Jimmy Carter celebrates 100th birthday, becoming first former US president to reach milestone

Democratic president from 1977 to 1981 will spend his birthday in the home he and his late wife Rosalynn built in Plains, Georgia

Jimmy Carter at the funeral service for his wife, Rosalynn Carter, in November 2023. AP

Jimmy Carter celebrated his 100th birthday on Tuesday, becoming the first former US president to reach the century mark. Mr Carter has been in hospice care at his home in Georgia for more than 19 months, and his longevity has defied expectations.

The former Democratic president no longer appears in public, and will spend his birthday in the home he and his late wife Rosalynn built in Plains in the 1960s. She died in November last year. Mr Carter's birthday celebration will include a lunch with about 20 members of his extended family, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Mr Carter received birthday messages from presidents, politicians, activists, the Secret Service and even local baseball team the Atlanta Braves. In a video posted on his official X account, President Joe Biden hailed Mr Carter as a “beloved friend” and “one of the most influential statesmen” in US history.

“Your hopeful vision of our country, your commitment to a better world and your unwavering belief in the power of human goodness continues to be a guiding light for all of us,” he said.

The office of the first lady, Jill Biden, said a display had been set up on the White House lawn with the message “Happy Birthday President Carter”. The Carter Centre shared a compilation of messages from Mr Biden along with former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W Bush. The only living president not included was Donald Trump.

Mr Clinton said: “For the last 40-plus years, you've shown us just how much a former president can accomplish in promoting democracy and honest elections, combating disease and advancing peace.” Mr Bush said: “You've had a heck of a life, and you're surrounded by people who love you.”

Beyond serving as president for a single term from 1977 to 1981, Mr Carter has worked as a global mediator, rights activist and elder statesman. He founded the renowned Carter Centre in 1982 to pursue his vision of world diplomacy.

His presidency included the 1978 Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt, establishment of diplomatic relations with China following a rapprochement initiated by president Richard Nixon, and return of control of the Panama Canal to Panama. According to family, Mr Carter remains keenly interested in politics and was highly motivated to make it to 100 and to vote in the November election for fellow Democrat Kamala Harris.

“He will be voting by mail-in ballot,” Jill Stuckey, superintendent of the National Park Service's Jimmy Carter National Historic Park and a long-time family friend, told AFP. She added that “he's always been very politically active, and nothing has changed with that respect”.