III served as the 47th vice president of the United States under Barack Obama from 2009 to 2017. He was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to parents Joe Sr. and Pauline Rosemary Hunter. His father died when he was ten months old, and his mother raised him and his siblings in working class Scranton. After graduating from high school, he attended Syracuse University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science. He later graduated from law school at Syracuse University College of Law. In 1972, he married Neilia Hunter. They had three children together: Naomi, Finnegan, and Robert.

The Biden family moved to Wilmington, Delaware, in 1973. There, Biden worked as a lawyer and taught at the University of Delaware School of Law. During this time, Biden became active in politics, serving as chairman of the Democratic Party in Delaware. In 1975, he ran unsuccessfully for Congress against incumbent Republican Pete du Pont. In 1977, he won election to the Senate, defeating Republican Thomas R. Carper. In 1980, Biden sought the presidential nomination of the Democratic Party; however, he lost out to Jimmy Carter.

In 1987, Biden returned to the Senate, winning reelection

Joe Biden’s Family

At age 29, Vice President Joe Biden became one of the younger members of Congress. Just weeks after his Senate victory, tragedy struck the Biden household when his wife Neilia died along with their daughter Naomi in a tragic automobile accident. His son Beau was gravely wounded in the same crash, and his older brother Hunter survived unscathed.

The vice president remained in Delaware while his family recovered. When he returned home to attend the funeral, he found himself in a difficult position. As a member of the Senate, he had to commute daily from Wilmington to Washington, D.C., to work in the Capitol building. While he could take the train, it meant missing important events at home. So he chose to make the trip by car.

He continued making the journey each day, even during the summer months, when there was no school. And he did so for nearly three decades. In fact, Biden traveled by car longer than anyone else in the history of the Senate.

The 47th Vice President of the United States

Vice President Joe Biden continues to serve as one of America’s most trusted public servants. He served as Barack Obama’s running mate during the 2008 presidential election, where he became the youngest vice president ever elected. In 2012, Biden ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination for President, but went on to win reelection as Vice President in 2016.

During his tenure as Vice President, Biden has been instrumental in helping the President deliver major policy achievements, including the Recovery Act, Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform Law, Obamacare, and the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act.

He has also played a key role in addressing some of the greatest challenges facing our country today, including the opioid epidemic, climate change, and violence against women.

Early life (1942–1965)

Joseph Robinette “Joe” Biden Jr. was born on November 20th, 1942, at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Schenectady, New York. His parents were Joe Sr., a lawyer, and Pauline Elizabeth Shields Biden, a homemaker. He has three siblings: Kathleen, Neil, and Robert.

The family moved to Wilmington, Delaware, in 1948, where Biden attended school at Frankford Elementary School and John F. Kennedy Junior High School. In 1950, the family relocated again, this time to suburban Washington, D.C., where Biden attended Cardozo Senior High School.

In 1952, Biden began attending Trinity College, majoring in economics and political science. During his junior year, Biden transferred to Syracuse University, from which he graduated cum laude in 1956. Biden earned a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University in 1961.

During college, Biden worked part-time jobs at the National Youth Administration office in Washington, DC, and the United States Information Agency office in London. He briefly considered becoming a priest, but ultimately decided against it. While studying at Syracuse, Biden met Jill Tracy Jacobs; they married in 1958.

After graduating from college, Biden served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Nigeria. Upon returning to the US, Biden enrolled in law school at Syracuse University. Biden received his Juris Doctor degree in 1962.

While working toward his law degree, Biden continued to work at the National Youth Administration in Washington, DC. After finishing law school, Biden returned to Delaware to practice law.

From 1964 to 1965, Biden served as chairman of the Democratic Party in the state of Delaware.

Marriages, law school, and early career (1966–1973)

In 1967, Biden graduated from law school at the age of 22.

During his undergraduate days at Syracuse University, Biden failed one of his courses because he copied a passage from a law journal article without attribution. His professor gave him an A+ for the assignment, but told him it was unacceptable to copy another person’s work without giving proper credit. Biden later admitted that he had committed a mistake during his first year of law school. After graduating from law school, Biden worked briefly for the firm of

He passed the bar exam and joined the firm of

After moving to Wilmington, Biden became active in politics and helped organize the Young Democrats of America. During this period, he met his future wife, Neilia Hunter, while campaigning for John F. Kennedy. They began dating and eventually got engaged.

While attending law school, Biden served as chairman of the Student Bar Association. He also participated in a number of plays and musical productions.

On June 3, 1968, Biden married Neilia in a ceremony performed by Father James J. Murray, S.J., president of Syracuse University.

Death of wife and daughter

In 1972, Joe Biden was driving home with his young children when tragedy struck. His wife, Neilia, and their baby girl, Naomi, were killed in a car accident that occurred just days before Christmas. Neilia’s death came shortly after she gave birth to her second child, Joseph Jr., and the loss devastated the vice president. “I think it changed my life,” Biden told CNN in 2012. “I mean, I don’t know what I’d do without having those kids.” He added, “They’re gone now. They’ve passed away. But you know, there are times when you look across the table at somebody else’s kid and you realize how precious life is and how short it is.”

Second marriage

Former Vice President Joe Biden credited his second wife, former schoolteacher Jill Tracy Jacobs, with renewing his interest in politics and helping him rekindle his love for life. He told ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos during an interview airing Sunday night that he had been “a little bored” since his son Beau died in May 2015. “I guess I’ve been looking for something,” Biden said. “Jill came along.”

Jacobs, 73, married Biden in 1976. She became pregnant with her first child while she was teaching in Philadelphia, where Biden was serving as Delaware attorney general. Their daughter, Naomi, was born in 1977. Two years later, Jacobs gave birth to another girl, Ashley, whom the couple adopted. In 1981, Biden divorced his first wife, Neilia Hunter Biden, and married Jacobs. They remained together until Biden’s death.

Teaching

Joe Biden Was His Side Gig While VP – He Took A Class On Constitutional Law At Widener University

From 1991 to 2008, as vice president, Joe Biden taught a course on constitutional law at Widner University School of Law. Now he’s running for President. But it turns out teaching wasn’t his side gig while VP — he really did take the course. In fact, he took it three times. And he didn’t just fly home from foreign trips to teach. He actually taught the course from abroad.

The Washington Post reported that Biden traveled to Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and China to lecture students about the Constitution. Biden told the newspaper he spent a lot of time traveling during his tenure as vice president — including some weekends when he couldn’t sleep because he was working on policy issues.

But the WaPo found that Biden taught the course three times. The first time was in 2007 when Biden returned from a trip to South Africa where he met with leaders there. He brought along a copy of the book he wrote about his father, called Promise Me Dad. When he got to Widener, Biden asked the school if he could teach one section of the course. They agreed.

In 2009, Biden went to Israel and again lectured on constitutional law. He gave the same lecture in 2011, when he visited India.

While Vice President, Biden taught the course three different times.