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Jimmy Carter dead at 100: Longest-living former US president passes away 40 years after serving in White House
President Jimmy Carter devoted his life to diplomacy and human rights work
FORMER President Jimmy Carter has died at age 100.
Carter, the 39th and longest-living president of the , died today after nearly two years in hospice care.
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His son Chip Carter confirmed the former president died at his Georgia home on Sunday around 3:45 pm ET.
Carter peacefully passed away surrounded by his family who paid an emotional tribute to the former leader.
His son Chip said: “My father was a hero, not only to me but to everyone who believes in peace, human rights, and unselfish love.
“My brothers, sister, and I shared him with the rest of the world through these common beliefs.
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"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.”
Public events will commemorate Carter in Atlanta and Washington, D.C. and a state funeral will be held, The Carter Center confirmed.
The former president decided to live out the remainder of his days at his home in Plains, .
Carter, the beloved Democrat and Nobel Peace Prize winner, had experienced several health issues in recent years including melanoma that spread to his liver and brain.
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He became the longest-living president and the first to make it 100 years old.
Tributes poured in for Carter from across the world of politics.
Jimmy Carter arrives in wheelchair to wife Rosalynn's Atlanta funeral as former First Ladies line front row in tribute
President-elect Donald Trump remembered Carter for his leadership and urged Americans to keep the late president's family in their "hearts and prayers".
Trump wrote: "The challenges Jimmy faced as President came at a pivotal time for our country and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans.
"For that, we all owe him a debt of gratitude.
"Melania and I are thinking warmly of the Carter Family and their loved ones during this difficult time."
He later posted a second statement which acknowledged the pair's political and philosophical differences but praised Carter's clear love for America.
"He truly loved and respected our Country, and all it stands for," Trump added.
"He worked hard to make America a better place, and for that I give him my highest respect.
"He was a truly good man and, of course, will be greatly missed. He was also very consequential, far more than most Presidents, after he left the Oval Office."
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Fellow Democrat President Joe Biden and his wife Jill called Carter an "extraordinary leader, statesman, and humanitarian."
They said: "Over six decades, we had the honor of calling Jimmy Carter a dear friend.";
The Biden's added: "He was a man of great character and courage, hope and optimism. We will always cherish seeing him and Rosalynn together."
He emotionally recalled how the two families shared a struggle with cancer, in a heartwarming address at the White House.
He revealed Carter helped and reached out to his family when Biden's son Beau died of cancer in 2015.
Biden said: “We’d all do well to try to be a bit more like Jimmy Carter."
Barack and Michelle Obama's tribute commended Carter for his work in and out of the White House.
They said: "Maranatha Baptist Church will be a little quieter on Sundays, but President Carter will never be far away — buried alongside Rosalynn next to a willow tree down the road, his memory calling all of us to heed our better angels.
"Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from this remarkable man."
Former President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary praised his commitment to service.
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The Clintons said: "Hillary and I mourn the passing of President Jimmy Carter and give thanks for his long, good life.
"Guided by his faith, President Carter lived to serve others-until the very end."
President George W. Bush and his wife Laura called him “a man of deeply held convictions” who “dignified the office".
Tributes to the statesman even came from overseas as The UK's Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
The British PM said he “redefined the post-presidency with a remarkable commitment to social justice and human rights at home and abroad”.
King Charles III also described the former US president as a “committed public servant” who “devoted his life to promoting peace”.
Sir Tony Blair soon followed with a powerful statement of his own saying Carter's "life was a testament to public service."
US Vice President Kamala Harris also praised Carter's "deep and abiding faith in God, America and in humanity".
Mourners gather outside The Carter Presidential Center in Atlanta, Georgia, to leave flowers and even peanuts in tribute to the former president.
Carter's death came over a year after the death of his wife, Rosalynn Carter, who died on November 19, 2023, at age 96.
Two days before her death, Rosalynn joined her husband in hospice care at their home in Georgia.
