New Republicans Talk Up Term Limits

In the first boost to the term limit movement in years, a host of new Republican lawmakers are promising not to overstay their welcomes. Roughly half of the more than 80 new GOP House members have promised to limit their tenures, as have several new senators, Politico reports; their targets typically range from six to 12 years. Many have also said they’ll support term limit legislation.

“I think it’s very simple: You have a freshman class in which reform is a very significant motivation,” said one soon-to-be Arizona rep, who’s promised to serve a maximum of six terms. Then again, the Republican class of 1994—the last similar wave—promised term limits as well. But a Supreme Court ruling in 1995 stifled the movement, saying only a constitutional amendment could impose real term limits, and most of the class of '94 reneged on their self-imposed ones. (More term limits stories.)