Former President Jimmy Carter dies at 100
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, who served from 1977 through 1981, passed away on Sunday at the age of 100, according to a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The former president’s son, Chip Carter, confirmed that his father passed away at his home in Plains, Georgia shortly before 4 p.m. on Sunday. Carter — who lived longer than any former U.S. president — entered home hospice care in February 2023 after a string of hospital stays.
Carter was born in Plains, Georgia on October 1, 2024. In 1946, he graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and went on to serve in the Navy’s submarine service.
After the conclusion of his military service, Carter returned to Georgia and took over his family’s peanut harvesting business after his father passed away. Carter managed to turn the modest business into a profitable enterprise, which was placed into a blind trust when he eventually became president.
Carter’s political career began in 1963, when he was elected to the Georgia State Senate. A staunch opponent of racial segregation, Carter garnered a reputation as an outspoken civil rights activist throughout the peak of the movement. He was eventually elected as Governor of Georgia in 1971.
While Carter was largely unknown outside Georgia, he emerged as a surprise candidate in the 1976 presidential election. After securing the Democratic Party nomination, he went on to defeat incumbent President Gerald Ford, a Republican, in the general. The win made Carter the first and only Georgian to serve as president.
Carter’s lone term in office was rather tumultuous, both on the domestic and foreign policy fronts. The end of his term was largely marred by the Iranian hostage crisis, while a massive energy crisis made life difficult for Americans at home. The nation’s 39th president did make significant strides in peace talks between Israel and its Arab neighbors by successfully overseeing the Camp David Accords, which established peace and diplomatic relations between Egypt and Israel. The agreement between the two nations — which had been in a constant state of war since Israel’s foundation in 1948 — was seen as the first major breakthrough in the peace process.
Despite the crises facing the nation during his term, Carter frequently delivered Oval Office addresses in order to connect directly with the American people. At the height of the energy crisis in 1979, President Carter delivered his “crisis of confidence” speech after listening to concerns from Americans over the previous several days.
Crisis of Confidence (1979)
U.S. President Jimmy CarterSurprising how well this speech from 45 years ago resonates with the challenges the United States faces today.
Reagan and the collapse of the USSR were band-aids over a very deep wound. pic.twitter.com/Yb7uRrygg7
— Sven Etienne (@Sven_Etienne) May 31, 2024
After losing to Republican challenger Ronald Reagan in the landslide 1980 election, Carter returned to Georgia and began his work on numerous charitable endeavors. He started volunteering for Habitats for Humanity, an organization that builds houses for the poor. He went on to found, along with his wife Rosalynn, the Atlanta-based Carter Center, which focuses on promoting peace and humanitarian efforts around the globe.
For his efforts, Carter was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.
Jimmy Carter, the longest-living U.S. President, and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, has died at the age of 100 at his home in Plains, Georgia.
📸: Bettmann, Arne Knudsen, Amy Davis pic.twitter.com/bwB6zTVMT9— Getty Images News (@GettyImagesNews) December 29, 2024
Rosalynn Carter, the former president’s wife of 77 years, passed away in 2023. They are survived by their children Amy, Chip, Jack and Jeff; 11 grandchildren; and 14 great-grandchildren.