Who Is Jimmy Carter's Only Daughter Amy?

President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalynn had four kids, and the three boys were all between the ages of 15 and 20 when baby sister Amy Lynn was born in Georgia (a state where her father would soon become governor). Not long after turning 9 in 1976, her father was elected president of the United States. She grew up to be an artist, an activist (with a couple of arrests to her name), and a follower of her parents' commitment to humanitarian causes. 

Her presence in the White House didn't go unnoticed, where she walked around with her Siamese cat Misty Malarky Ying Yang, roller-skated through the East Room, and had friends over for slumber parties in her treehouse on the South Lawn. She was one of the youngest kids living in 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue since JFK Jr., and at 9 years old, she was already making headlines as she read books during a state dinner for Canada's then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau. Yet her most memorable moment is likely when a reporter asked her if she had a message for the children of America, and her answer was concise, straightforward, and iconic: "No" (via HuffPost). 

The media always wanted more of Amy Carter, sometimes crossing the line given her age. She attended two public schools in Washington during her father's presidency, something uncommon for presidential children, and her first day of class was what CNN called a "media circus": Photographers crowded around her as she walked into campus. Not only that, but conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh once called her "the most unattractive presidential daughter in the history of the country (he said he later apologized to her for the comment). She was also portrayed weekly in "Saturday Night Live" by comedian Laraine Newman, though they were playful, tactful sketches instead of mean-spirited.

At 28, Amy Carter married computer consultant James Wentzel, a manager at Chapter 11 bookstore, where she worked part-time. When she met him, she was already engaged to a classmate of hers at Brown University, Michael Antonucci. But eventually, she broke it off to be with Wentzel.

Her artistic side was inevitably present in the wedding ceremony. As reported by People, she baked her own cake (a three-tiered one!) that had a "multicolored mosaic of edible icing and a kicked-back bride and groom lazing on the icing" and spoke her vows beneath a trellis crafted from her old swing set. It was a relatively small ceremony with only 140 guests in her native Georgia. Ruth Carter, the wife of the former president's cousin, called it "a very sweet, very simple affair." 

Contrary to tradition, she walked to the altar by herself, even though her father was in the ceremony. "Amy said she didn't belong to anyone," Jimmy Carter said proudly. Many consider it patriarchal for a man to "give a woman" to another man, an echo of transferring ownership to the groom and his family. Her feminism was also evidenced as she and the groom entered a car that had a pro-choice bumper sticker instead of tin cans and crepe paper.

The marriage, however, did not last forever. They called it quits in 2005 but are still connected through their son, Hugo James Wentzel. Two years later, she married John Joseph "Jay" Kelly, with whom she had another son, Errol Carter Kelly.

As she grew older, Amy Carter did not become someone who held back about her beliefs, even if she was constantly under scrutiny for being a former president's daughter. As a young adult, she was arrested three times for protesting. The first time she made headlines for an arrest was in 1985 at an anti-apartheid protest outside the South African Embassy in Washington D.C. The second incident was the following year, when she and 13 other students from Brown University were arrested for protesting racial segregation in South Africa as well, only this time it was specifically targeted at IBM for doing business in said country. 

The third and final arrest was just months later. In November, she and other activists, among them the famous Abbie Hoffman, were protesting CIA recruitment at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, given its involvement in criminal activity in Central America. In an interview, she shared some details. "There were, I would say, 60 or 80 cops in riot gear, billy clubs, mace, with four or five police dogs — it was really terrible," she said (via Yahoo!). "That was the final decision, of not wanting to leave those people there by themselves" After a mediatic trial, Amy and the other protestors were acquitted. 

But what did Jimmy Carter think about the ordeal? Regarding her first arrest, Amy told the Chicago Tribune that she had his permission to get apprehended, and the 39th president himself confirmed that he was proud of his daughter for protesting. The following year, she assured the Los Angeles Times that he likely didn't mind her arrests because he always encouraged her "to speak up for what I believe is right."

Even though Amy Carter has kept a low profile over the years, the day of her father's death, she left a heartfelt comment on a Substack post by human rights lawyer Qasim Rashid. The piece highlighted President Carter's support for Palestinian rights in his 2006 book, "Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid". The former Democratic congressional candidate praised his stance, which consists of a call for a two-state solution based on Israel's pre-1967 borders, with mutual respect for sovereignty and peaceful coexistence. The former president criticized the ongoing occupation of Palestinian territories and urged Israel to halt settlement expansions. 

"I am Amy Carter and I subscribe to your Substack," her comment read. "This article is the first media I have read since Dad died. After a flurry of activity and a crowd of people, I'm in my parent's house alone for what feels like the first time and the notification from Substack appeared on my phone. There is no better way to remember him and I appreciate that you and your readers are keeping this important part of his legacy alive. Thank you."

Rashid shared a screenshot of the comment on his Bluesky profile, saying he was "floored" to receive her message. Other Substack users replied to Amy's comment with their condolences and admiration for her father, some saying he was the best president of their lifetime, and some, the best president to date. "President Carter, along with Mrs. Carter, embodied all the attributes a president should have," one of the replies with the most likes read. "I'm so proud to have voted for him twice. I don't know of any other president who has done more for humanity since leaving office than Jimmy Carter."

Amy Carter's passion for activism shouldn't be surprising for followers of her family. Her father used to share with the public how he had morally and politically charged conversations with her when she was still a child. "I had a discussion with my daughter, Amy, the other day before I came here, to ask her what the most important issue was." President Carter said at his 1980 debate with Ronald Raegan when Amy was only 13 (via HuffPost). "She said the control of nuclear arms."

The presidential family also made controversial headlines as Amy's nanny was an African American woman wrongly convicted of murder, more proof of how the Carters set the example to their kids of doing what they believe is right before the public opinion. And despite President Carter's fortune for having been head of state, such as former presidents' annual pensions, she worked since she was young. At only 14, for example, she worked as a Senate page for $176 a week, running errands for senators, always accompanied by the Secret Service, a requirement by law for all under-16 children of former presidents. 

However, Amy Carter didn't end up choosing a political career. Actually, her fervent activism became a liability in college. According to The New York Times, she was dismissed from Brown University after her sophomore year due to her political activism impacting her coursework. She then switched to the Memphis College of Art where she got a bachelor of fine arts. Later, she pursued a master's in art history from Tulane University. In her late 20s, she and her father mixed her artistic skills with his writing prowess when she illustrated his children's book, "The Little Baby Snoogle-Fleejer."

Just as she remembered her father and his legacy wholeheartedly, Amy Carter was emotionally vulnerable in public at the memorial service of her mother in 2023. Rosalynn Carter, the former first lady, died at 96, and Amy read out loud a letter her father wrote to his wife when they were in their 20s and he was serving in the Navy, something the 39th President couldn't do himself given his frail condition at the time. "I chose something that is hard to read without crying," she started, per Today. "My mom spent most of her life in love with my dad. Their partnership and love story was a defining feature of her life."

"My darling, every time I have ever been away from you, I have been thrilled when I returned to discover just how wonderful you are," the letter read in part. "While I am away, I try to convince myself that you really are not, could not be as sweet and beautiful as I remember. But when I see you, I fall in love with you all over again. Does that seem strange to you? It doesn't to me. Goodbye, darling. Until tomorrow. Jimmy."

A little over a year later, Jimmy Carter died from natural causes at 100, leaving behind thousands of mourning Americans. "Your parents stand out as jewels in the crown of American history," a Substacker wrote in response to Amy's comment mentioned above. Another praised The Carter Center and Rosalynn's mental health activism. Amy used to be a member of the board of counselors of said center, which advocates for human rights and diplomacy.