State lawmakers are considering a proposal to set term limits for Minnesota’s top office.
Republican Rep. Jimmy Gordon is the primary author of the House version, which would change the state constitution to place a two-term limit on the offices of governor and lieutenant governor “beginning with candidates elected in 2026.”
“It’s perfect timing because we have an open seat for the governor’s position,” said Rep. Gordon. “We didn’t want it to be about any one individual person or one individual governor.”
It is not retroactive, so past governors could run again.
“I liked the idea of, that wasn’t the rule when you ran in the past, and now we’re going to apply the rule starting now,” said Gordon.
More than two-thirds of states currently have term limits for governors.
This proposal would amend the Constitution, which would place the question on the 2026 general election ballot for voters to decide.
“The governor doesn’t have any say in the matter, the governor can’t veto it, it goes directly to the people at that point,” said David Schultz, a political science professor at Hamline University. “Then if it’s put into the state constitution, it can only be changed by a Constitutional amendment.”
He explained a Constitutional amendment is as permanent a change as possible in state policymaking.
State records show that since the 1960’s, when Minnesota moved from two to four-year terms, only former Gov. Rudy Perpich has served three terms. He did not serve all of those consecutively.
The bill is still in committee. There is a DFL author on both the House and Senate versions.
