Term limits in the United States

Analogous measures exist at the city and county level across the U.S., though many details involving local governments in that country vary depending on the specific location.

An additional benefit of the cursus honorum or run of offices was to bring the "most experienced" politicians to the upper echelons of power-holding in the ancient republic.

The debates of that day reveal a desire to study and profit from the object lessons offered by ancient democracy.

"[5] On October 2, 1789, the Continental Congress appointed a committee of thirteen to examine forms of government for the impending union of the states.

Among the proposals was that from the state of Virginia, written by Thomas Jefferson, urging a limitation of tenure, "to prevent every danger which might arise to American freedom by continuing too long in office the members of the Continental Congress.

"[6] The committee made recommendations, which as regards congressional term limits were incorporated unchanged into the Articles of Confederation (1781–1789).

At the convention, some delegates spoke passionately against term limits such as Rufus King, who said "that he who has proved himself to be most fit for an Office, ought not to be excluded by the constitution from holding it.

Richard Henry Lee viewed the absence of legal limits to tenure, together with certain other features of the Constitution, as "most highly and dangerously oligarchic.

The historian Mercy Otis Warren warned that "there is no provision for a rotation, nor anything to prevent the perpetuity of office in the same hands for life; which by a little well-timed bribery, will probably be done.

[16] The two Roosevelts are the only presidents to run for a third term in a general election; Grant and Wilson aimed to do so but failed to gain their parties' nominations.

Franklin Roosevelt was re-elected in 1944 for a fourth term amidst the United States' engagement in World War II but died shortly afterwards in office.

The Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution was ratified in 1951, formally establishing in law the two-term limit—although it did not apply to the incumbent Harry S. Truman, Franklin Roosevelt's successor.

"Ideas are, in truth, forces," and rotation in office enjoyed such normative support, especially at the local level, that it altered political reality.

Only Jefferson Davis served as Confederate president, but he did not complete a full term in office before surrendering to the Union.

It took a generation or so before the direct primary system, civil service reforms, and the ethic of professionalism worked to eliminate rotation in office as a common political practice.

[18][19] Where rotation in the legislative branch has withstood court challenges, term limits continue to garner popular support.

The Constitution, Washington explained, retained sufficient checks against political corruption and stagnant leadership without a presidential term limits provision.

That innovation was endorsed by many American politicians after the Civil War, most notably by Rutherford B. Hayes in his inaugural address.

He was criticized for doing so, and attempted assassin John Schrank stated that his motivation for shooting Roosevelt was preventing a third term.

[30] Reformers during the early 1990s used the initiative and referendum to put congressional term limits on the ballot in 24 states.

In the 1994 U.S. elections, part of the "Contract With America" Republican platform included legislation for term limits in Congress.

[e] Defeated in Congress and overridden by the Supreme Court, the federal term limit movement was brought to a halt.

It is confirmed that in the following five states—and there may be others—state lawmakers approved resolutions asking Congress to propose a federal constitutional amendment to limit the number of terms which members of Congress may serve: Legal scholars have discussed whether or not to impose term limits on the Supreme Court of the United States.

[36][37] Steven G. Calabresi and James Lindgren, professors of law at Northwestern University, argued that because vacancies in the court are occurring with less frequency and justices served on average 26.1 years between 1971 and 2006, the "efficacy of the democratic check that the appointment process provides on the Court's membership" is reduced.

"[37] The idea was endorsed among Judges, as John Roberts supported term limits before he was appointed to the Supreme Court as chief justice.

[36][37] Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind Poll measured American voters' attitudes towards various proposed Supreme Court reforms, including implementing term limits.

The 2010 poll found that a majority of Americans were largely unaware of a proposal to impose a term limit of 18 years, as 82% reported they had heard little or nothing at all.

[44] The governors of the following states and territories are limited to two consecutive terms, but are eligible to run again after four years out of office: Alabama,[45] Alaska,[46] Arizona,[47] Colorado,[48] Florida,[49] Georgia,[50] Hawaii,[51] Kansas,[52] Kentucky,[53] Louisiana,[54] Maine,[55] Maryland,[56] Nebraska,[57] New Jersey,[58] New Mexico,[59] North Carolina,[60] Ohio,[61] Pennsylvania,[62] Rhode Island,[63] South Carolina,[64] South Dakota,[65] Tennessee,[66] West Virginia,[67] American Samoa,[68] Guam,[69] and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Finally, the governors of the following states and territory are limited to two terms during their respective lifetime: Arkansas,[75] California,[76] Delaware,[77] Michigan,[78] Mississippi,[79] Missouri,[80] Nevada,[81] North Dakota,[82] the Northern Mariana Islands,[83] and Oklahoma.

In 2022, voters in North Dakota approved a constitutional amendment that limits the governor to no more than two four-year terms.