A Guest Article by Ibraheem Samirah, Virginia State Chair, U.S. Term Limits
February is the month of many things this year: relentless snow, Valentine’s Day, Black History Month, and the much lesser-known February 27th that marks National Term Limits Day, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. This amendment limits a president to two terms in office. It is a moment to reflect not only on why presidential term limits were adopted, but also on why the same logic now demands action on congressional term limits.
The idea of limiting executive power is as old as the Republic itself. Presidential term limits were debated at the original Constitutional Convention and discussed during the presidencies of arguably both of the most prominent Virginians in history, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. While no formal limits emerged from those debates, Washington established a powerful unwritten precedent by voluntarily stepping aside after two terms. That tradition held for nearly 150 years.
Several presidents attempted to seek a third term, but none succeeded until Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1940, as the nation confronted World War II. Roosevelt would go on to win four elections. While his leadership during wartime is lauded, many Americans across the political spectrum recognized that no individual — regardless of their successes — should remain in power indefinitely.
During the 1944 campaign, Presidential candidate Thomas Dewey proposed a constitutional amendment to limit presidents to two terms. Though Dewey lost the election, the idea resonated with voters. By 1946, numerous candidates from both parties were campaigning in favor of presidential term limits. Momentum continued to build, and in March of 1947, Congress passed the resolution that would become the 22nd Amendment, sending it to the states for ratification.
Virginia played a key role in that historic effort, becoming the 19th state to ratify the amendment in March of 1958. Our Commonwealth stood with Americans nationwide who believed that rotation in office strengthens democracy, prevents entrenched power, and ensures government continues progressing forward in its accountability to the people.
President Harry Truman, who was in office when the amendment was ratified, was technically grandfathered in and could have sought another term. Instead, he chose not to run in 1952, believing that having served nearly all of Roosevelt’s fourth term plus one full elected term amounted to two terms already. Truman didn’t just respect the spirit of the 22nd Amendment — he championed it. He also believed Congress should follow suit by limiting its own members, a position he held for the rest of his life.
Seventy-five years later, Truman’s warning has proven prescient.
Today, congressional term limits are one of the most popular and bipartisan reforms in America. Poll after poll shows overwhelming support from Democrats, Republicans, and independents alike. Given everything we are finding out day after day about the many faces of public corruption in the halls of Congress, Americans understand and feel it is absolutely necessary to put limits on how long a congressperson can stay in office for. Yet Congress has done nothing. Why? Because asking a majority of those who made entrenched power a very serious problem to voluntarily limit the power they get from their own entrenchment is figuratively akin to these congresspersons cutting off their hands.
So what can be done?
The Constitution provides an answer. Just as states helped force the issue of presidential term limits in the 1940s, states can once again take the lead by calling for an Article V Convention limited to congressional term limits only. When two-thirds of state legislatures submit matching applications, a convention must be called to propose an amendment. Congress is bypassed, and the people — through their states — regain control of constitutional reform.
This is not radical. It is constitutional. It is orderly. And it is narrowly focused.
Virginia’s legislature now has an opportunity — and a responsibility — to act. By passing a resolution calling for an Article V Convention limited solely to congressional term limits, Virginia can honor its legacy as a defender of balanced government and citizen leadership. We did it once before with presidential term limits. It’s time to finish the job.
National Term Limits Day is not just about history. It is about the now and the future of representative government. If we believe, as our founders did, that no one is entitled to hold power forever, especially now as it comes at the expense of the public, then Virginia must once again lead.
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