How Many US Presidents Served More Than One Term As President?

Almost half of the United States presidents to date — 21 in all — have served more than one term as president. They were Franklin D. Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, Grover Cleveland, Woodrow Wilson, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George Washington, Harry Truman, George W. Bush, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Richard M. Nixon, Lyndon B. Johnson, William McKinley, and Abraham Lincoln, and Barack Obama.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) is the only us president in history that served more than two terms in office. In fact, he was elected to four full terms. Unfortunately, Roosevelt died during his fourth term, and the remainder was served by his vice president, Harry S Truman. Shortly after, in 1947, the 22 Amendment of the United States Constitution was passed. It stated that a president cannot serve more than 10 years or two consecutive terms in office.

Not every US president who served more than one term served them consecutively, however. Grover Cleveland was the only president who served two terms that were not in a row. He goes down in the American history books as both the 22nd and 24th president of the United States.

Out of the 20 individuals who have served more than one term as president, 11 served two full terms. These presidents included Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, Andrew Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, Woodrow Wilson, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George Washington, and George W. Bush.

There are also a handful of leaders who were originally elected as a vice president and ended up serving part of a previous president’s term. Of these leaders, four went on to be elected to their own term. They include Harry Truman, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, and Lyndon B. Johnson.

These US presidents are not the only American leaders who served more than one but fewer than two terms. Richard Nixon resigned during his second term after the Watergate scandal, while William McKinley and Abraham Lincoln were both assassinated during their second terms in the presidential office.