Do Trump supporters want a third term? We asked CPAC attendees.
President Donald Trump and members of his inner-circles have talked about getting a third term.
President Donald Trump confirmed rumors he could seek an unconstitutional third presidential term, telling NBC News Sunday he was “not joking.”
“A lot of people want me to do it,” Trump said in a phone interview. “But, I mean, I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, it’s very early in the administration.”
Under the 22nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, presidents may only be elected to two terms.
Trump teased “methods” he could have to do it, but did not elaborate on any plans, saying he wanted to focus on his current presidency.
Only one other president in U.S. history has served more than two terms. Who was it?
FDR broke two-term tradition during WW2, 22nd Amendment followed
America’s first President George Washington voluntarily stepped down after two terms, creating an unofficial tradition for future presidents to follow suit.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first and only president to break that tradition. The country was still recovering from the Great Depression, and at the dawn of World War II, he was re-elected to his third term. After leading the country through the global war, he was elected again in 1944, but died the following year.
A movement in the House of Representatives to officially limit the presidency terms, now ratified as the 22nd Amendment, began two years after Roosevelt’s death.
Can Trump run for a third term?
Under the Constitution as it stands, no.
Changes to the Constitution are extremely difficult and rare, as it requires two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate. States can also spur an amendment, but it requires two-thirds of the state legislatures to call a constitutional convention and three-fourths to ratify it.
Trump confirmed one way he could serve another term is if Vice President JD Vance runs for office and then hands the role to Trump, NBC News reported.
“No matter how you look at it, you’ve got a long time to go,” he said to NBC. “We have a long time. We have almost four years to go and that’s a long time but despite that so many people are saying you’ve got to run again.”
Contributing: Riley Beggin
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected]. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.