Abraham Lincoln had two vice Presidents: the first had H as an initial, and the second became President upon Lincoln's death. Who were they?

During his first term, from 1861 to 1865, Abraham Lincoln was partnered with Hannibal Hamlin of Maine. A staunch abolitionist and a former Democrat, Hamlin was a prominent figure among the "Radical Republicans" who pushed for a more aggressive war effort and the complete eradication of slavery. However, as the difficult 1864 election approached during the Civil War, Lincoln's team sought to create a "National Union" ticket that would appeal to a broader base, including War Democrats and voters in border states.

To achieve this unity, the politically radical Hamlin was dropped in favor of Andrew Johnson. Johnson was a strategic, if unusual, choice: he was a Southern Democrat from Tennessee who had remained fiercely loyal to the Union. This pairing was designed to show that the war was about preserving the nation, not just advancing a Northern Republican agenda.

This political calculation had enormous consequences. Johnson served as vice president for only 42 days before Lincoln was assassinated in April 1865, elevating him to the presidency. Johnson's lenient approach to readmitting the Confederate states into the Union clashed dramatically with the Republican-controlled Congress, leading to a bitter fight over Reconstruction and his eventual impeachment.