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Former presidents are not called "Mr. President" - at least, not by those who remember their history.

Despite what you might see in the popular media, the correct form of address for a former President of the United States is to use the title of the highest post that he held before becoming president. This courtesy was established by George Washington; the only exceptions to this rule are for former presidents that go on to hold other posts after their administration has ended (Taylor, who became a Senator, and Taft, who became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court).

Thus, William Clinton should be addressed as "Gov. Clinton", as he was governor of Arkansas. G. H. W. Bush should be "Ambassador Bush", as he was ambassador to the UN. G. W. Bush should be "Gov. Bush", for his term in Texas. And President Obama will become "Senator Obama" once he leaves office.

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12y ago
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10y ago

Only a Governor in office is formally and officially addressed as Governor (name). There is only one Governor at at time, and it's not respectful of the current office holder to refer to former office holders as it they were still in office.

Especially in the Southern states, it is a reference to their former position of public prominence. Ideally it should only be used informally. This is also common for previous Presidents of the US, who are sometimes referred to as President (rather than the correct Former President) after they leave office.

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Q: Why is former presidents are still called president?
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