A Blast from the Past: Gerontocracy and US Presidents

Emma Burgess

‘Welcome to the race Sleepy Joe’ – a direct quotation from United States President Donald Trump’s 2019 tweet about his opponent, Joe Biden, when he announced his presidential candidacy. ‘But if you make it, I will see you at the Starting Gate!’. From the introduction of Biden’s campaign, the former US President, serving from 2021 to 2025, has been the subject of criticism due to his age. Joe Biden became the 46^th President of America at 78 years old, and was the first President to turn 80 years old while in office. Whilst Trump’s nickname for his rival, ‘Sleepy Joe’, stuck throughout the entirety of Biden’s Presidential career, there have nonetheless been legitimate concerns about Biden’s age, and the implications for his capability to lead the country through a period in which the United States experienced some of the most extreme economic, social and political instability in decades.

Biden’s age sparked a global debate on the extent to which age should be considered as a barrier to presidency

During Biden’s first campaign against Trump, Biden acknowledged that concerns about his age were a ‘legitimate question to ask’ in an interview on the US daytime show “The View”. However, he emphasised that ‘with age has come wisdom and experience’. Biden’s age sparked a global debate on the extent to which age should be considered as a barrier to presidency, or indeed any leadership role within the corporate sphere. Jeffrey A. Engel, director of the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, argues that Biden leveraged his age in his campaign by highlighting his maturity as a key strength. Engel notes one of Biden’s key political messages was ‘I am an adult, and I will bring back normalcy’. With the United States still reeling from the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020, mass disruption to everyday life meant that citizens were looking for a rational, level-headed leader who had experienced many crises, and could navigate the country towards the stability US citizens yearned for.

Biden’s argument proved successful in his first campaign. However, he continued to be plagued by accusations that his age and health were declining rapidly, making him unfit for the role, and eventually leading him to step down from his 2024 re-election campaign out of concerns that his age proved a distraction from the Democrats’ agenda. These claims were exacerbated by Biden mis-speaking during his televised debate against Donald Trump on the 27^th of June 2024, leading many to argue he was incapable of leading the Democrats to success. But can a President be too old to lead?

Age: just a number?

Historically, both Joe Biden and Donald Trump are the oldest to ever seek election to the office of US President. At 77 years old in his 2024 campaign, Trump was not far behind his rival Biden’s age at the time of his first election. By the end of Trump’s second term, he will be 82 years old. Considering this information, Trump’s scrutinization of Biden’s age appears hypocritical. Will this approach backfire on him in the years to come?

The increasing age of US presidents is closely tied to the ageing population

Before Biden, President Ronald Reagan was the oldest President, age 69 in 1981 when he was inaugurated. Reagan also famously utilised the advantages of his age over his political opponents, arguing he was going to ‘exploit for political purposes my opponent’s youth and inexperience’. The increasing age of US presidents is closely tied to the ageing population, a demographic trend in which the average age of the population is increasing. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 1 in 6 people in the world will be aged 60 years or over by 2030. This trend also has implications for the average age of retirement. Denmark recently pushed its retirement age to 70. Suggestions of raising the retirement age in the US continue to come up. Retirement within Capitalist societies is often associated with stigma surrounding becoming a burden to society due to your dependency on the State, as well as a loss of personal and social identity; some even equate retirement to death.

For political leaders like Donald Trump, personal ego and identity likely drive the desire to keep working, even when classed by society as elderly. Passing on the level of influence and status that comes with the title of US President is no easy feat, so it’s no wonder some of the most ambitious political figures in the world shy away from the suggestion.

Decline in cognitive performance is a concern for many voters.

But there are many valid concerns about gerontocracy in the US. Gerontocracies are typically not representative of the general population, leading some members of society to feel dismissed. Furthermore, decline in cognitive performance is a concern for many voters. Whilst neuroscientists report that cognitive performance varies widely as people grow older, executive function declines gradually during a person’s 30s, and accelerates as an individual enters the 70s. A significant proportion of people over 65 have some impairment in executive function. On the other hand, some individuals, known as “super agers”, retain the cognitive functions of younger people. Physical activity, mental stimulation and social connection have been demonstrated as important in preserving brain tissue and brain function. Political leadership checks these boxes due to the mental challenge and large social network, as well as access to excellent healthcare.

So, how exactly how old is too old? Some have called for the US to impose age limits for federal elected office, or a mandatory retirement age. According to a September 2023 poll, huge majorities of Americans support competency testing for those running for federal positions.

The debate continues, but as John. F Kennedy, the second-youngest US President, said in his 1961 inaugural address, ‘the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans’ – perhaps it’s time to move forward with this same vision.

Emma Burgess