2025 civics test · Question 37 · System of Government
The President of the United States can serve only two terms. Why?
Any one of these answers is accepted
- (Because of) the 22nd Amendment
- To keep the president from becoming too powerful
What this means
A president can serve only two terms because of the 22nd Amendment.
For most of American history there was no legal limit, just a tradition, started by George Washington, of stepping down after two terms. That tradition held until Franklin Roosevelt was elected four times in the 1930s and 1940s. Afterward, Congress and the states added the 22nd Amendment in 1951 to make the two-term limit law.
The purpose is to keep the president from becoming too powerful by staying in office too long.
Both answers are accepted: “the 22nd Amendment” or “to keep the president from becoming too powerful.”
Why this is on the test
This 2025 question tests the reason behind presidential term limits, which is one of the clearest examples of guarding against too much power in one person.
How this question is asked
On the 2025 civics test, the officer asks up to 20 of the 128 questions out loud and you pass by answering 12 correctly. You answer in your own words. There is no multiple choice and nothing to write down for the civics portion.
Related questions
More from System of Government.
- 16 Name the three branches of government.
- 17 The President of the United States is in charge of which branch of government?
- 18 What part of the federal government writes laws?
- 19 What are the two parts of the U.S. Congress?
- 20 Name one power of the U.S. Congress.
- 21 How many U.S. senators are there?