US President Donald Trump has again claimed he has the right to run for a third term. The US constitution bars anyone from serving more than two terms as president, but Trump tried to build a case for himself by repeating his claim that the 2020 election was rigged.
Speaking to supporters at a campaign rally in Sioux City, Iowa, on Thursday evening (22 October), Trump said that under the law he may not have the chance to run again.
But he said he had been cheated in the 2020 election, and that because of that fraud, “I have the right to run again.” Trump said he had won the presidency three times.
No credible evidence has been found to support the claim of fraud in the 2020 election. Under the 22nd Amendment to the US constitution, no person can be elected president more than twice.
Trump’s claim would therefore run into a constitutional barrier. At the rally, Trump himself acknowledged that the provision is fairly clear and that it is hard to find another reading of it or a loophole.
Earlier remarks on a third term
Trump has spoken several times before about wanting a third term. In October 2025 he told reporters he would “love to” run a third time if he had the chance. At a rally in Texas in February he also raised the possibility of serving another term.
Last year Trump’s official online store began selling caps reading “Trump 2028”. He was seen wearing one at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in July.
Trump’s close allies treat such remarks as throwaway lines or political jokes. Mike Johnson, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said last year that Trump talks about a third term to provoke or mock Democrats.
Johnson also said he saw no realistic prospect of amending the constitution to let Trump run again.
Some in the opposition, however, fear it would be a mistake to dismiss Trump’s words as a joke.
Trump has meanwhile urged supporters to turn out and vote in next month’s midterm elections to increase Republican seats. He told his followers to vote as if he himself were on the ballot.
With Trump’s popularity falling in recent months, it is uncertain how much this approach will help Republicans.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report