President Donald Trump has continued to toy with the idea of a third term, even though the U.S. Constitution limits him to two terms.

Speaking with reporters on Air Force One on Oct. 27, Trump was asked about Steve Bannon's recent interview with The Economist, where he said there is a plan to keep Trump in office past his limit. Asked if he would be willing to challenge a court to get permission to do so, Trump said:

"I haven't really thought about it. We have some very good people as you know, but I have the best poll numbers I've ever had," Trump said. However, averages show his approval rating declined in the first 100 days and stayed stable but low compared to other presidents. "I would love to do it."

He dodged a question about whether he was ruling it out, and said Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio would make a formidable team running together.

He rejected the possibility of running as vice president in 2028, as has been previously floated.

"I would rule that out because it's too cute," he said. "I think the people wouldn't like that. It's too cute. It wouldn't be right."

Can Trump run for a third term?

Under the Constitution as it stands, Trump cannot serve a third term in office. It is explicitly barred by the 22nd Amendment.

Changes to the Constitution are extremely difficult and rare, as they require 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 won the 2016 presidential election against Hillary Clinton, becoming the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. He then lost the 2020 election against former President Joe Biden.

Trump won the 2024 election. At first, Trump was up for a rematch before Biden dropped his re-election bid and was replaced on the Democratic ticket by former Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump's second term as the 47th U.S. president is slated for 2025 to 2029.

Trump said he 'probably' won't run for a third term

Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of a third term throughout his second presidency. In a March NBC interview, he said there are methods to make it happen, including if Vance runs for office and then hands the role to Trump. (But on Oct. 27, he seemed to put that idea to rest.)

In a May interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," Trump backed off the idea, saying he was not looking at running again.

"I will say this. So many people want me to do it. I have never had requests so strong as that," Trump said in the interview with NBC. "But it's something that, to the best of my knowledge, you're not allowed to do. I don't know if that's constitutional that they're not allowing you to do it or anything else."

Then on Aug. 5, Trump was asked whether he would run for a third term in a CNBC interview.

"No, probably not ... Probably not, I'd like to," he said.

Trump also regularly touts "Trump 2028" MAGA hats to people who visit the White House. That includes Democratic Congressional leaders meeting with Trump and Vance in the Oval Office in a failed attempt to stop the government from shutting down.

Trump also suggested to reporters that Vance was “most likely” the heir to the MAGA movement, though Vance has dodged talking about the possibility.

Only one president has served more than two terms

America's founding father and first president, President George Washington, voluntarily stepped down after two terms, creating an unofficial tradition for future presidents to follow suit.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first and only president to break that tradition. The country was still recovering from the Great Depression, and at the dawn of World War II, he was re-elected to his third term. After leading the country through the global war, he was elected again in 1944 but died the following year.

A movement in the House of Representatives to officially limit the presidency terms, now ratified as the 22nd Amendment, began two years after Roosevelt's death.

Contributing: Zac Anderson, Francesca Chambers, Riley Beggin, Deborah Barfield Berry, USA TODAY

Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. 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: Can Donald Trump have a third term? No, but his comments keep hinting at it

Reporting by Kinsey Crowley, USA TODAY / USA TODAY

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