President Biden, 81, and former President Donald Trump, 78, have been the 2 oldest candidates to run for president, however within the grand scheme of issues, they’re outliers. A glance again on the listing of former presidents reveals the bulk entered workplace a lot earlier of their political careers.
Information assembled by CBS reveals that the majority U.S. presidents have been of their 50s on Inauguration Day. This aligns with Individuals’ preferences: In line with a 2023 Pew Analysis Heart ballot, about half of Individuals mentioned the very best age for a U.S. president is somebody of their 50s. Vice President Kamala Harris turned 60 in October.
The youngest particular person to be elected president in latest historical past was Barack Obama, who was inaugurated in 2009 at age 47. However he does not maintain the document if you look again additional. In reality, there are 4 presidents who have been youthful than Obama after they started their stints on the White Home.
Learn on for the total listing of the youngest presidents in U.S. historical past.
Who have been the youngest U.S. presidents on the time of inauguration and in workplace?
The youngest president in U.S. historical past is Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt. He was thrust into the nation’s prime submit in 1909 at age 42 after President William McKinley was assassinated whereas visiting an exposition in Buffalo, New York.
Roosevelt rapidly injected his youthful vigor into the function, driving progressive insurance policies at residence and an energetic overseas coverage agenda overseas. His well-known recommendation on world politics, repeated in generations of college textbooks, was: “Converse softly and carry an enormous stick…”
/ AP
The youngest presidents after Roosevelt have been John F. Kennedy, who was 43 years previous at his inauguration; Invoice Clinton, who was 46; and Ulysses S. Grant, who was additionally 46.
Why are there so few younger presidents?
Simply 9 U.S. presidents, or roughly 1 in 5, have been of their 40s, and none have been of their 30s. This units the U.S. other than international locations like Ecuador, Chile and France, which have all elected leaders of their 30s. One of many youngest leaders on this planet is Burkina Faso’s Ibrahim Traoré, now 36, who has overseen the nation of twenty-two million since 2022.
Again in 1789, the Structure established 35 because the minimal age requirement to grow to be president, however the occasions have modified, mentioned Costas Panagopoulos, a political science professor at Northeastern College.
“This rule was adopted when the life expectancy in America was about that (mid-30s), on common,” he mentioned. “Clearly, the Founders anticipated presidents can be older, and sure skilled because of this.”
As to why there have been so few younger candidates, Panagopoulos mentioned it may should do with the way in which they might be perceived by voters. “Expertise extracts a premium within the voting calculus, which may clarify why so few presidents have been younger,” he mentioned. “Voters shun inexperienced candidates, and, because the saying goes, expertise comes with age.”
Conversely, if candidates are on the older facet, voters might query whether or not they’re up for the problem, as they contemplate their psychological acuity and bodily health, he mentioned.
Full listing of U.S. presidents, from youngest to oldest at finish of presidency
- John F. Kennedy, 46
- James A. Garfield, 49
- Theodore Roosevelt, 50
- Grover Cleveland, 51
- Franklin Pierce, 52
- James Knox Polk, 53
- Millard Fillmore, 53
- John Tyler, 54
- Ulysses S. Grant, 54
- Invoice Clinton, 54
- Chester A. Arthur, 55
- William Howard Taft, 55
- Barack Obama, 55
- Abraham Lincoln, 56
- Calvin Coolidge, 56
- Jimmy Carter, 56
- Warren G. Harding, 57
- Martin Van Buren, 58
- Rutherford B. Hayes, 58
- William McKinley, 58
- Herbert Hoover, 58
- Benjamin Harrison, 59
- Grover Cleveland, 59
- Andrew Johnson, 60
- Lyndon B. Johnson, 60
- John Quincy Adams, 61
- Richard Nixon, 61
- George W. Bush, 62
- Franklin D. Roosevelt, 63
- Gerald Ford, 63
- Woodrow Wilson, 64
- George Washington, 65
- John Adams, 65
- Thomas Jefferson, 65
- James Madison, 65
- Zachary Taylor, 65
- James Monroe, 66
- William Henry Harrison, 68
- Harry S. Truman, 68
- George H. W. Bush, 68
- Andrew Jackson, 69
- James Buchanan, 69
- Dwight D. Eisenhower, 70
- Donald Trump, 74
- Ronald Reagan, 77
- Joe Biden, turns 82 on Nov. 20, 2024
