There are seven candidates still running in the 2024 presidential election, and the other six candidates, except Chase Oliver, were alive during President Dwight D. Eisenhower's term in office, had access to 401(k) plans without penalty, and are currently eligible to receive Social Security benefits.
- Joe Biden, 81
- Donald Trump, 78
- Jill Stein, 74
- Marianne Williamson, 71
- Cornel West, 71
- RFK Jr., 70
- Chase Oliver, 38
While there is a minimum age to run for president, there is no maximum age, as evidenced by the last two presidents: President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump set records as the oldest person to run for president during their respective terms.
How old is Donald Trump?
The Republican front-runner celebrated his 78th birthday on Friday, and despite there being only a three-year age difference between them, Biden has often criticized the former vice president, suggesting it makes him unfit to be a sitting president.
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The Trump campaign has continued to make Biden's age an issue during the election campaign, alleging that the oldest president in US history was showing signs of “cognitive decline” when, as USA Today previously reported, he was “walking around” during a G7 photo op in Italy when in reality he was giving a thumbs up to skydivers.
The former president's critics have also commented on his memory, saying he repeatedly mistook Joe Biden for Barack Obama during speeches last year, and he has also come under fire for incoherent speeches and gaffes in more recent speeches.
How old is the Democratic candidate?
Born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on November 20, 1942, the 81-year-old Biden is currently the oldest US president in history. If he wins in November, he will be 82 when he takes office and 86 at the end of his term.
Biden will have to convince voters that he is a better candidate for president than Trump, who is just three years younger than him, while also battling low approval ratings that are even worse among younger voters.
In his last State of the Union address, the president directly addressed concerns about an aging population: “When you get to be my age, some things become clearer than ever,” Biden said.
Best-selling author Marianne Williamson was born in Houston, Texas on July 8, 1952. She is currently 71 years old and will turn 72 before the general election on November 5. Less than a month after dropping out earlier this year, Williamson relaunched her 2024 presidential bid, focusing on “justice and love,” even though she believes the chances of success are slim.
According to Reuters, in a statement in February, she said she had previously stepped away because she was losing the “horse race,” but was returning to fight against President Trump's “dark, authoritarian vision.”
How old are third party candidates?
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is 70 years old. He was born in Washington, DC on January 17, 1954. He is the second-youngest presidential candidate this year. He initially ran as the Democratic nominee, but switched to being an independent in October 2023.
The Kennedy campaign has confirmed that he is officially on the ballot in several states, including California, Michigan and Utah, but he still faces an uphill and costly battle to get on the ballot in all 50 states.
Kennedy has also faced criticism for undisclosed health problems after The New York Times reported in 2010 that dead parasites had been found in his brain. Doctors believed his short-term memory loss was “caused by worms that had entered my brain, eaten parts of it and died,” Kennedy said in a sworn deposition.
Cornel West, a political activist, philosopher and academic, is running for president as a third party candidate likely to appeal most to progressive, Democratic-leaning voters.
West, 71, initially ran as the Green Party candidate but declared himself an independent in October, saying “people want better policies than partisan politics.” He has pledged to end poverty and guarantee housing.
Jill Stein, 74, a doctor who ran for the Green Party in 2016, plans to run again in 2024.
She kicked off her current campaign by charging that Democrats have “time and time again betrayed their promises to workers, to young people, and to the climate, while Republicans never even made those promises in the first place.”
Stein raised millions of dollars for a recount after Trump's surprise victory in 2016. Her advocacy resulted in just one election recount, in Wisconsin, which showed Trump won.
The Libertarian Party invited both Trump and Kennedy to speak at its convention in late May, but ultimately chose Chase Oliver, 38, who ran for the Georgia Senate in 2022 and won 2% of the vote.
What is the minimum age to run for US President?
According to the United States Constitution, a native-born American citizen must be at least 35 years old to run for president. To date, the youngest U.S. president was Theodore Roosevelt at 42, and the oldest was Joe Biden, who took office at 78, making him the only person to serve as president in his 80s.
Reuters contributed to this story.
Victor Hagan is an Alabama election coverage fellow for the USA TODAY Network. Contact him at vhagan@gannett.com or X @TheVictorHagan. To support his work, subscribe to The Advertiser.
