Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president, has died at the age of 96.
The Carter Center said she died Sunday after living with dementia and suffering many months of declining health. The statement announcing her death said she “died peacefully, with family by her side” at 2:10 p.m. at her home in the rural south Georgia community of Plains.
“Rosalynn was my equal partner in everything I ever accomplished,” Carter said in the statement. “She 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.”
The Carters were married for more than 77 years, forging what they both described as a “full partnership.” Unlike many previous first ladies, Rosalynn sat in on Cabinet meetings, spoke out on controversial issues and represented her husband on foreign trips. Aides to President Carter sometimes referred to her — privately — as “co-president.”
FILE – Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter pose for a photo during their wedding July 7, 1946, in Plains, Georgia. Jimmy and Rosalynn are celebrating their 77th wedding anniversary, Friday, July 7, 2023. (The Jimmy Carter Presidential Library and Museum, Carter Family Collection via AP, File) FILE – In this Sept. 15, 1966, file photo, then Georgia State Sen. Jimmy Carter hugs his wife, Rosalynn, at his Atlanta campaign headquarters. Jimmy and Rosalynn are celebrating their 77th wedding anniversary, Friday, July 7, 2023. (AP Photo/File) FILE – Georgia Gov.-elect Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, celebrate his election win, Nov. 3, 1970, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Billy Downs/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File) FILE – In this July 10, 1976, file photo Jimmy Carter, his wife Rosalynn and daughter Amy, lower left, respond to a huge crowd that welcomed them to New York. (AP Photo, File) FILE – Jimmy Carter gives a victory sign as his wife, Rosalynn Carter, holds a newspaper after winning the Wisconsin’s Democratic presidential primary, April 7, 1976, Milwaukee. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/Paul Shane, File) FILE – Jimmy Carter, second from left, receives a hug from his wife, Rosalynn Carter, after the third presidential debate ended, Oct. 22, 1976, in Williamsburg, Va. First lady Betty Ford, center, and moderator Barbara Walters, right, can be seen in the background. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo, File) FILE – Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, wave together at the National Convention in Madison Square Garden, July 15, 1976, in New York. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo, File) FILE – President Jimmy Carter, right; his wife Rosalynn Carter, left; and their daughter Amy, center, during a reception for the Democratic National Committee at the White House in Washington, Jan. 21, 1977. Former first lady Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. (AP Photo/Peter Bregg, File) FILE – This photo provided by the White House is the official portrait of first lady Rosalynn Carter in the Vermeil Room of the White House, Feb. 18, 1977. Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (The White House via AP, File) FILE – In this Dec. 13, 1978, file photo, President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn lead their guests in dancing at the annual Congressional Christmas Ball at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/Ira Schwarz, File) FILE – Four-year-old Prem, whose name means “Love” in Hindi, applies a spot of dry colored powder to the forehead of first lady Rosalynn Carter, left, at a boarding school in New Delhi, Jan. 2, 1978. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/CHW, File) FILE – Former President Jimmy Carter twirls his wife, first lady Rosalynn Carter, to the music of a country band at a rally in their honor, Jan. 20, 1981, in Plains. Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/Joe Holloway, Jr., File) Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn wave to the audience during the Democratic National Convention at the FleetCenter July 26, 2004 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) FILE – Former first lady Rosalynn Carter makes phone calls to voters at the campaign headquarters on behalf of her son, Jack Carter, a Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate, Oct. 3, 2006, in Las Vegas. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/Laura Rauch, File) Former US President Jimmy Carter accompanied with his wife Rosalynn arrives at Queen Alia International airport on April 20, 2008 in Amman, Jordan. (Photo by Jamal Nasrallah-pool/Getty Images) Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter (R) and former first lady Rosalynn Carter wave on stage during day one of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) at the Pepsi Center August 25, 2008 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images) In this photo provided by the Florida Keys News Bureau, Rosalynn Carter, right, wife of former President Jimmy Carter, center, greets Nemo the dolphin at Hawk’s Cay Resort near Marathon, Fla., Dec. 29, 2010, in the Florida Keys. (Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau via AP) FILE Rosalynn Carter, left, and her husband former President Jimmy Carter update donors about current activities of the Carter Center in Atlanta, April 23, 2010. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, has died at the age of 96. The Carter Center said she died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/John Amis, File) First lady Michelle Obama, left, stands with, from second from left, former first ladies: Laura Bush; Hillary Rodham Clinton; Barbara Bush; and Rosalynn Carter; at the dedication of the George W. Bush presidential library on the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Thursday, April 25, 2013. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) Former President Jimmy Carter, left, sits with his wife Rosalynn as they wait to pose for photos after Carter taught Sunday School class at Maranatha Baptist Church in his hometown, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2015, in Plains, Ga. More than 700 people heard Carter deliver a familiar message this weekend: When your burden grows heavy, ask God for strength. (AP Photo/David Goldman) FILE – Former President Jimmy Carter, right, and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, arrive for a ribbon cutting ceremony for a solar panel project on farmland he owns in their hometown of Plains, Ga., Feb. 8, 2017. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File) FILE – Former President Jimmy Carter, left, and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, right, sit together ahead of an NFL football game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Cincinnati Bengals, Sept. 30, 2018, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/John Amis, File) FILE – Former first lady Rosalynn Carter speaks next to her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, during the opening ceremony for the Jimmy & Rosalynn Carter Work Project, Aug. 26, 2018, inside the University of Notre Dame’s Purcell Pavilion in South Bend, Ind. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Robert Franklin/South Bend Tribune via AP, File) FILE – Former President Jimmy Carter, right, holds hands with his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, as they work with other volunteers on site, Aug. 27, 2018, in Mishawaka, Ind. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (Robert Franklin/South Bend Tribune via AP, File) FILE – Former first lady Rosalynn Carter arrives with her husband, former President Jimmy Carter, left, for an annual Carter Town Hall held at Emory University, Sept. 18, 2019, in Atlanta. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/John Amis, File) FILE – Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his wife, former first lady Rosalynn Carter, sit together during a reception to celebrate their 75th wedding anniversary, July 10, 2021, in Plains, Ga. Rosalynn Carter, the closest adviser to Jimmy Carter during his one term as U.S. president and their four decades thereafter as global humanitarians, died Sunday, Nov. 19, 2023. She was 96. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, Pool, File)
