After four years in the Oval Office, Joe Biden is saying goodbye to his role as the president of the United States.
During his presidency, which followed a lengthy career as a senator and vice president, he touted milestone legislative achievements such as the Inflation Reduction Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal, and CHIPS and Science Act, while battling the headwinds of an increasingly divided country and Congress.
Presidents’ actions typically unfold on the global stage, though some moments remain less documented. Below, PEOPLE shares 19 never-before-seen snapshots from Biden’s White House photographers as he and Vice President Kamala Harris prepare to pass the baton.
Appointing Ketanji Brown Jackson
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
On Feb. 14, 2022, President Joe Biden, accompanied by White House counsel Dana Remus, met with Ketanji Brown Jackson, a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, in the White House Treaty Room to discuss her potential nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court.
President Biden secured confirmation of 235 federal judges — the most in a single presidential term since the 1980s — and appointed Jackson to become the first Black woman to sit on the Supreme Court.
Congratulating the First Lady
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden greeted first lady Dr. Jill Biden with a bouquet of flowers at the South Portico of the White House on Dec. 12, 2024, celebrating her final day of teaching at NOVA Community College.
Dr. Biden is the only first lady in history who maintained a salaried job outside of the White House during her tenure.
A Cinco de Mayo Lunch Stop
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
On May 5, 2023, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris grabbed lunch from Taqueria Habanero in Washington, D.C., to celebrate Cinco de Mayo.
Surprising a School Teacher
Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith
President Joe Biden surprised Kelly Beckford, a Rhode Island school teacher, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Oct. 4, 2024, informing her that more than $46,000 of her student loans would be forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
Through the program, the Biden administration says it provided student loan forgiveness to five million people.
A Long-Awaited Prisoner Swap
Official White House Photo by Oliver Contreras
On Aug. 1, 2024, at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, along with their families, following the detainees’ release as part of a prisoner swap with Russia.
“Tonight is about reuniting families. Welcome home, Paul, Evan, and Alsu. You’re right where you belong,” Biden wrote on Instagram.
Meeting a Medicare Recipient
Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith
President Joe Biden recorded a digital video with Medicare recipient Judy Aiken outside the Oval Office on Aug. 12, 2024.
“The Inflation Reduction Act is now law. Giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower prescription drug prices. Ensuring wealthy corporations pay their fair share in taxes,” Biden wrote on X.
Walking a Picket Line
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden addressed United Auto Workers members and became the first sitting president to join a picket line at the General Motors Willow Run Distribution Center in Belleville, Mich., on Sept. 26, 2023.
“You deserve a significant raise,” he said through a bullhorn.
Shopping Local
Official White House Photo by Erin Scott
President Joe Biden visited Murray’s Toggery Shop and other local businesses in Nantucket, Mass., on Nov. 25, 2023. Biden’s American Rescue Plan facilitated 20 million new small business applications during his term.
Partnering with the Next Generation
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez film a video message ahead of an Earth Day event at Prince William Forest Park in Triangle, Va., on April 22, 2024.
Celebrating the CHIPS and Science Act
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden spoke to a group of workers at the Intel Ocotillo Campus in Chandler, Ariz., following his remarks announcing CHIPS and Science Act grants to Intel to expand U.S. semiconductor production on March 20, 2024.
Navigating the COVID-19 Pandemic
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden spoke with veterans and VA staff members during a briefing on the vaccine process at the Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center on March 8, 2021. Biden’s American Rescue Plan included funding for COVID-19 testing and vaccine distribution.
Honoring Gabby Giffords
Official White House Photo by Katie Ricks
President Joe Biden awarded the Medal of Freedom to former Arizona Rep. Gabby Giffords in the East Room of the White House on July 7, 2022, in recognition of her political career and her founding of Giffords, a non-profit focused on gun violence prevention.
New Baltimore Infrastructure
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
On Jan. 30, 2023, President Joe Biden delivered remarks at the Falls Road Amtrak maintenance building in Baltimore, Md., discussing funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to replace the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel.
A Situation Room Briefing
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
On Oct. 1, 2024, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were briefed on a potential attack on Israel by Iran in the White House Situation Room, which was remodeled during their term in office.
Cancer Moonshot
Official White House Photo by Erin Scott
On Oct. 7, 2022, first lady Jill Biden visited the U.C. San Francisco Bakar Precision Cancer Medicine Building in San Francisco.
The Biden-Harris administration’s Cancer Moonshot initiative was a renewed effort to reduce deaths from cancer by 50% in the next 25 years and to improve the lives of people and families dealing with a cancer diagnosis. President Biden’s son Beau Biden died from brain cancer in 2015.
New NATO Allies
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden, Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson walked along the West Colonnade of the White House on May 19, 2022, to deliver remarks in the Rose Garden.
During his time in office, Biden pushed for Finland and Sweden to join NATO.
America’s National Parks
Official White House Photo by Cameron Smith
On July 2, 2021, the first-ever second gentleman, Doug Emhoff, visited Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah.
The Ukraine Partnership
Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz
President Joe Biden viewed the Walk of the Brave with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Feb. 20, 2023, at the Mariinskyi Palace in Kyiv, Ukraine.
“I am in Kyiv today to meet with President Zelenskyy and reaffirm our unwavering and unflagging commitment to Ukraine’s democracy, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Biden wrote in a statement during his trip.
Accepting the Election Results
Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson
Vice President Kamala Harris arrived at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2025, to certify her own defeat in the 2024 presidential election.
“The votes for president of the United States are as follows,” she declared on the four-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. “Donald J. Trump of the state of Florida has received 312 votes. Kamala D. Harris of the state of California has received 226 votes.”
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