Published: 18:25, November 20, 2023 | Updated: 21:01, November 20, 2023
Biden turns 81 as age worries weigh on reelection prospects
By Reuters

US President Joe Biden speaks to the media before boarding Air Force One at Naval Station Norfolk in Norfolk, Virginia, on November 19, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)

WASHINGTON - US President Joe Biden turns 81 on Monday, a milestone likely to draw attention to his status as the oldest person to ever occupy the Oval Office, with opinion polls showing Americans worried he is too old for the post he is seeking reelection to.

Biden has addressed those who worry that he is too old for the rigors of the White House with humor and an attempt to convince voters that his age and experience over a half-century in public life is an asset in tackling America's problems.

If re-elected, Biden would be 86 by the end of his second term in office. Republican Ronald Reagan, who had the prior record as oldest US president, ended his second four-year term at age 77 in 1989

"I know I'm 198 years old," Biden joked back in June.

If re-elected, Biden would be 86 by the end of his second term in office. Republican Ronald Reagan, who had the prior record as oldest US president, ended his second four-year term at age 77 in 1989.

Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination to challenge Biden in the 2024 election, is 77.

In a mid-September Reuters/Ipsos poll, voters expressed concern over Biden’s age and his fitness for office. Seventy-seven percent of respondents, including 65 percent of Democrats, said Biden is too old to be president, while just 39 percent said Biden was mentally sharp enough for the presidency.

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By comparison, 56 percent of poll respondents said Trump is too old for the office, while 54 percent said he was mentally sharp enough to handle the challenges of the presidency.