ohn Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also known as JFK, was the 35th president of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963. He was the youngest person elected president.[a] Kennedy served at the height of the Cold War, and the majority of his foreign policy concerned relations with the Soviet Union and Cuba. A Democrat, Kennedy represented Massachusetts in both houses of the United States Congress prior to his presidency. Kennedy's assassination on November 22, 1963, sent shockwaves throughout the world. The 46-year-old president was riding in a Lincoln convertible in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas, next to his wife, First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, when a bullet pierced Kennedy's back and exited his neck.