How the Twenty-Second And Twelfth Amendments Prohibit a Third Trump Term
Civil Rights Brief No. 240 | Rodney Maggay | April 13, 2025
Section 1 of the Twenty – Second Amendment to the United States Constitution provides, “No person shall be elected to the Office of the President more than twice.” President Donald Trump was elected to the presidency in 2016 and again in 2024 after he was defeated in his bid for re – election in 2020.
On March 30, 2025 in a phone call to an MSNBC Sunday morning talk show President Donald Trump did not eliminate the possibility of seeking a third term for the White House in 2028. The President also clarified to his interviewers that he “was not joking” and that he was seeking ways to make it possible that he could serve a third term in office. The President further clarified that there was still a long way to go but eventually added, “A lot of people want me to do it.” LEARN MORE
Analysis
It is unclear if the President is merely joking in a manner to antagonize his opponents or if he is truly considering seeking the White House in 2028 for a third term. His comments however has caused legal scholars and news pundits to analyze the Twenty – Second Amendment to see if there is any possibility, however slim, that the President could serve a third term.
The text of the Twenty – Second Amendment on its face prohibits Mr. Trump from running for the White House again. The text prohibits a “person” from being elected President more than twice. There is no ambiguity or confusion in these words and it would appear to shut the door on Donald Trump from running for President after his current term is complete.
But in the days after Mr. Trump’s win in the 2024 election options have been floated to try and change the eligibility rules and allow Mr. Trump to run again. It would seem straightforward that if Mr. Trump would have any chance to run again that the first step would be to amend the Constitution and/or repeal the Twenty – Second Amendment. However, this path requires a high bar to clear because of the requirements needed to amend the Constitution.
Article V of the Constitution refers to the Amendment Process and requires that any amendment by ratified by 2/3 of both the House of Representatives and the Senate and also be ratified by 3/4 of the states. With the current political gridlock in Washington it is nearly impossible to reach this threshold of votes in both houses of Congress and among the states. But that still hasn’t stopped some congressman from introducing resolutions even though they probably know their resolution will fail. Rep. Andy Ogles (R) of Tennessee introduced a resolution that would get the amendment process started that would allow a person to seek a third term only if their two prior terms were served non – consecutively which would apply to Trump. (Rep. Ogles crafted his resolution in this manner in order to allow Trump to run again but still prohibit previous two term Presidents like Barack Obama and Bill Clinton from running.) Even though Rep. Ogles’ resolution has minimal chance of passing, it prompted a competing resolution from Rep. Dan Goldman (D) of New York affirming that the Twenty – Second Amendment applied to President Trump’s two non – consecutive terms and effectively barred him from running again. While both resolutions from the Congressmen do not appear likely to pass they appear to have also been appeals to their constituents in the context of what the Twenty – Second Amendment means for the future of their respective party’s presidential candidates.
But one theory that has gained traction lately is if in 2028 current Vice – President JD Vance runs for President with Donald Trump as his Vice – Presidential running mate. If Vance wins, he could step down and allow Vice – President – elect Donald Trump to assume the Presidency again. However, there is a separate Constitutional Clause that could help enforce the Twenty – Second Amendment and scuttle those plans. The last sentence of the Twelfth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states, “But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.” So, if the Twenty – Second Amendment is taken at face value and bars Donald Trump from running for a third term, then the last sentence of the Twelfth Amendment would also prohibit Mr. Trump from running as a Vice – Presidential running mate in order to try and succeed to the Presidency in some kind of work – around the Constitution.
While these are all academic debates and just chatter for the moment, any serious effort by the President to run again would likely end up in a case before the Supreme Court to decide the constitutional question. LEARN MORE, LEARN MORE,
Engagement Resources
- FactCheck.org – analysis of constitutional loophole for Trump to try and run for a third term.
- Democracy Docket – analysis of alternative theories to avoid the Twenty – Second Amendment.