Determine the seating arrangement around the table. Players typically sit in a circle.
Decide who will be the dealer for the first hand. The dealer shuffles the deck and deals the entire deck evenly among the players.
Gameplay:
Rank of Cards: In President, cards are ranked from high to low, typically with Aces being the highest and twos being the lowest.
Turns: The player to the dealer’s left goes first, and play proceeds clockwise around the table.
Playing Cards: On their turn, players must play one or more cards of the same rank from their hand onto the center of the table.
Players can play singles, pairs, triples, or any other valid combination of cards as long as they match the rank of the cards currently on the table.
If a player cannot or chooses not to play any cards, they pass their turn.
Clearing the Table: Once all players have passed consecutively, the cards on the table are cleared, and the last player to play cards starts a new round by leading with any valid combination.
The Hierarchy of Positions:
The first player to get rid of all their cards becomes the President for the next round.
The second player to get rid of all their cards becomes the Vice President.
The second-to-last player becomes the Vice Scum.
The last player to get rid of their cards becomes the Scum.
Subsequent Rounds: In subsequent rounds, the President leads the play and can ask the Vice President to give them their highest card (or a card of their choice) and pass back any card they wish. The President also leads the first play of each round.
Winning the Game: The game typically continues for several rounds. The objective is to win the game by finishing as President or Vice President in the final round.
Additional Notes:
President is a dynamic game with a social element, as players’ positions change from round to round based on their success or failure in each hand.
The game can be played with various additional rules and variations, such as requiring players to perform certain actions based on their position, introducing wild cards, or adding special rules for specific card combinations.
President is often played as a social game, making it a popular choice for gatherings, parties, or casual game nights.