Is the presidential inauguration always on Martin Luther King Day?

Donald Trump, the President of the United States between 2017 and 2021, will take office once again at his second inauguration on Monday, January 20, which also happens to be Martin Luther King Day. That, however, is by coincidence rather than by design.

MLK Day, celebrating the life and legacy of Civil Rights icon Dr Martin Luther King Jr, has been a federal holiday, the only one named after a non-president, since 1986.

What date is Martin Luther King Day?

The holiday always occurs on the third Monday in January, which is the closest Monday to King’s birthday (January 15). Since the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, signed into law by former President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968, all federal holidays must take place on Mondays.

As a result, the exact date of MLK Day varies from one year to the next. January 15, the day of King’s birth in 1929, is the earliest possible date, with January 21 being the latest.

What date is the presidential inauguration?

The presidential inauguration, meanwhile, occurs every four years on January 20, with one exception. If January 20 is a Sunday, it moves to Monday, January 21.

Consequently, inauguration day and MLK Day are sometimes on the same day, as is the case this year. History tells us, however, that it is rare.

Only twice before has a president’s inauguration taken place on Martin Luther King Day: Billy Clinton in 1997, and Barack Obama in 2013.

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