President Donald Trump said he would “probably not” seek a third term in office, despite expressing interest and citing substantial poll numbers during an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box.
The 22nd Amendment of the U.S. Constitution bars any individual from being elected president more than twice, a restriction that applies to Trump even though his two terms are nonconsecutive.
Why It Matters
Some Trump supporters have floated a third term for the incumbent president, despite that being unconstitutional and there being no clear legal avenues for him to seek a third term in office. An attempt at extending his tenure in the White House would trigger a constitutional crisis and would be unprecedented in modern American politics.
The last president to serve more than two terms was Franklin D. Roosevelt, from 1933 to 1945. His four-term run led to the passage of the 22nd Amendment.
What To Know
During the interview, Trump said he received the “highest vote in the history of Texas” and described his vote share as a “record that they say won’t be beaten unless I run again.”
Journalist Becky Quick pressed him about whether he is “going to run again?”
Trump responded, “No, probably not.”
“I’d like to run. I have the best poll numbers I’ve ever had,” he said.

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22nd Amendment: Can Trump Run for a Third Term?
Former federal prosecutor Gene Rossi told Newsweek thatTrump could not run again. If he were to try to launch a presidential campaign, he would likely face lawsuits seeking an injunction, he said.
However, there are legal avenues for him to become president again, Rossi said.
In March, Trump told NBC News there were methods he could take to serve a third term as president, adding that he was “not joking.” Allies like Steve Bannon have similarly floated ways he could serve another term in office.
“He does have a lane to be president again after [his] second term expires. The way he would do that is be on the ticket with the Republican nominee, presumably JD Vance. Donald Trump would be the vice presidential candidate. Vance wins and steps aside so that Donald Trump can be president,” he said.
“Because the constitution prohibits a president from being elected more than twice, so this avenue that he has means that he wouldn’t be elected president twice.”
Some Republicans have even sought to introduce a constitutional amendment to allow Trump to run for a third term. However, it would require a two-thirds majority in both the House and the Senate, as well as ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures. Given the Republicans’ narrow margins in Congress, it is unlikely that the amendment would pass.
The 22nd Amendment reads: “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by the Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.”
What People Are Saying
Senator Rand Paul, a Kentucky Republican, said on Fox Business last week: “I think we’re going to discourage good people, successful people, from holding office. Part of the bill, I do believe, would forbid the president immediately from buying and selling stocks, and it would exempt him from the divestiture part. Future presidents wouldn’t be allowed to own things, so Donald Trump or the next president, which, you know, or some say he might run for a third term, but he would be forced to divest everything.”
Former federal prosecutor Gene Rossi told Newsweek: “Only under Donald Trump would you have a president that even speculates, ponders or contemplates serving a third term. We’re in a different world.”
What Happens Next
Trump has not formally announced a campaign for a third term in office. Any effort to return to the White House again would likely face backlash and legal challenges.
Update 8/5/25, 12:10 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.