Lowest card begins
In the first round, whoever holds 3♣ starts. They may play that card alone or with other Threes.
Shedding game · 4 players
President
Climb the social ladder by getting rid of every card before anyone else.
W
WestChallenger13 cards
N
NorthChallenger13 cards
E
EastChallenger13 cards
Current playLead any setNo cards played yet
Y
YouChallenger13 cards
Round complete
New President
01 How to play
Play higher.
Finish first.
President is a shedding game: the aim is to empty your hand. This version uses four players and a standard 52-card deck.
Match the quantity
If a pair is played, you must play a higher pair. A triple needs a higher triple. Suits never matter.
Beat the rank
Ranks rise from 3 through Ace, with 2 as the highest card. Your set must be strictly higher than the previous set.
Pass or clear
You may pass when a set is on the table. Once everyone else passes, the last player to play starts a fresh pile with any set.
Twos clear instantly
Playing a 2 immediately clears the pile. The same player leads again, unless they have finished their hand.
Earn a position
Players finish as President, Vice-President, Vice-Scum and Scum. The first player out wins the round.
Pay the tax
Before later rounds, Scum gives their two highest cards to President and receives President’s two lowest. The middle positions exchange one card.
Begin the next round
After the automatic tax exchange, the reigning President leads the new round with any card or matching set.
02 History & variants
Climb the table’s social ladder.
A modern climbing game
President belongs to the international family of climbing games in which each play must match and beat the previous combination. It became widely known during the twentieth century under social-rank names: the first player out receives the highest title, while the last receives a deliberately comic or insulting one.
Many names, many powers
President, Scum, Asshole, Olho do Cu in Portugal and Rich Man Poor Man often describe closely related games rather than one fixed ruleset. Some tables exchange cards between ranks before the next deal; others add jokers, revolutions that reverse card order, clears made by a Two, or four-of-a-kind burns. Even the legal combinations may range from singles only to pairs and longer sets.