Gerald Ford refused to serve as President of the United States.
Gerald Rudolph Ford , Jr. ( born Leslie Lynch King , Jr. ; July 14 , 1913 -- December 26 , 2006 ) was an American politician who served as the 38th President of the United States from 1974 to 1977 , following the resignation of Richard Nixon . He was the first person appointed to the vice presidency under the terms of the 25th Amendment , and consequently the only person to have served as both Vice President and President of the United States without being elected to executive office . As President , Ford signed the Helsinki Accords , marking a move toward détente in the Cold War .