PLAINS
\nJimmy Carter celebrated his 100th birthday on Tuesday \u2014 the first ever US president to reach the century mark and another extraordinary milestone for the one-time peanut farmer who found his way to the White House.
\nCarter\u2019s longevity \u2014 he began hospice care at his home in Plains, Georgia, more than 19 months ago \u2014 has defied all expectations.
\nNo longer regularly appearing in public, the Democratic ex-president will spend his birthday in the home he and his late wife Rosalynn had built in Plains in the 1960s.
\nIt will include a lunch with some 20 members of his extended family, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
\nPresident Joe Biden, in a video posted on his official X account, hailed Carter as a \u201cbeloved friend\u201d and \u201cone of the most influential statesmen\u201d in US history.
\n\u201cYour hopeful vision of our country, your commitment to a better world and your unwavering belief in the power of human goodness continues to be a guiding light for all of us,\u201d he said.
\nFirst Lady Jill Biden\u2019s office said a display would be set up on the White House lawn with the message \u201cHappy Birthday President Carter.\u201d
\nBeyond serving as president for a single term from 1977 to 1981, Carter worked as a global mediator, rights activist and elder statesman, founding the well-respected Carter Center in 1982 to pursue his vision of world diplomacy.
\nHis presidency included the 1978 Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt, establishment of diplomatic relations with China following a rapprochement initiated by president Richard Nixon, and return of control of the Panama Canal to Panama.
\nBut his administration hit numerous snags, including the Iran hostage crisis and a renewed oil crisis in 1979-1980, which saw Ronald Regan sweep into power in a landslide.
\n\u201cWe are thrilled that the president from this little town is going to be the only president to ever live to be 100 years old,\u201d Jill Stuckey, superintendent of the National Park Service\u2019s Jimmy Carter historical site and longtime family friend, told AFP.
\nShe spoke from Plains High School, where Carter graduated in 1941 and which now serves as the visitor center for the national park that features sites from his early life, including the nearby peanut farm where he grew up.
\nOn Tuesday, the school will hold an evening concert and also a naturalization ceremony for 100 new US citizens.
\nA devout Baptist and self-described \u201cborn-again\u201d Christian, Carter is remembered for a moralistic streak, but also his civility, admired even by detractors across the aisle.
\n\u201cHealthy habits and his faith are a lot of the reasons why he is still with it today,\u201d Stuckey said, referencing Carter\u2019s penchant for fresh food and exercise.
\nAccording to family, Carter remains keenly interested in politics and was highly motivated to make it to 100 and to vote in the November election for fellow Democrat Kamala Harris.
\n\u201cHe will be voting by mail-in ballot,\u201d Stuckey told AFP, adding \u201che\u2019s always been very politically active, and nothing has changed with that respect.\u201d
\nIn Plains, like in many rural places with strong evangelical Christian leanings, far more yard signs support Republican Donald Trump than Harris.
\nBut it is also not uncommon to see a sign celebrating Carter\u2019s centennial birthday next to one supporting Trump.
\nCarl Lowell, who has lived in Plains since infancy, said he tries not to get involved in politics because it is \u201cso divisive\u201d right now.
\nLike most residents of Plains, the 59-year-old retired firefighter is linked to Carter in various ways \u2014 he says his grandfather helped build the Carters\u2019 house and that he himself even went dove hunting with him once.
\n\u201cJimmy\u2019s a good man, he\u2019s a godly man, and that\u2019s what people like about him,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
PLAINS Jimmy Carter celebrated his 100th birthday on Tuesday \u2014 the first ever US president to reach the century mark and another extraordinary milestone for the one-time peanut farmer who found his way to the White House. Carter\u2019s longevity \u2014 he began hospice care at his home in Plains, Georgia, more than 19 months ago […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":434752,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-434726","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n