Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Miscellaneous/2023 May 3

= May 3 =

"Presidential" curiosity
Hi Guys, I have a small question for you. If an incumbent U.S. President loses re-election, he can of course run again as will probably happen with Trump if he gets the Republican nomination. Here, I'll take him as an example: he ran in 2016 and won, then he then lost four years later, but if he wins in 2024, after the four-year term of 2025/2029, he could not run again? Thank you very much. 93.41.96.86 (talk) 18:14, 3 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Correct. See Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution.  You can't be elected if you've been elected before twice, or if you've been elected once and also served more than two years of someone else's term. --Trovatore (talk) 18:20, 3 May 2023 (UTC)
 * That is correct. Two full terms is the maximum. Partial terms of less than two years do not count, so hypothically, a president who came into office as the result of the death of their predecessor could serve almost ten years if subsequently elected to two terms. Cullen328 (talk) 18:23, 3 May 2023 (UTC)
 * That was the situation LBJ was in, in 1968, where if he had run and won, he could have been in office for 9 years. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 20:28, 3 May 2023 (UTC)
 * How about this? I am elected once and serve a full term.  Then I am elected Vice President, and my president snuffs it after serving 23 months, and I succeed to the presidency for that last month.  Someone else has already been elected as the next president.  Twenty-five months later I am elected Vice President again, and my new president resigns after serving 22 months, and I succeed to the presidency for those last two months.  Someone else has already been elected as the next president.  Twenty six months later I am elected Vice President again, and my new president is impeached after serving 21 months, and I succeed to the presidency for those last three months, by now being very familiar with where the bathrooms are in the White House.  I have been president four times, and served 28 months.  Does this work?  Hayttom (talk) 00:43, 5 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Presidential terms are for four years, or 48 months. Your President could resign each time after 25 months, leaving you for 23 months in office as their constitutional successor. You then never hold the office of President for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President, regardless of how often this is repeated. According to the letter of the amendment, you remain eligible. --Lambiam 01:24, 5 May 2023 (UTC)


 * Pulling this trick every four years would consume a lot of your lifespan. Also, each time you assumed office you would be a lame duck and it would be hard to accomplish anything. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 01:35, 5 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Twiddling one's thumbs while someone else is pulling this trick every four years consumes the same amount of one's lifespan. And perhaps the only aspiration of the repeat veep is to earn a mention in the Guinness World Records. --Lambiam 15:53, 5 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Organizing all those convenient deaths also takes it out of one. —Tamfang (talk) 04:00, 5 May 2023 (UTC)
 * Just possibly, forgetting that presidential terms are 48 months and not 24 ought to disqualify me from getting nominated, even for VP. On the other hand, knowing when to capitalize 'President' and 'president' (I think I've been getting it right) should count for something.  Glad to have my theory validated. Hayttom (talk) 10:47, 5 May 2023 (UTC)