Ask Jordan: Could Trump run a write-in campaign for a third term?

“If Donald Trump were perverse enough to run a write-in campaign for 2028 president, and, as unlikely as it would be, he won, would he be able to take up a third term?” — Dave

Hi Dave,

No.

The 22nd Amendment says, “No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice.” Trump has already been elected twice (in 2016 and 2024). Therefore, he cannot be elected a third time.

Running a write-in campaign, as opposed to running as the official GOP nominee, wouldn’t change that. If anything, due to the long-shot nature of write-in campaigns, he would just be doing something unlawful in a more convoluted way. Some states don’t even allow write-ins.

To be clear, your question and my answer thus far are about Trump being elected to the presidency again. On that note, another scenario I have seen floated is that he returns to the White House as vice president and the president (say, JD Vance) resigns and Trump becomes president a third time.

At first glance, such a gambit might seem to evade the 22nd Amendment’s prohibition on being elected president more than twice. But even if that provision were no longer an impediment, there’s still another barrier: the 12th Amendment. That one says “no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President.” Because the 22nd Amendment disqualifies him from the presidency in 2028, the 12th Amendment would appear to disqualify him from the vice presidency, too.

Of course, this is all hypothetical, though it is fair to wonder in light of the president’s antidemocratic actions to date. As for whether he will further test the Constitution with a 2028 run, consider the recent remarks of journalist Maggie Haberman, who knows him well. She said she didn’t think he wanted a third term. She said he “doesn’t need it” and that he’d be “the dominant figure” in the Republican Party “until he is no longer on this Earth, whether he’s in office or not.”

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