vice president cannot serve, the next person in line is the speaker of the House of Representatives. This has not always been the procedure.
Soon after the country was founded, a law was passed that made the Senate president pro tempore the next in line after the president and vice president.
The president pro tempore presides over the Senate when the vice president is not there. Later in U.S. history, the secretary of state was third in line. With the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, Congress returned to the original idea of having a congressional leader next in line.
In 1967, the 25th Amendment was ratified. It established procedures for presidential and vice presidential succession.
* Important Updates to the Naturalization Test
USCIS has revised the civics portion of the naturalization test. All applicants for naturalization with a filing date on or after December 1, 2020, will be required to take the 2020 version of the civics test.
The naturalization test has two components:
• English • Civics
The English portion has not changed.
** As you prepare for U.S. citizenship, Learn About the United States: Quick Civics Lessons will help you study for the civics and English portions of the naturalization interview. There are 100 civics (history and government) questions on the naturalization test. During your naturalization interview, you will be asked up to 10 questions from the list of 100 questions. You must answer correctly six (6) of the 10 questions to pass the civics test.