The former first lady and fierce advocate for mental health was diagnosed with dementia in early 2023.
Before his death, Jimmy Carter was the first to pay tribute to his wife of 77 years, "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished.
"She gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it. As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me."
During Rosylann's service in late November 2023, Amy, the Carters' daughter, read her father's love letter he dedicated to his wife while he was in the Navy.
"My darling, every time I have ever been away from you, I have been thrilled when I returned to discover just how wonderful you are," Carter penned more than 70 years ago.
"While I am away I try to convince myself that you really are not, could not, be as sweet and beautiful as I remember.
"But when I see you I fall in love with you all over again. Does that seem strange to you? It doesn't to me.
"Goodbye darling, until tomorrow, Jimmy."
Jimmy Carter is survived by his four children, James, Donnel, Amy, and Jack, as well as 22 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
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PRESIDENT CARTER
Carter served in from 1977 to 1981.
Prior to his presidency, he served as a Georgia State Senator from 1963 to 1967 and as the 76th governor of Georgia from 1971 to 1975.
Carter was considered a longshot for the presidency when he announced his presidential campaign in December 1974.
As a dark-horse candidate, Carter was not well-known outside of the home state of Georgia.
However, Carter's two-year campaign trail paid off when he won the nomination and narrowly defeated incumbent president Gerald Ford during the 1976 presidential election.
Carter, who entered office in January 1977, took over a nation that was still reeling from the events of the Vietnam War, where approximately 59,000 US troops died on the frontlines.
Two days after being sworn in as president, Carter famously pardoned all the draft evaders from the Vietnam War.
But, his presidency was marred by rising energy costs, mounting inflation, and continuing tensions with foreign adversaries, including the threat of nuclear war with the Soviet Union.
Carter's hopes for reelection eventually crumbled due to the hostage crisis.
On November 4, 1979, a group of militarized Iranian college students stormed the US Embassy in Tehran and took 52 American diplomats and citizens hostage.
The American public turned on Carter for his soft approach to the crisis, which lasted 444 days.
The hostage crisis paralyzed his presidency and hampered his efforts at a second term.
Carter would eventually lose the 1980 presidential election in a landslide to Republican presidential candidate Ronald Reagan.
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LIFE AFTER THE WHITE HOUSE
After leaving the Oval Office, Carter devoted his life to diplomacy and .
He founded the Carter Center in 1982, an organization with a fundamental and the alleviation of human suffering, according to their website.
The non-profit has worked to improve the quality of life for people in countries all over the world.
In 2002, Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize for his work seeking peaceful resolutions to global conflicts, advancing human rights and democracy, and promoting economic and social development.
The Carter Center also devoted some resources to ensuring free and fair elections and monitored the 2020 elections in the .
Carter had mostly retired from the public eye in recent years, particularly in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic and a diagnosis in 2015.
In December 2015, Carter was declared cancer-free just months after being diagnosed with the illness.
While Carter lived a more private life in his latter years, he was vocal in his opposition to certain political moves of the presidents who followed him.
He disagreed with Reagan’s handling of peace in the Middle East and was opposed to the Iraq War under George W Bush.
Carter criticized the Trump administration but also disagreed with his fellow president, Barack Obama, regarding the use of drone strikes against suspected terrorists.
On his , the former president was honored with a parade of golf carts and other vehicles by local residents, which he and his wife observed from their residence while wearing masks due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
During the 2020 presidential election, Carter endorsed Joe Biden at the Democratic National Convention and said via video, "Joe Biden was my first and most effective supporter in the Senate … For decades, he’s been my loyal and dedicated friend."
To mark his first 100 days in office, Biden and First Lady visited Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter at their home in Plains, Georgia.
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"We sat and talked about the old days," Biden told reporters afterward.
Jimmy Carter was the longest-lived US president in history, surpassing George HW Bush, who was 94 at the time of his death.
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