Third time lucky? Now, US President Donald Trump explores ways for a third term!
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Just 71 days after his inauguration for a second term on January 20, US President Donald Trump said on Sunday he is ‘not joking’ about seeking a third term, indicating that he may be exploring ways to challenge the constitutional limit of two-terms.
According to the media reports, he has repeatedly expressed his desire to serve more than two terms as US President after his second term ends in early 2029, despite the constitutional limits. On Sunday, he reiterated his aspiration, saying he is exploring “ways” to make it possible.
“I am not joking about trying to serve a third term. There are methods which you could do it,” he said, NBC News reported.
It may, however, be quite a longer shot for him than he believes.
The 22nd Amendment to the US Constitution, ratified in 1951, explicitly limits a President to two terms in office. Section 1 of the 22nd Amendment states, “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once.”
The exception to this rule could be a person who served less than two years of a term to which someone else was elected (for example, a Vice President who became President due to death or resignation) may run for two full terms. So technically, someone could serve up to 10 years.
This amendment was added to the Constitution in 1951 after Franklin D Roosevelt was elected to four terms (1933–1945), breaking the precedent set by George Washington, who voluntarily stepped down after two terms. Roosevelt’s extended terms were exceptions because of the ongoing Second World War (1939-45).
Another scenario under which a President can run and serve for more than two terms is if the 22nd Amendment were repealed by another constitutional amendment. This, however, would require a two-thirds vote in both houses of the US Congress and ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures.
When a reporter asked Trump whether he might explore running for a third term by having Vice President JD Vance run first and then pass the baton on to him?
“Well, that’s one, but there are others too,” Trump responded, according to the Associated Press. However, he refused to explain the other ways that might let him run for a third term.
“I don’t want to talk about a third term now because no matter how you look at it, we’ve got a long time to go,” Trump said. “I have had more people ask me to have a third term, which in a way would be a fourth term because the other election, in 2020, was totally rigged.”
Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th President of the United States on January 20, 2025, for a second term. Earlier, served as the 45th President from 2017 to 2021 before being succeeded by Democrat Joe Biden.
