Donald Trump succeeded in his bet: he was elected this Wednesday 47th President of the United States. He will be inaugurated on January 20 and will succeed Joe Biden, who gave up running, weakened in particular by his age. The outgoing Democratic president will turn 82 on November 20.
159 days more than Biden when he arrived
Trump may have widely mocked Biden's age, but he will soon become the oldest president to take office, at the beginning of 2025: he will enter the White House 159 days older than his predecessor. Born on June 14, 1946, he will therefore be 78 (and a half) years old at the start of his mandate, and 82 (and a half) years old during the next American presidential election, in 2029.
With rare exceptions (including Joe Biden), the youngest elected presidents generally come from Democratic ranks: John Fitzgerald Kennedy (43 years old), Bill Clinton (46 years old), Barack Obama (47 years old) and Jimmy Carter (52 years old). years). The youngest Republican to reach the White House remains George W. Bush, in 2000, at 54 years old.
If Kamala Harris had won, she would not have appeared as a “young girl”: aged 60 since October 20, she is between presidents Richard Nixon (56 years old on the day of his inauguration) and Harry Truman (invested a few days before his 61st birthday).
Age, not a factor of success (nor failure)
Does age (or youth) make you successful? A priori no: the youngest as well as the two oldest presidents are among the least well elected. Conversely, the best elected (Reagan and George Bush senior) were in their sixties when they were elected. Reagan was even 73 years old when he was re-elected with more than 525 voters out of 538 – a record in the history of the country.
Donald Trump also returns to the presidency of the United States by appearing among the oldest heads of state… in the world: placed in front of a nonagenarian – the President of Cameroon Paul Biya (91 years old) and a few octogenarians, like the President of Zimbabwe Emmerson Mnangagwa (82 years old) or that of Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema (80 years old).
