Joe Biden
, who turned 80 last November 20, was 78 when he became president in 2021 and has already broken all records for longest service life for an incumbent US president, even if, as he just announced he wants to do, should not even win a second term at the age of 82 in 2025.
Biden has in fact already beaten both
Ronald Reagan
, who left the presidency at the end of two terms at the age of 77 after entering it in 1981 at the age of 69, and his immediate predecessor
Donald Trump
, entered the White House at 70 and left at 74 after one term.
The tycoon, if he were to win the possible challenge with Biden in 2024, would enter the White House at the age of 78 and only in this could he beat Biden to the wire, for a few months: Trump, born in 1946, is in fact from June, while the 'current inmate of the White House was born in 1942, but in November.
In the past, the only one to have crossed the threshold of 70 in the presidency was
Dwight Eisenhower
(two terms, 1953-61), who became a simple citizen three months after completing them and starting his first term at 62 years of age.
His predecessor,
Harry Truman
, as vice president at 60 succeeded Franklin D.
Roosevelt
upon the latter's death at 63 in term, and returned home at 68. Also of note is
Gerald Ford
(one term, 1974- 77), who was sworn in at 61 and left at 63.
Before the 1900s, to find a US president who was 60 or older, we have to go back to
James Buchanan
(one term, 1856-71), who entered at 65 and came out at 69, to
Zachary Taylor,
who died in 1850 at the age of 65 after 16 months as president.
Worse still went to
William Henry Harrison
who died in 1841 at the age of 68 after exactly one month spent in the White House.
Prior to these two unfortunate presidents, no predecessor had ever ascended to the presidency after the age of 60, with the sole exceptions of
Andrew Jackson
(2 terms, 1829-37) who began at age 61 and ended at 69, and
John Adams
( 1797-1801), successor of George Washington, 61 to 65 years of age.
Washington, the first president, was elected in 1789 at age 57 and finished his term at age 61.
As for the youngest US presidents, the record belongs to
Theodore Roosevelt
(2 terms, 1901-09), who became president at 42, followed by
John F. Kennedy
, who was 43 in 1961 (and was assassinated at 46 in 1963) and by
Bill Clinton
(2 terms, 1993-2001) who was 46.
Obama
entered the White House at 47.