In fact, a case in which a president could campaign for his successor is extremely rare. There haven’t been that many two-term presidents over the last century, and they have tended to be so unpopular as to not be much use. What makes Obama unusual is that his popularity is relatively high, and on the rise.
The 1988 election was one such case. President Ronald Reagan did campaign for Vice President George W. Bush, vouching for him with key groups. But it was a complicated relationship: Bush was eager to show that he could get out from under Reagan’s wing and prove he was not a wimp. Reagan was somewhat tarnished by the Iran-Contra scandal, and the Gipper was already aged and likely suffering from symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Meanwhile, Reagan—like Obama with his former secretary of state this year—waited until well into the spring to formally endorse his former VP, rather than meddle in the GOP primary.
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