Jimmy Carter, Longest-Living U.S. President, Dies at 100

Former president Jimmy Carter died on Sunday, December 29. He was 100.

“My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love,” Carter’s son Chip said in a statement released via his eponymous Carter Center. “My brothers, sister and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs. The world is our family because of the way he brought people together, and we thank you for honoring his memory by continuing to live these shared beliefs.”

Carter became the longest-living former president in U.S. history in March 2019 when he surpassed the late George H.W. Bush, who died in November 2018 at 94 years and 171 days old. Carter and his wife of 76 years, Rosalynn Carter, were also the longest-married first couple, surpassing Bush and Barbara Bush.

Prior to his death, the Carter Center, the former president’s foundation, announced in February 2023 that he was entering hospice care.

Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter's Relationship Timeline

“After a series of short hospital stays, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter today decided to spend his remaining time at home with his family and receive hospice care instead of additional medical intervention,” the statement read. “He has the full support of his family and his medical team.”

Nine months later, Rosalynn also began end-of-life care. The Carter Center confirmed on November 19, 2023, that she had “peacefully” died at the age of 96.

The politician battled numerous health issues in the final years of his life. He announced in December 2015 that he was cancer-free, months after metastatic melanoma spread throughout his body, including to his brain. Three and a half years later, he underwent surgery for a broken hip. Jimmy suffered two more falls at his Georgia home in October 2019. Despite having to get 14 stitches above his left eye as a result of the first fall, he traveled to Nashville to work with Habitat for Humanity volunteers and helped build a home. In November 2019, he was admitted to Emory University Hospital in Atlanta to undergo a procedure to relieve pressure on his brain, caused by bleeding due to his recent falls.

Jimmy, who was the first U.S. president to be born in a hospital, grew up in Plains, Georgia, with three siblings: Gloria, Ruth and Billy Carter. He studied at Georgia Southwestern College and the Georgia Institute of Technology before being admitted to the Naval Academy in 1943. He met Rosalynn, who had been friends with his sister Ruth, while attending the academy. The couple married in 1946 after Jimmy’s graduation. He later became a member of the U.S. Navy in the submarine program before leaving active duty in 1953 to take over his family’s peanut business in Georgia in the wake of his father’s death.

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As an active member of the Democratic Party, Jimmy decided to run for office in the early 1960s. He served in the Georgia State Senate from 1963 to 1967. Three years later, he was elected governor.

During that time, the civil rights activist and evangelical Christian was not widely known outside of his home state. However, he managed to secure a nomination in the 1976 presidential election and went on to defeat incumbent Republican president Gerald Ford to become the 39th POTUS.

Jimmy got to work right away, pardoning Vietnam War draft dodgers on his second day in the White House. During his four years in office, he established the Department of Energy and the Department of Education, in addition to making an energy policy his top domestic priority. In foreign affairs, Jimmy found success with his mediation of the Camp David Accords.

Despite his achievements, Jimmy faced many challenges as commander in chief. He infamously delivered what would come to be known as the “Crisis of Confidence” speech in 1979, in which he blamed the country’s problems on the poor spirit of its citizens. He also struggled to enact legislation due to his oft-tempestuous relationship with Congress. In the final stretch of his presidency, he came under fire for the way he handled the Iranian hostage crisis, in which dozens of Americans were held captive for 444 days.

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Jimmy ran for re-election in 1980, but Ronald Reagan won the popular and electoral votes.

After leaving the Oval Office in 1981, Jimmy received a great deal of praise for his humanitarian work. He worked extensively with Habitat for Humanity and founded the Carter Center human rights organization. In 2002, Jimmy was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts in finding peace in international conflicts.

Prior to his death, the Faith author made arrangements to be buried in front of his Georgia home.

Jimmy is survived by his and Rosalynn’s children — sons Jack, James and Donnel and daughter Amy — and more than 20 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.