Trailblazing former First Lady dies as ex-President husband leads tributes
Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has died at the age of 96, it has been confirmed.
It comes just days after the wife of former President Jimmy Carter was confirmed to have been moved into hospice care after a dementia diagnosis. The Carter Center said she "died peacefully, with family by her side."
Married for over 77 years, the Carters are the longest-married first couple in US history. In tribute to his wife, Jimmy Carter said: "Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished. he gave me wise guidance and encouragement when I needed it... As long as Rosalynn was in the world, I always knew somebody loved and supported me."
First Lady Rosalynn Carter in 1979 (Getty Images)
Rosalynn would sit in on cabinet meetings (Paris Match via Getty Images)Jill Biden, appearing at an event at Naval Air Station in Norfolk, Virginia, said she had to “lead this off with a sad announcement” of Rosalynn Carter's death. “She was well-known for her efforts on mental health and caregiving and women's rights. So I hope that during the holidays, you'll ... include the Carter family in your prayers,” she said.
The Carters said they formed what was a "full partnership" and she became known for having influence during her time as First Lady. She would sit in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips - aids have called her "co-president" privately.
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She was even once used on a trip in 1977 to Latin America to re-emphasise what White House's position on freezing military aid and other support to violators of human rights.
The couple recently celebrated President Carter's 99th birthday with their family, in October. The gathering took place in the same one-story structure where the Carters lived before he was first elected to the Georgia Senate in 1962.
Rosalynn is said to have found it more difficult to come to terms with losing the presidency (Getty Images)“The remarkable piece to me and I think to my family is that while my grandparents have accomplished so much, they have really remained the same sort of South Georgia couple that lives in a 600-person village where they were born,” said grandson Jason Carter, who chairs the board at The Carter Center, which his grandparents founded in 1982 after leaving the White House a year earlier.
Rosalynn Carter
Rosalynn Carter was born in Plains, Georgia in 1927. When she was young, family tragedy hit the form of her father's death. She took on more of the family responsibility and also worked in a beauty parlour after school.
Her son Chip Carter said: "Besides being a loving mother and extraordinary First Lady, my mother was a great humanitarian in her own right. Her life of service and compassion was an example for all Americans.
Rosalynn championed mental health (AFP via Getty Images)"She will be sorely missed not only by our family but by the many people who have better mental health care and access to resources for caregiving today."
Throughout her husband's political career, she chose mental health and problems of the elderly as her signature policy emphasis. When the news media didn't cover those efforts as much as she believed was warranted, she criticized reporters for writing only about "sexy subjects."
As honorary chairwoman of the President's Commission on Mental Health, she once testified before a Senate subcommittee, becoming the first first lady since Eleanor Roosevelt to address a congressional panel. She was back in Washington in 2007 to push Congress for improved mental health coverage, saying, "We've been working on this for so long, it finally seems to be in reach."
Then Georgia State Senator Jimmy Carter hugs his wife, Rosalynn, at his Atlanta campaign headquarters, 1966 (AP)Fiercely loyal and compassionate as well as politically astute, Rosalynn Carter prided herself on being an activist first lady, and no one doubted her behind-the-scenes influence. When her role in a highly publicized Cabinet shakeup became known, she was forced to declare publicly, “I am not running the government.”
Many presidential aides insisted that her political instincts were better than her husband’s — they often enlisted her support for a project before they discussed it with the president. Her iron will, contrasted with her outwardly shy demeanor and a soft Southern accent, inspired Washington reporters to call her “the Steel Magnolia.”
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Rosalynn Carter, Jimmy Carter, and Amy Carter on the south lawn in front of the White House, 1977 (HUM Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)Both Carters said in their later years that Rosalynn had always been the more political of the two. After Jimmy Carter’s landslide defeat in 1980, it was she, not the former president, who contemplated an implausible comeback, and years later she confessed to missing their life in Washington.
Of the many issues she took under her wing, the former First Lady championed mental health. She once said "I used to come home and say to Jimmy, 'Why are people telling me their problems?' And he said, 'Because you may be the only person they'll ever see who may be close to someone who can help them."
Marriage
The long marriage remained close long after the nuptials in 1946. They were childhood sweethearts and knew each other from a very young age.
Carter said marrying his wife was the 'pinnacle' (Archive Photos)The former president's mother was in fact the person who delivered baby Rosalynn when she was born. Years later Jimmy and Rosalynn were set up on a successful blind date, prompting the 39th president to tell his mom: "That's the girl I want to marry."
The pair shared four children together. Their sons were born where Jimmy Carter was stationed: John William (Jack) in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1947; James Earl III (Chip) in Honolulu in 1950; and Donnel Jeffery (Jeff) in New London, Connecticut, in 1952. Amy was born in Plains in 1967. By then, Carter was a state senator.
In 2015, Jimmy Carter’s doctors discovered four small tumors on his brain. The Carters feared he had weeks to live. He was treated with a drug to boost his immune system, and later announced that doctors found no remaining signs of cancer. But when they first received the news, she said she didn't know what she was going to do.
A portrait of President Jimmy Carter and his extended family. Left to right: Judy (Mrs. Jack Carter); Jason James Carter; Jack (John William Carter); Annette (Mrs. Jeff Carter); Jeff (Donnel Jeffrey Carter); First Lady Rosalynn Carter; daughter Amy Lynn Carter; President Carter; daughter-in law Caron Griffin Carter holding James Earl Carter IV; and son Chip (Corbis via Getty Images)“I depend on him when I have questions, when I'm writing speeches, anything, I consult with him,” she said.
She helped Carter recover several years later when he had hip replacement surgery at age 94 and had to learn to walk again. And she was with him earlier this year when he decided after a series of hospital stays that he would forgo further medical interventions and begin end-of-life care.
After the 2015 diagnosis, the former president called his wife the accomplishment of which he was most proud. The Democrat said it was the "pinnacle" of his life.
The Carters had 11 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Rosalynn Carter was the second longest-lived of the nation's first ladies, trailing only Bess Truman, who died at age 97.
Tributes
Tributes have been paid to the former First Lady since news of her death emerged. Former President George W. Bush called Carter a woman of dignity and strength. “
There was no greater advocate of President Carter, and their partnership set a wonderful example of loyalty and fidelity. She leaves behind an important legacy in her work to destigmatize mental health. We join our fellow citizens in sending our condolences to President Carter and their family,” Bush said in a statement with former First Lady Laura Bush.
Former First Lady Melania Trump said Carter leaves behind a meaningful legacy. “We will always remember her servant’s heart and devotion to her husband, family, and country. May she rest in peace,” Trump said on X, formerly Twitter.
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