Donald Trump has once again caused irritation with a statement in the US election campaign. He told a gathering of Christians in the state of Florida that they should vote for him in November, then they would “not have to vote in four years.” The 78-year-old said: “Christians, go vote, just this once. You won’t have to do it again. Four more years, you know what? It will be OK, it will be good, you won’t have to vote again.”
And added: “I love you Christians. I am a Christian. I love you, go out, you have to go out and vote. In four years you won’t have to vote, we will get it so good that you won’t have to vote.”
Unclear what Trump meant exactly
Political observers were not clear what exactly the former US president, who is seeking re-election to the White House for the Republicans, meant with his comments.
Ambiguous wording
Incidentally, this is not the first time that Trump’s comments have raised questions about his attitude to democracy. For example, in a television interview with Fox News, he declared that if he won the election he would “be a dictator,” but “only on day one.” He would then use this day to close the southern border with Mexico and expand oil drilling, among other things. He later dismissed this as a joke.
Other comments suggested that Trump might seek more than just a second term, even though the US Constitution prohibits this. In May, for example, at a National Rifle Association event, he said: “You know, Franklin D. Roosevelt, 16 years – almost 16 years – he had four terms.” In fact, the Democrat served 12 years in office (1933-45) and died in the first months of his fourth term. Nevertheless, he was the only president to serve more than two terms.
The two-term limit was introduced after his presidency with the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. In the same speech, Donald Trump indicated – again with unclear wording – that it was not clear how another term would be counted if he were elected US president in November: “I don’t know if that counts as three terms. Or two terms?”
Only two “terms” allowed
However, this would clearly contradict the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. It clearly states that a US president can serve a maximum of two terms in office. It is irrelevant whether these are two consecutive terms or not. Trump has been US president once so far, from 2017 to 2021.