PHOTOS: Former President Joe Biden visits Columbia to be honored by the state Democratic Party

On Feb. 27, 2026, former President Joe Biden visited Columbia and attended an event alongside U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina. The event was to commemorate Biden’s win in the primary in this state six years ago, which was widely seen as giving his campaign the momentum to win Super Tuesday three days later and eventually the nomination. Biden’s diverse body of support was cited as the reason that he won the state, where the democratic electorate is nearly 60% Black.

Former President Joe Biden touts the recent successes of his party at an event held in his honor at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, on Feb. 27, 2026. The Democratic Party has been successful in many off-year elections since President Donald Trump’s return to office.

Former President Joe Biden and U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn both listen to South Carolina Democratic Party Chair Christale Spain speak at an event honoring former President Biden at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, on Feb. 27, 2026. Spain is the first black woman to hold her position, and she oversaw the 2024 Democratic Primary in South Carolina.

U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn speaks at an event honoring former President Joe Biden at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Clyburn represents South Carolina’s sixth district, which includes much of Columbia and the Charleston area.

Former President Joe Biden holds U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn after they embraced at an event honoring the former president at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Biden and Clyburn have long been political allies and friends, and Clyburn’s endorsement of Biden in the 2020 primary is often cited as a reason he won the state.

U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn speaks at an event honoring former President Joe Biden at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, on Feb. 27, 2026. Clyburn, who is 85 years old, is expected to run for an 18th term in Congress this year.

Former President Joe Biden criticizes his predecessor and successor President Donald Trump at an event held in his honor at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. After Biden withdrew from his re-election campaign in 2024, Trump beat Biden’s Vice President Kamala Harris in the general election to become the second president to serve non-consecutive terms.

Former Democratic Party Chair Jaime Harrison urges audience members to run for political office at an event honoring former President Joe Biden at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Harrison was nominated by then-President Biden to be the party chair in 2021 and served four years.

Former President Joe Biden at an event held in his honor at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Biden, who is currently 83 years old, faced numerous health concerns during his presidency and failed re-election campaign, and he was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year, just months after he left office.

Former President Joe Biden listens to praise by Adair Ford Boroughs, former U.S. attorney for the district of South Carolina, at an event held in his honor at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Boroughs was appointed by the president in 2022 and resigned after Donald Trump was made president in 2025, and he now teaches at USC’s Joseph F. Rice School of Law.

Fran Person, who served as the personal aide to Joe Biden when he was a senator and vice president, looks at the former president at an event held in his honor at the Columbia Museum of Art at 1515 Main St., Columbia, South Carolina, Feb. 27, 2026. Person is a former Gamecock offensive guard and left his position in the White House in 2014 to work at USC.