Joe Biden's Journey
A look at U.S. Sen. Joseph Robinette Biden's life and career:
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Born in Scranton, Pa., the first of four children born to Joseph Robinette Biden Sr. and Catherine Eugenia "Jean" Finnegan.
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Moves to Claymont, Del.
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Attends Archmere Academy in Claymont, a Catholic prep school.
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Graduates from the University of Delaware with a
double major in history and political science, enrolls in Syracuse University law school.
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Marries Neilia Hunter while still in law school.
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After graduating from law school, begins work as a
trial attorney at a law firm in Wilmington, Del., and serves as a public defender.
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Birth of first child, Joseph R. "Beau" Biden III, now attorney general of Delaware.
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Birth of second child, Hunter.
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Elected to New Castle County Council.
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Birth of third child, Naomi Christina.
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Elected one of Delaware's U.S. senators, beating an incumbent Republican.
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Wife and three children are in an automobile
accident while Christmas shopping. Wife Neilia and daughter Naomi die. Sons Beau and Hunter are critically injured but fully recover.
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Sworn in to the U.S. Senate at the bedside of the
still-convalescing Beau and Hunter in Wilmington. At age 30, he isthe sixth-youngest senator in U.S. history.
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Becomes a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he later chairs.
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Marries Jill Tracy Jacobs, a schoolteacher.
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Becomes a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which he later chairs from 1987 to 1994.
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Wins re-election to U.S. Senate.
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Birth of daughter, Ashley.
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Re-elected to U.S. Senate.
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Announces candidacy for the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination.
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Undergoes successful surgery after two brain aneurysms are diagnosed.
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Re-elected to U.S. Senate.
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Re-elected to U.S. Senate.
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Re-elected to U.S. Senate. In his sixth consecutive term, Biden has served for the sixth-longest period among current senators.
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Announces his bid for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.
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Releases his memoir, "Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics."
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Drops out of presidential race after poor showing in the Iowa caucuses.
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Named Barack Obama's running mate.
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Obama and Biden are elected to the White House. The vice president-elect also wins a seventh term in the Senate, soundly defeating his Republican
challenger.
LINK: Election Day 2008
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Credits:
The Associated Press
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