On this day 47 years ago, Jimmy Carter became President of the United States

It’s been nearly five decades since former President Jimmy Carter won the 1976 election and became the 39th President of the United States.

The Democratic former Governor of Georgia beat out the incumbent President Gerald Ford by an electoral vote of 297 to 240.

In the popular vote, Carter narrowly edged out Ford by about 1.7 million votes, earning him the support of 50.1% of voters.

[PHOTOS: Jimmy Carter through the years]

Carter and his running mate, then-Senator Walter Mondale, won the electoral votes of most of the Southern U.S., including his home state of Georgia, where he took home more than 60% of the votes.

Ford never won a presidential race and had only been president for about two years at the time of the election. As vice president, he became president when former President Richard Nixon resigned in 1974.

Former President Carter, who is now 99, has spent the last 47 years as a diplomat, humanitarian, author and more.

MORE JIMMY CARTER:

• Photos: Jimmy Carter and his family

• Rosalynn Carter: Things to know about the former first lady

• Photos: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter through the years

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter got married in 1946, soon after graduating from high school. They had four children: Jack Carter, born in 1947; James Carter, born in 1950; Donnel Carter, born in 1952; and Amy Carter, born in 1967.

Earlier this year, the former president entered hospice care. Three months after the announcement, the Carter Center said Rosalynn Carter had been diagnosed with dementia.

His family has since said that “we’re in the final chapter.”

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