One President Has Had Two Non-Consecutive Terms in Office

Many US Presidents have served two full terms in the White House.

Franklin D. Roosevelt served three full terms in the White House before passing away during his fourth term.

The question: has a US President ever served two non-consecutive terms in the White House? This question has arose in recent days, as there is a very real possibility that the 45th President of the United States, Donald J. Trump, will run again in 2024.

If President Trump were to run again and win in 2024, he would become the second US President to ever served two non-consecutive terms in the White House.

The first?

Grover Cleveland, who served as the President from March 4th, 1885-March 4th, 1889, and March 4th, 1893-March 4th, 1897.

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What were the circumstances behind Grover Cleveland serving two non-consecutive terms in the White House?

To start, Cleveland was quite popular (at least until the end of his second term in the White House) - this is evidenced by the fact that he won the popular vote three times - in 1884, 1888 and 1892.

When running for re-election in 1888, Cleveland was up against Benjamin Harrison, a Republican from Indiana.

Despite winning the popular vote, Cleveland was easily beaten, as Harrison ended up winning 233 of the 401 Electoral College votes.

In 1892, the still-popular Cleveland ran again as the Democratic nominee. This was a rematch of the 1888 election, as Harrison was running as the incumbent. To add a further wrinkle into the proceedings, James B. Weaver was also running.

Cleveland would win the popular vote for the third straight election. This time, however, Cleveland would also win the electoral college, as he ended up with 277 of the 444 electoral college votes.

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As mentioned, this was the first and only time that a US President has served two non-consecutive terms in office.


Filed under: General Knowledge