Did Jill Biden babysit for Joe Biden before they dated? Here’s the real story

Claim:

Jill Biden worked as the Biden family’s teenage babysitter before beginning her romantic relationship with then-Senator Joe Biden.

Rating:

A persistent social media rumor resurfaced, claiming that former U.S. First Lady Jill Biden initially met Joe Biden while working as a teenage babysitter for his children.

A widely shared post on X featured an image purportedly depicting a 30-year-old Joe Biden alongside a 15-year-old babysitter, claiming she became his second wife, Jill, three years later.

In reality, the assertion that Jill Biden was a minor acting as a babysitter when they met is entirely false. The two were introduced in 1975—following the tragic passing of Joe Biden’s first wife—at which point Jill was already in her twenties.

Similar fabricated claims have previously circulated and been debunked across various social media platforms over the years.

The Timeline of How the Bidens Met

Jill Biden was born on June 3, 1951, while Joe Biden was born on November 20, 1942, reflecting an age gap of nearly nine years. Because of this timeline, it would have been chronologically impossible for Joe to be in his thirties while Jill was still a teenager.

Official records from the White House indicate that the couple was introduced in 1975 and married two years later in 1977. During a 2016 interview, Jill noted that she was finishing her undergraduate degree as a college senior when they first crossed paths, placing her firmly in her twenties.

Historical newspaper archives from July 1977 explain that Joe’s brother, Frank Biden, coordinated a blind date for the pair. Jill later recounted in interviews that Joe spotted her photograph, expressed interest, and had his brother—who attended the same college—help facilitate the introduction by obtaining her phone number.

Photographs Tied to the Misinformation

The viral posts frequently rely on genuine, authentic photographs of the couple but accompany them with misleading captions regarding Jill’s age and the nature of their initial meeting.

Jill Biden herself has previously shared some of these historical images on social media, clarifying that they were captured in the mid-1970s when she was a college student in her twenties. Other family members, including Joe Biden’s granddaughter, have also shared these genuine photographs to highlight the longevity of the couple’s relationship, though bad actors have occasionally altered or miscaptioned the imagery to push false narratives.

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