Joe Biden

Joe Biden is a Democratic politician and former president of the United States, now out of public office. Born in 1942, he remains one of the most prominent figures in modern American politics.

Political career

Joe Biden’s political career began in Delaware, where he was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and raised partly in a working-class family before moving to Delaware as a child. He studied at the University of Delaware, graduating in 1965, and earned a law degree from Syracuse University in 1968. After a brief period in legal practice, he entered politics at local and state level, building the foundations of a long career in elected office.

In 1972, Biden won election to the United States Senate from Delaware at the age of 29, one of the youngest people ever elected to the chamber. His campaign was notable for overcoming the odds in a state where Republicans had often been competitive. He took office in 1973 and remained a senator until 2009. During his Senate years, he became a senior figure on foreign affairs and criminal justice, notably serving as chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and later the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Biden first gained national prominence through his work on judicial nominations, criminal law and foreign policy. In the Senate, he played a central role in debates over crime legislation, violence against women, the Balkans, NATO expansion, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He also developed a reputation as a skilled legislator and broadcaster, though at times criticised for over-extended or imprecise remarks.

In 2008, Barack Obama selected Biden as his running mate, and Biden served as Vice President of the United States from 2009 to 2017. In that role, he was involved in domestic recovery efforts after the financial crisis, foreign policy management, and legislative bargaining with Congress. He was particularly associated with the Obama administration’s management of the economic stimulus and with efforts to maintain influence in the Senate.

After leaving the vice-presidency, Biden launched a successful presidential campaign and became the 46th President of the United States in 2021, serving until 2025. His presidency was defined by efforts to manage the COVID-19 aftermath, inflation pressures, industrial policy, the withdrawal from Afghanistan, major infrastructure and climate legislation, and support for Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion. He left office in 2025 and is currently out of public office.

Relationship with the public

Biden has long cultivated an image as a working-class, retail-politics figure, emphasising personal stories, family, empathy and direct voter contact. His political style has often been described as conversational and instinctive rather than highly scripted, which has helped him connect with many voters but also exposed him to criticism for verbal slips and inconsistent messaging.

His relationship with the electorate has often been strongest among older Democrats, union households, and voters who value pragmatism and institutional experience. He has also been seen by many as a familiar, reassuring figure in periods of national tension, especially during the pandemic and the aftermath of the 2020 election. At the same time, his public image has been shaped by intense partisan polarisation, with critics on the right portraying him as a symbol of establishment politics, while some younger and more progressive activists within the Democratic coalition have viewed him as cautious or insufficiently transformative.

Biden’s relationship with the media has been unusually long and visible. He has been interviewed for decades, covered extensively in both print and television, and often used media access to project a personal, empathetic image. However, his later years in national office brought increased scrutiny over age, stamina and performance, turning his public appearances into a recurring political issue.

Positions and political profile

Biden is generally associated with the mainstream centre-left of the Democratic Party, though his record spans both moderate and progressive elements. His core themes have included defending the middle class, expanding access to healthcare, protecting Social Security and Medicare, supporting labour rights, and investing in infrastructure, clean energy and domestic manufacturing.

On foreign policy, he has traditionally favoured a multilateral, alliance-based approach, with strong support for NATO, transatlantic cooperation and assistance to Ukraine. As senator and vice-president, he was often involved in major foreign policy decisions, and as president he made support for allies a defining element of his approach.

Within the Democratic Party, he is usually seen as an institutionalist and pragmatic negotiator rather than an ideological standard-bearer. He has worked with centrist Democrats and appealed to voters outside the party’s progressive wing, but he has also backed major spending and climate legislation that reflected a more activist use of federal power. Outside his party, he has been viewed in sharply different ways: as a steady defender of democratic norms by supporters, and as emblematic of a declining political establishment by critics.

Several moments have defined his career. In the Senate, his work on the Violence Against Women Act and other criminal justice legislation was widely noted. As vice-president, he helped manage recovery from the 2008 financial crisis. As president, the American Rescue Plan, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the administration’s handling of the end of the US combat role in Afghanistan became central markers of his tenure. His decision to run for president in 2020 after previously considering retirement, and then to step away from the 2024 race amid concerns about age and performance, were also highly consequential.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Joe Biden? Joe Biden is an American Democratic politician who served as the 46th President of the United States from 2021 to 2025, after previously serving as Vice President under Barack Obama and as a long-time U.S. Senator from Delaware.

What party does Joe Biden belong to? Biden is a member of the Democratic Party. Throughout his career, he has generally aligned with the party’s mainstream and pragmatic wing.

What did Joe Biden do before becoming president? Before the presidency, Biden served in the U.S. Senate from 1973 to 2009, where he worked on foreign affairs, judicial issues and criminal justice, and then served as Vice President from 2009 to 2017.

What are Joe Biden’s main political priorities? His key priorities have included support for the middle class, healthcare access, infrastructure, climate and clean energy investment, labour rights, and a strong alliances-based foreign policy.

How is Joe Biden viewed within the Democratic Party? He is often seen as a pragmatic centrist and a party elder with extensive governing experience. Supporters credit him with coalition-building, while some progressives view him as more cautious than they would prefer.

Why is Joe Biden a significant figure in US politics? Biden’s significance comes from his exceptionally long career in national office, his role in shaping major legislative and foreign policy debates, and his two-term presidency during a period of intense domestic and international turbulence.