No, we are not halfway yet. It is March, and we are months away from the beginning of our President’s third year.

Here’s a question: What is the longest consecutive period of time a person can hold the office of President of the United States?

Answer: 10 years, based on the 22nd Amendment:

22nd Amendment

Section 1
No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of President more than once. But this Article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this Article was proposed by Congress, and shall not prevent any person who may be holding the office of President, or acting as President, during the term within which this Article becomes operative from holding the office of President or acting as President during the remainder of such term.

Section 2
This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of three-fourths of the several States within seven years from the date of its submission to the States by the Congress.

(Link to Constitution online)


Summary: Maximum time to hold office of President = up to two final years of predecessor’s term, plus two four-year terms.

So, if you are in the line of succession to replace the sitting President and if you want to maximize your time in office, when do you want to assume the office? After noon on January 20th (see 20th Amendment) during the third year of the term. This is a much more attractive time than before noon that day to assume the office.

All this assumes that you would win the two elections you could legally participate in for President. Otherwise you are leaving 4 years on the table, assuming you won the first election after finishing your predecessor’s term and can win that second election.

So if you hear speculation about the President resigning or being removed from office, keep this in mind.

(Link to DuckDuckGo search for free pocket constitution)