Trump's second Inauguration Day will be one of the coldest on record

Carson Swick, The Baltimore Sun on Jan 16, 2025

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

As America anticipates the second inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump on Monday, Jan. 20, weather forecasters say this swearing-in ceremony will be one of the coldest on record.

Though the sun will be out, most Washington, D.C. forecasts expect an afternoon high temperature in the mid-20s. Sustained winds of around 15 mph and gusts of up to more than 30 mph will make it feel more like the single-digits outside, according to AccuWeather.

Since Trump will be sworn in at noon, the temperature will likely be in the high teens or low 20s when he takes the oath of office, making it the second- or third-coldest Inauguration Day in recent history.

Weather for past inaugurations

Monday’s frigid forecast is a stark contrast from the weather for Trump’s first inauguration in 2017. On that day, Washington saw light rain and a high temperature of 48 degrees.

Since inauguration ceremonies were moved permanently to Jan. 20 in 1937, the warmest and coldest days both revolved around Ronald Reagan. Reagan’s first inauguration in 1981 saw a high temperature of 55 degrees, but his second inauguration in 1985 was forced indoors by a noon temperature of just 7 degrees and wind chill between 10 and 20 degrees below zero.

The weather for Trump’s second inauguration seems most likely to resemble that of John F. Kennedy’s inauguration in 1961, which featured eight inches of fresh snow on the ground and a noon temperature of 22 degrees. Video from that day shows Kennedy’s breath visible in the cold as he speaks his famous line: “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.”

Besides the 1961 and 2025 ceremonies, just three other Jan. 20 inaugurations had a noon temperature below 30 degrees: Franklin D. Roosevelt’s third inauguration in 1941 (29 degrees), Jimmy Carter in 1977 (28 degrees) and Barack Obama’s first inauguration in 2009 (28 degrees).

The most recent inauguration to date, Joe Biden’s COVID-limited ceremony in 2021, was an unremarkable 42 degrees and cloudy.

Notable inauguration weather, pre-1937

Before 1937, presidents were inaugurated not on Jan. 20, but March 4.

Of these March 4 ceremonies, Woodrow Wilson’s first inauguration in 1913 was the warmest with a noon temperature of 55 degrees. Ulysses S. Grant’s second inauguration in 1873 was the coldest at 16 degrees, with a wind chill of -15 degrees.

Of course, William Henry Harrison’s 1841 inauguration is remembered for being quite rainy. Harrison, who delivered a lengthy speech while not wearing a coat that day, contracted pneumonia and died just a month into his term.

While official weather records were not kept until 1873, Andrew Jackson’s first inauguration in 1829 is thought to be the warmest Inauguration Day ever at a balmy 57 degrees.

James Monroe’s first inauguration in 1817 marked the first time a president took the oath outdoors.

Inauguration weather anomalies

The warmest inauguration on record was when Gerald Ford took the oath following Richard Nixon’s resignation on Aug. 9, 1974. Because the ceremony was held in the summer, it was a steamy 89 degrees as America’s only unelected leader assumed the presidency.

Other inaugurations held in the summer, such as those of Millard Fillmore in 1850 (87 degrees) and Theodore Roosevelt in 1901 (72 degrees) also featured warmer temperatures.

Finally, it was 68 degrees in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963 — when Lyndon B. Johnson took the oath aboard Air Force One following Kennedy’s assassination earlier that day.

Have a news tip? Contact Carson Swick at cswick@baltsun.com.

______