If you ask most people about when did term limits start, they’ll probably point you toward the 22nd Amendment and Franklin D. Roosevelt. They aren't wrong. Not exactly. But if we're being honest, the obsession with putting a "sell-by" date on politicians goes back way further than the 1940s. It’s a concept that has been baked into the American psyche since before we were even a country.
People think of it as a modern fix for a modern problem. It isn't.
The reality is that we've been arguing about this for centuries. We have this weird, paradoxical relationship with our leaders where we want them to be experienced enough to fix things, but we get terrified the moment they start looking a little too comfortable in their chairs.
The Early Days: Why the Founders Didn't Write It Down
You’d think the guys who just fought a war against a king would be all over the idea of term limits. Strangely, they weren't. When the Constitutional Convention met in 1787, the delegates actually debated the idea of "rotation in office" pretty heavily.
Thomas Jefferson was a huge fan. He was over in France at the time, writing letters home and basically freaking out that a President could just keep getting re-elected until he died. He called it a "degeneration" into a hereditary monarchy. But Alexander Hamilton and James Madison? They weren't buying it. Hamilton argued in Federalist No. 72 that forcing a leader out just when they’ve finally figured out how to do the job was a bad move. He thought it would kill the incentive for a President to actually do good work if they knew they were getting fired anyway.
So, they left it out.
Instead of a law, we got a habit. George Washington, probably exhausted and definitely ready to go back to Mount Vernon, stepped down after two terms. He didn't do it because a rule told him to. He did it because he knew the optics of staying longer would look like he was trying to be a King. This created the "two-term tradition." It was a gentleman’s agreement that lasted for over 140 years. It’s kind of wild to think about—the entire stability of the Executive branch rested on a pinky promise for over a century.
The FDR Factor: When the Tradition Broke
Everything changed in 1940. Before that, a few guys tried to break the two-term mold. Ulysses S. Grant wanted a third term but couldn't get the nomination. Theodore Roosevelt tried for a third (non-consecutive) term under the Bull Moose Party and failed.
Then came Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
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He didn't just break the tradition; he shattered it. He won a third term in 1940 and a fourth in 1944. Now, context matters here. The world was on fire. We were dealing with the tail end of the Great Depression and the height of World War II. Voters basically decided that changing horses in the middle of a global apocalypse was a terrible idea.
Roosevelt died in office in 1945, just months into that fourth term.
The backlash was almost immediate. Republicans, who had been out of the White House for over a decade, were leading the charge, but plenty of Democrats were also feeling a bit "monarchy-ish" about the whole thing. By 1947, Congress passed the 22nd Amendment. It was ratified by the states in 1951.
That is the official answer to when did term limits start for the President.
The 22nd Amendment: What the Fine Print Actually Says
It’s not just "two terms and you're out." There’s some weird math involved. Under the 22nd Amendment, no person can be elected to the office of President more than twice.
However, there’s a loophole for Vice Presidents who take over. If a VP serves more than two years of a remaining President's term, they can only be elected for one more full term. If they serve two years or less of that remaining term, they can still run for two full terms of their own. Technically, a person could serve up to 10 years.
It’s a specific bit of constitutional engineering designed to prevent another FDR situation while still allowing for some continuity in a crisis.
What About Congress? The Battle That Never Ends
This is where things get really spicy. When people search for when did term limits start, they often realize with a bit of a shock that there are no federal term limits for the House of Representatives or the Senate.
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None.
Strom Thurmond served in the Senate for 48 years. Robert Byrd served for over 50.
In the 1990s, there was a massive grassroots movement to change this. A group called U.S. Term Limits started pushing states to pass their own laws limiting how long their Congressional delegations could serve. By 1995, 23 states had actually passed these limits.
It felt like a revolution. It wasn't.
The Supreme Court stepped in and shut the whole thing down in the case U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton. The Court ruled 5-4 that states don't have the power to change the qualifications for federal offices. If you want term limits for Congress, you have to amend the Constitution. And since the people who have to vote for that amendment are the very people who would be fired by it... well, you can see why it hasn't happened.
State-Level Limits: A Different Story
While the federal government is stuck in a loop, the states have been much more aggressive. This is another vital part of the story regarding when did term limits start.
Today, 16 state legislatures have term limits.
Most of these kicked in during the 1990s "Contract with America" era. California, Florida, and Michigan are some of the most prominent examples. These states have become a sort of laboratory for what happens when you actually rotate people out.
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The results? Mixed.
Critics say that when you kick out experienced lawmakers, the lobbyists and unelected staffers become the real power players because they’re the only ones who know how the building works. Proponents say it brings in "citizen legislators" and fresh ideas. Both are probably right.
Why Do We Still Care?
The reason "when did term limits start" remains a top search query is that we are currently living through an era of "gerontocracy." Our leaders are getting older. The average age in the Senate is the highest it has ever been.
There's a deep-seated feeling among voters—regardless of whether they lean left or right—that the system is stagnant.
Polls consistently show that roughly 80% of Americans support term limits for Congress. It’s one of the few things people actually agree on. But the legal hurdles are massive. You need a two-thirds vote in both the House and the Senate, or a constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the State Legislatures.
Neither seems likely anytime soon.
Actionable Insights for the Informed Voter
If you’re frustrated by the lack of movement on this, there are a few things you should keep in mind to navigate the current political landscape:
- Look at your State Constitution: Many people don't realize their own state legislators or governors might already have limits. Knowing these can help you understand the "bench" of candidates moving toward federal office.
- Support "Self-Limiters": Occasionally, candidates will pledge to only serve a certain number of terms. While these aren't legally binding, they are a significant campaign promise you can hold them to at the ballot box.
- Focus on Primaries: Since there are no federal limits for Congress, the only way to "term limit" an incumbent is in the primary election. This is where most long-term incumbents are actually vulnerable, yet primary turnout remains notoriously low.
- Follow Judicial Term Limit Debates: There is a growing movement to apply term limits to Supreme Court Justices (usually suggested as 18-year staggered terms). This is a separate legal battle from the one involving Congress but uses many of the same historical arguments.
Understanding when did term limits start isn't just a history lesson. It’s a roadmap of how power is protected and how, occasionally, the people manage to claw some of it back. Whether through a constitutional amendment or the simple power of the vote, the "rotation in office" that Jefferson dreamed of is still the most debated topic in American governance.