Why did Jill Biden and first husband divorce?
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Executive summary
Jill Biden divorced her first husband, Bill (sometimes “Bill” or “Bill Stevenson”) Stevenson, in 1975 after a marriage that began when she was very young; she has said the breakup left her financially vulnerable and taught her a lesson about independence [1] [2]. Stevenson has publicly claimed the split was contentious and later alleged an affair with Joe Biden before the divorce—claims Jill Biden and many profiles deny or dispute; reporting notes Stevenson’s later legal troubles and political motives that complicate his account [3] [4].
1. The basic timeline: a young marriage that ended in the mid‑1970s
Jill Tracy Jacobs married Bill Stevenson around 1970 and their marriage ended in divorce issued in May 1975 after about four or five years together; she separated from Stevenson in 1974 according to contemporaneous reporting and later interviews [5] [3] [6].
2. Jill Biden’s account: divorce as a painful financial and personal turning point
Jill Biden has said the divorce left her “divorced, single, heartbroken, and in financial trouble,” with no job and “barely had a dime to her name,” and that the experience taught her to insist on financial independence for herself and to teach that lesson to her daughter Ashley [2] [1]. Profiles cite those statements to explain how the breakup shaped her later choices and outlook [2].
3. The ex‑husband’s version: claims of betrayal and later allegations
Bill Stevenson has publicly told a different, sharper story—saying he felt betrayed, alleging Joe Biden was involved with Jill before the divorce, and promising material for a memoir; he described the divorce as contentious, including disputes about a business (The Stone Balloon) and property, and later blamed politics for his own legal and financial problems [3] [4] [6].
4. How journalists and outlets handle conflicting claims
Mainstream profiles and outlets report both Jill’s description of personal hardship and Stevenson’s accusations, while noting Stevenson’s later convictions for passing bad checks and federal fraud charges—facts sources use to contextualize or question his motives [3] [4]. Some outlets report Stevenson’s claims in full; others emphasize Jill’s public statements and denyatory responses [3].
5. What sources agree on, and what they don’t
Available reporting consistently records the marriage, separation in 1974, and divorce in 1975, and that Jill Biden later married Joe Biden in 1977 [5] [3]. Sources agree the divorce put Jill in difficult financial straits and shaped her emphasis on independence [1] [2]. Sources disagree on whether an affair with Joe Biden preceded the split—Stevenson alleges it did, Jill Biden and mainstream retellings either deny it or do not corroborate that timeline [3] [4].
6. Motives and credibility: evaluating competing narratives
Reporting highlights factors that should inform readers’ judgments: Stevenson has sought publicity and has at times described plans to publish books about the period [4]; he has legal troubles that outlets note [3]. Jill Biden’s narrative comes from interviews and profiles emphasizing personal hardship and later life choices [1] [2]. Journalists flag both the substance of Stevenson’s claims and elements that could affect his credibility [3].
7. What this episode meant politically and personally
Profiles frame the divorce as formative for Jill Biden—both a source of stigma in the era and a motivation to teach independence to her children—rather than primarily a political story; yet in campaign seasons Stevenson’s accusations resurfaced and attracted attention because of the Bidens’ public roles [2] [6].
8. Limitations of the record and unanswered questions
Available sources do not provide court filings or contemporaneous documentation that fully detail the legal grounds for the divorce, nor do they corroborate the timing or nature of any alleged affair beyond Stevenson’s claims and denials noted in interviews [3] [4]. Readers should treat the competing accounts accordingly: the divorce and its financial aftermath are well documented in Jill Biden’s public statements and profiles [1] [2]; allegations of an affair rest chiefly on Stevenson’s later assertions and are contested in reporting [3].
Summary judgment: The factual core is simple and consistent—Jill Biden divorced her first husband in the mid‑1970s and says the experience left her financially exposed and determined to be independent [1] [2]. Claims that an affair with Joe Biden caused the split come from Bill Stevenson and are disputed or uncorroborated in the reporting available here [3] [4].