Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was born to Catherine Eugenia “Jean” Biden (née Finnegan) and Joseph Robinette Biden Sr. on November 20, 1942, at St. Mary’s Hospital in Scranton, Pennsylvania. Biden is the oldest child in a Catholic household with two brothers, Francis and James, and a sister, Valerie.
Biden’s father and namesake had originally been well-off, but the family faced financial difficulties soon after Biden was born, and the family had to live with Biden’s maternal grandparents for several years. Before moving to a house in Wilmington, Delaware, the family resided in an apartment in Claymont, Delaware, starting in 1953.
Later in life, the elder Biden became a successful used-car salesman, allowing his family to live comfortably in the middle class. During his junior and senior years at Archmere Academy, Biden served as class president. In 1961, he completed his studies at Archmere. In 1965, Biden graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history and political science, as well as a minor in economics.
Biden married Syracuse University’s Neilia Hunter in 1966. Beau, Robert Hunter, and Naomi Christina “Amy,” their three children, were born to them. Biden graduated from the University of Pennsylvania’s College of Law in 1968 with a Juris Doctor degree, ranking 76th out of 85 students in his class.
Before campaigning for political office, he was licenced to the Delaware bar in 1969 and worked as a lawyer. Just seven days before Christmas in 1972, Biden’s wife and daughter were killed in an automobile accident.
Biden was on the verge of relinquishing his seat in the Senate, which he had just won for the first time that year. Biden married Jill Jacobs five years later, and the couple had one daughter, Ashley Blazer, together. On January 6, 2021, a large crowd of Trump supporters marched to the Capitol from a gathering outside the White House, where Trump had delivered an impassioned speech reiterating bogus charges of Democratic voter fraud and pushing his followers to “fight like hell.” The protesters rushed the structure, vandalising and looting the interior, killing five persons, including one Capitol police officer. The building was eventually seized after several hours, and Biden and Harris were declared winners. Biden was sworn in as president two weeks later, in front of a huge security presence.
