Vice presidency of Joe Biden

Official portrait, 2013
Vice presidency of Joe Biden January 20, 2009 – January 20, 2017
President	Barack Obama
Cabinet	See list
Party	Democratic
Election	2008 2012
Seat	Number One Observatory Circle
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Seal of the Vice President
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This article is part of a series about Joe Biden
Personal Early life and career Eponyms Family Honors Presidential library Public image Age and health concerns SNL parodies The Onion parody Bibliography Post-presidency U.S. Senator from Delaware U.S. Senate career Judiciary Committee Bork hearings Thomas hearings 1994 Crime Bill Violence Against Women Act Foreign Relations Committee Elections 1972 1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 2008 47th Vice President of the United States Transition Tenure Obama administration first inauguration second inauguration Economic policy Great Recession response 2010 Tax Relief Act 2011 debt-ceiling crisis fiscal cliff Foreign policy Task forces Gun Violence Protect Students from Sexual Assault Vice presidential campaigns 2008 election selection convention debates 2012 election convention debates 46th President of the United States Presidency timeline Transition COVID-19 Advisory Board Inauguration Efforts to impeach inquiry Tenure First 100 days Executive actions proclamations Trips foreign '21 '22 '23 '24–'25 Geneva summit COVID-19 pandemic Afghanistan withdrawal Classified documents incident 2023 debt-ceiling crisis Policies COVID-19 WH Response Team Economy ARP IIJA IRA Electoral/ethics Environment Foreign policy AUKUS Camp David Principles IPEF War in Ukraine War in Israel Immigration border crisis Social issues guns cannabis marriage Appointments Cabinet Ambassadors Federal judges Jackson Supreme Court candidates Executive Office U.S. attorneys Presidential campaigns 1988 primaries 2008 primaries 2020 primaries election sexual assault allegation Ukraine conspiracy theory convention debates endorsements VP selection 2024 primaries debate endorsements opposition withdrawal
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Joe Biden served as the 47th vice president of the United States from January 20, 2009, to January 20, 2017, during the presidency of Barack Obama. Biden, a member of the Democratic Party who previously served as a U.S. senator representing Delaware from 1973 to 2009, was a candidate for the 2008 presidential nomination before his selection as Obama's running mate; taking office after their victory in the 2008 presidential election over Republican nominees, John McCain and Sarah Palin. Four years later, in the 2012 presidential election, they defeated Republican nominees Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan, to win re-election. Biden was the first Roman Catholic vice president in US history. He is seen as the second-most powerful vice president in U.S. history, after his predecessor Dick Cheney.

During Biden's first two years in office, the Democratic Party held their majorities in the House of Representatives under Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Senate under Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid during the 111th U.S. Congress. Biden was more influential than most vice presidents due to his long Senate career and relationships with both members of Congress and politicians abroad. His relationship with Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell was particularly important after the Republicans regained control of Congress in the 2010 and 2014 elections, and the two were instrumental in ending the 2011 and 2013 debt-ceiling crises.

Near the end of his tenure, Biden didn't run for president as the Democratic nominee in the 2016 presidential election and endorsed Hillary Clinton, who became the nominee and selected junior Virginia senator Tim Kaine as her running mate. They lost the 2016 election to the Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and his running mate, Indiana governor Mike Pence. As vice president in his capacity as the president of the Senate, Biden oversaw the certification of Trump and Pence as the winners of the election on January 6, 2017. Obama and Biden were succeeded in office by Trump and Pence on January 20, 2017. After his vice presidency, Biden would go on to become the second Catholic president following his victory in the 2020 presidential election. Biden and his running mate Kamala Harris defeated Republican incumbent president and vice president, Trump and Pence, making Biden the first president to serve with a woman vice president, Black American vice president, and Asian American vice president.