Jimmy Carter, 96, and wife Rosalynn, 93, won't attend Joe Biden's low-key inauguration - they first they have ever missed since 1977
Former President Jimmy Carter and former first lady Rosalynn Carter will not attend President-elect Joe Biden´s inauguration.
It marks the first time the couple, 96 and 93, will have missed the ceremonies since Carter was sworn in as the 39th president in 1977.
A spokeswoman at The Carter Center in Atlanta said the Carters have sent Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris their 'best wishes' and 'look forward to a successful administration.'
Biden was a young Delaware senator and Carter ally during the Georgian's term in the White House.
Last seen: The Carters were photographed visiting a friend in Georgia on December 31. The couple say they will not be at the Biden inauguration
His own moment of history: Jimmy Carter was sworn in by then chief justice Warren Burger on January 20 1977
Successor: Jimmy Carter was there as Ronald Reagan was sworn in on January 20, 1981, with vice president Walter Mondale at his side
Hail to the chief: The Carters are welcomed along with Walter Mondale (top right) at Bill Clinton's first inauguration in 1993
Veteran: Colin Powell, then secretary of state designate, shakes hands with Jimmy Carter at the first inauguration of George W. Bush on January 20, 2001
First couples together: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter stood beside Bill and Hillary Clinton at George W. Bush's second inauguration on January 20, 2005
Guests of honor: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter were welcomed at Barack Obama's first inauguration on January 20, 2009
The Carters have spent the coronavirus pandemic mostly at their home in Plains, Georgia, where both were raised and where they returned after leaving the White House in 1981.
Carter, a Democrat, became the longest-lived American president in March 2019, surpassing former President George H.W. Bush, who died the previous November. Carter survived a melanoma diagnosis that spread to his brain in 2015.
He has since had several falls and hip replacement surgery.
He no longer teaches Sunday School at Maranatha Baptist Church in Plains, as he had for decades, but still participates in church activities via video amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Carter was the first former president to confirm his plans to attend President Donald Trump's inauguration in 2017.
Public mourning: The Carters were seated on the left aisle side of the front row of National Cathedral for George H.W. Bush's funeral on December 5, 2018
The Carters were seated on the aisle, next to former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, and former President George W. Bush and Laura Bush.
The elder Bush was the lone former president at the time who did not attend Trump's inauguration.
The Carters did travel to Washington for the elder Bush's funeral.