How many presidents died and or became disabled while in office?

Answer 1

8 Presidents died while in office. 4 were assassinated (Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, and Kennedy); given medical advances, it's almost certain Garfield and McKinley would have survived had their shootings happened more recently. The other 4 died of illness. The most definite case of disability is Woodrow Wilson, who had a serious stroke in his second term. Other cases of Presidents having serious surgery or surviving assassination attempts involve less hindrance in carrying out the duties of the office. FDR was paralyzed from the waist down, because of polio.

Answer 2

Four presidential candidates were shot after they became president.

I can think of three candidates who were shot without being elected- namely Theodore Roosevelt, Robert Kennedy and George Wallace. William Crawford suffered a paralytic stroke during the campaign of 1824.