The Twenty-second Amendment

The original Constitution placed no limit on presidential terms. George Washington stepped down after two terms in 1797, setting a precedent that held for nearly 150 years, though Ulysses Grant and Theodore Roosevelt sought third terms unsuccessfully. Franklin Roosevelt broke the tradition by winning a third term in 1940 and a fourth in 1944, during the Depression and World War II. After his death in 1945, the new Republican majority in Congress proposed a term limit, and Congress approved the amendment on March 21, 1947. It was ratified on February 27, 1951.

The amendment provides that no person shall be elected to the office of President more than twice, and that a person who has served more than two years of another President's term may be elected only once. A President could therefore serve as long as about ten years. The limit did not apply to Harry Truman, who was in office when it was proposed, though he chose not to seek another term in 1952. Dwight Eisenhower was the first President barred by it.

Scholars debate some open questions, such as whether a two-term President could serve as Vice President and succeed to the office, which the Twelfth Amendment's eligibility rule may forbid. Proposals to repeal or change the amendment have been introduced periodically by members of both parties, including a 2025 resolution that would allow a third nonconsecutive term, and none has advanced. Supporters say the limit guards against entrenched power and renews leadership. Critics say it denies voters the choice of an experienced leader and weakens second-term Presidents as lame ducks.