Joe Biden turns 82, cementing status as oldest US president in office
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks as he welcomes Team USA Olympic and Paralympic teams to the White House on September 30, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON - President Joe Biden turned 82 years old on Wednesday, solidifying his spot as the oldest U.S. president in history.
The president, who has often had to answer questions about his health and stamina, has previously made jokes about being his age.
Joe Biden's biography
Biden was born November 20, 1942, in Scranton, Pennsylvania. He was the first of four children to Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden and Joseph Robinette Biden, Sr.
The Biden family then moved to Claymont, Delaware, where he graduated from the University of Delaware and Syracuse Law School and served on the New Castle County Council.
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He was then elected to the U.S. Senate at 29 years old. Weeks prior to his election victory, he and his wife Neilia and daughter Naomi were killed, and sons Hunter and Beau were critically injured in a car accident. Biden had to be sworn in at his sons’ hospital bedsides.
He then married Jill Biden in 1977 and the couple gave birth to their daughter Ashley in 1980.
Biden represented Delaware for 36 years before becoming vice president to President Barack Obama.
In 2020, Biden was elected the 46th president of the United States at the age of 77.
Questions about age, health lead to Biden dropping out of 2024 race
In July 2024, Biden dropped out of the 2024 race for the White House, ending his bid for reelection after a disastrous debate with Donald Trump that raised doubts about the incumbent’s fitness for office.
Biden’s decision to bow out came after escalating pressure from his Democratic allies to step aside following the June 27 debate, in which the 81-year-old president trailed off, often gave nonsensical answers and failed to call out the former president’s many falsehoods.
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A day after his debate blunder, Biden’s voice at a North Carolina rally was forceful, his eyes alert, his delivery confident. As he spoke, cheers filled the room.
Biden endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president. However, she was defeated by current President-elect Donald Trump.
Who was previously the oldest president?
Before Biden, Trump was the oldest person ever to be elected as U.S. president: 70 years old at the time of his inauguration in January 2017.
He ended his first term as president at 74 years old.
Now at 78 years old, Trump will be the oldest U.S. president to ever take office, beating Biden by about five months. That would also make him the oldest president to serve in office when he finishes his second term at the age of 82 and a little over seven months.
Some of the other oldest presidents
Besides Trump and Biden, the country has seen a few "older" presidents.
President Ronald Reagan was 73 years old when he won his second term in 1984. He left office in 1989, at the age of 77.
Jimmy Carter turns 100, first president to do so
On Wednesday, former President Jimmy Carter celebrated his 100th birthday, making him the first former president in United States history to do so. LiveNOW's Austin Westfall discusses his life and legacy on his 100th birthday with presidential historian James Robenalt.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower left the White House in 1961, at the age of 70.
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President Jimmy Carter, who turned 100 years old this year, left office in 1981 at the age of 56.