Jimmy Carter (#39): The Peacemaker President

Young Jimmy Carter on his family peanut farm in Plains, Georgia

1924-1962 Plains, Georgia

The Peanut Farmer

Born in 1924 in Plains, Georgia, James Earl Carter Jr. grew up on a farm without running water or electricity. He graduated from the Naval Academy and served on nuclear submarines under Admiral Hyman Rickover, one of the most demanding officers in military history. After his father's death, he returned to Plains to run the family peanut business.

Carter campaigning for president in 1976

1970-1976 Georgia & United States

Jimmy Who?

Carter served one term as Georgia governor, championing racial equality in the Deep South. In 1976, he launched a longshot presidential bid. "Jimmy Who?" asked the press. But in a post-Watergate nation desperate for honesty, his outsider status became his greatest asset. He told voters, "I will never lie to you," and they believed him, electing him over incumbent Gerald Ford.

Carter with Sadat and Begin at Camp David

September 1978 Camp David, Maryland

The Camp David Accords

Carter's crowning achievement was brokering peace between Egypt and Israel. For 13 days in September 1978, he locked himself at Camp David with Egyptian President Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Begin, shuttling between their cabins. The resulting Camp David Accords produced the first peace treaty between Israel and an Arab nation--a peace that has held for over 45 years.

Carter installing solar panels on the White House roof

1977-1980 Washington, D.C.

Ahead of His Time

Carter was decades ahead on energy and the environment. He installed solar panels on the White House roof, created the Department of Energy, and urged Americans to conserve. He deregulated airlines and trucking, lowering prices for consumers. He also championed human rights as a cornerstone of foreign policy, a radical departure from Cold War realpolitik.

1979-1981 Tehran, Iran

The Iran Hostage Crisis

On November 4, 1979, Iranian revolutionaries stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and took 52 Americans hostage. The crisis consumed Carter's presidency for 444 agonizing days. A daring rescue attempt, Operation Eagle Claw, ended in disaster in the Iranian desert with eight American servicemen dead. The hostages were released minutes after Ronald Reagan took office.

1984-2019 Worldwide

Habitat for Humanity

After losing the 1980 election in a landslide, Carter did something no former president had done: he reinvented the ex-presidency. He and Rosalynn spent weeks every year swinging hammers with Habitat for Humanity, building homes for families in need. Carter didn't just lend his name--he showed up in work boots and stayed until the job was done, well into his 90s.

Carter monitoring elections in a developing nation

1982-2023 Atlanta & Worldwide

The Carter Center

Through the Carter Center, founded in 1982, Carter monitored elections in 39 countries, mediated conflicts, and led the campaign that nearly eradicated Guinea worm disease--reducing cases from 3.5 million annually to fewer than 15. He negotiated with dictators, built democracies, and fought tropical diseases that the world had forgotten. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002.

Carter at his church teaching Sunday school

1981-2024 Plains, Georgia

The Longest Post-Presidency

Carter taught Sunday school at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains into his late 90s. After Rosalynn's death in November 2023, he entered hospice care. He lived to be 100 years old, the longest-lived president in American history. He cast his final ballot in the 2024 election. He passed away on December 29, 2024, having spent more years serving after the presidency than in it.

Carter smiling warmly in his later years

The Peacemaker President

Jimmy Carter proved that the measure of a leader is not just what they do in power, but what they do after it. A mediocre presidency gave way to the most consequential post-presidency in American history. He built homes, eradicated diseases, brokered peace, and never stopped serving. He showed the world what it looks like when a good person has power--and gives it away.