Richard Nixon announces his resignation

Nixon became the first United States president to resign from office.

The Library editors

On 8 August 1974, President Richard Nixon announced that he would resign at noon the following day. The decision followed mounting evidence that his administration had obstructed the investigation into the Watergate break-in.

The release of a recorded conversation known as the “smoking gun” tape destroyed much of Nixon’s remaining support in Congress. The House Judiciary Committee had already approved articles of impeachment.

Vice President Gerald Ford succeeded Nixon and later granted him a full pardon for federal offences he might have committed while president. That decision remains central to debates about accountability and political stability.

Watergate was not one event but a chain of campaign abuses, investigations, court decisions, journalism and congressional action. Focusing only on Nixon’s final speech can obscure the institutions and individuals that brought the evidence into public view.

Sources and further reading

Richard Nixon Presidential Library: Resignation address
US Senate Watergate Committee records

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