Trump says poll numbers should earn him a third term. But the US Constitution disagrees

President Donald Trump said he was serious about pursuing a third term in office, even though the nation’s highest office is limited to two terms by the U.S. Constitution.

Talking to NBC News Sunday, Trump pointed to his poll numbers as evidence that “a lot of people would like me to” hold office for another term.

But Trump’s approval ratings for his first few weeks in office are some of the worst in modern history, beating only his own in 2017.

Plus, presidents can only be elected to two terms in the White House, as outlined in the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution.

Here is what to know about Trump’s approval rating:

Trump wants to run again. Who else has served more than 2 terms? Hint: There is only one

Trump early-term approval ratings started at historic lows

Several polls showed that Trump had a net positive approval rating during his first month back in the White House during his current term, USA TODAY reported in February. But by many measures, they were still the second-lowest approval ratings in modern history. The lowest were Trump’s during his first term in 2017.

The numbers haven’t shifted significantly since then, but Gallup polling provides historical comparisons to other presidents.

As of the latest poll in March, 43% approve of Trump’s job as president. In March of 2017, 42% approved of his job performance.

Here is how that compares to other presidents in March of the first year of their presidency, according to Gallup:

• Joe Biden – 54% approved

• Barack Obama – 62% approved

• George W. Bush – 58% approved.

• Bill Clinton – 53% approved

• George H.W. Bush – 60% approved

• Ronald Reagan – 60% approved

• Jimmy Carter – 72% approved

Polling: What recent polls are saying about Trump’s second term

CBS News/YouGov:

• Respondents were equally split on whether they approve or disapprove of how Trump is handling his job. (Poll conducted March 27-28; 2,609 U.S. adults; margin of error ±2.3 percentage points.)

• The poll showed most Americans think Trump is focusing too much on tariffs and not enough on lowering prices, but the majority approve of his work on immigration, according to CBS News.

Reuters/Ipsos:

• More respondents disapproved of Trump’s job performance than approved by a 6 percentage point margin. (Poll conducted March 21-23; 1,030 U.S. adults; margin of error of

  ±3 percentage points.)

• 82% of respondents agreed with the statement that the “president of the United States should obey federal court rulings even if the president does not want to,” according to Reuters.

Napolitan News Service/RMG Research:

• More respondents approved of Trump’s job at 52% approve compared to 45% disapprove. (Poll conducted March 17-28; 2,000 registered voters; margin of error ±1.8 percentage points.)

Can Trump run for a third term?

Under the Constitution as it stands, no.

Changes to the Constitution are extremely difficult and rare, as it requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate. States can also spur an amendment, but it requires two-thirds of the state legislatures to call a constitutional convention and three-fourths to ratify it.

Trump confirmed one way he could serve another term is if Vice President JD Vance runs for office and then hands the role to Trump, NBC News reported.

“No matter how you look at it, you’ve got a long time to go,” he said to NBC. “We have a long time. We have almost four years to go and that’s a long time, but despite that so many people are saying, ‘You’ve got to run again.'”

Contributing: Riley Beggin

Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump says popularity will lead to 3rd term. See his approval ratings

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