The career politicians in Washington, D.C. are starting to sweat.
Two unlikely allies teamed up to shake up the political establishment.
And Ron DeSantis just launched one campaign that put the Washington, D.C. establishment on notice.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and former Maryland Congressman David Trone made an announcement that sent shockwaves through the political establishment in Washington, D.C.
The two politicians are teaming up as co-chairs of a national campaign to impose term limits on Congress.
U.S. Term Limits announced that DeSantis and Trone would lead their push to force Washington, D.C. to end the era of career politicians.
Term limits movement gains bipartisan momentum with unlikely duo
The partnership brings together a Republican governor who nearly won the 2024 Presidential nomination with a Democrat who just spent over $60 million of his own money trying to win a U.S. Senate seat.¹
DeSantis has been one of the most vocal proponents of term limits for years.
Florida passed a resolution calling for a U.S. Term Limits convention during the 2024 Legislative Session under the leadership of Speaker Paul Renner.²
The Sunshine State became one of 12 states that have passed resolutions through both chambers of their state legislature calling for an Article V convention to propose a congressional term limits amendment.
Trone pledged during his Senate campaign to serve only two terms if elected, and he spent three terms in the House of Representatives representing Maryland’s 6th Congressional District.³
He lost the Democrat primary for U.S. Senate in May 2024 to Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks after dumping more than $60 million of his own fortune into the race.
U.S. Term Limits CEO Nick Tomboulides said DeSantis and Trone would bring national attention to a grassroots movement that’s been building momentum for decades.
"(DeSantis) and Trone will have these megaphones, where they will deliver this message from the grassroots to the national stage," Tomboulides explained. "And we think it will have a very big impact. We’ve always been kind of like a no-name movement, very popular among the grassroots, not so popular with the politicians on Capitol Hill. But now we have two very, very big names, two heavyweights, who are going to come out punching for this. And we think it’s going to be a game changer."
The path forward requires state-level pressure on Congress
The Constitution provides two paths to amend the document.
Congress can propose an amendment with a two-thirds vote in both chambers, followed by ratification from three-quarters of state legislatures.
But getting Congress to voluntarily limit their own power has proven nearly impossible.
The House voted on a congressional term limits amendment in 1997, but the tally fell well short of the two-thirds majority needed.⁴
Recent attempts in 2023 and 2024 by Senator Ted Cruz and Representative Ralph Norman died in committee without ever reaching the floor for a vote.⁵
"That’s like getting turkeys to vote for Thanksgiving," Tomboulides said about expecting Congress to act against their self-interest.
So U.S. Term Limits is pursuing the alternative path under Article V of the Constitution.
If 34 states pass resolutions calling for a convention, delegates from those states would meet to vote on a term limits amendment.
The proposal would then need ratification by 38 states to become part of the Constitution.
Currently, 12 states have passed the single-subject application specific to congressional term limits – Florida, Alabama, Missouri, West Virginia, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Dakota, Indiana and South Carolina.⁶
An additional seven states have passed resolutions that include congressional term limits along with other subjects.
The organization is pushing legislation in at least 20 states during 2025 sessions.
Georgia’s Senate passed a term limits resolution in February with a bipartisan 34-18 vote.⁷
The Georgia House still needs to act, but momentum is building.
Kansas saw its House Committee pass a similar resolution unanimously that same month.⁸
Voters want term limits but Congress won’t listen
Here’s what makes this infuriating.
Eighty-seven percent of Americans support congressional term limits.⁹
That’s not a slim majority – that’s a landslide.
Democrats back it at 80%, Republicans at 86%, and Independents at 84%.¹⁰
But Congress looks at those numbers and does absolutely nothing because the system protects their jobs.
Tomboulides argued that term limits would bring fresh perspectives to Washington, D.C. and break the stranglehold career politicians have on power.
"You don’t have businesspeople doing business regulations. You don’t have health care workers doing health care. You don’t have teachers doing education policy. It’s a very closed system. It’s a very entrenched system," Tomboulides said.
The recent government shutdown perfectly illustrated his point about congressional incompetence.
"With the shutdown, people are absolutely disgusted, because it’s clear that with all the political experience we have on Capitol Hill, Congress is incompetent," Tomboulides stated. "They’re not capable of doing their basic job."
The president gets two terms under the 22nd Amendment.
Thirty-six governors face term limits, as do mayors of nine of the 10 largest cities and members of 16 state legislatures.¹¹
Congress remains the glaring exception where politicians can entrench themselves for decades.
U.S. Term Limits believes the pressure will build as more states pass resolutions calling for a convention.
Tomboulides said once they reach 20 to 25 states, Congress will feel enough heat that they may act to protect themselves.
"Congress should feel the heat once we’re at 20, 25, perhaps 30 (states)," Tomboulides explained. "We’re at 12 right now."
If Congress moves first to propose their own amendment, current members could include a grandfather clause exempting themselves from term limits.
"And they will have to, because they know that once state legislators get close, those state legislators are going to be able to smell blood in the water," Tomboulides said. "They’ll be able to smell job opportunities. They’ll want to move up and run for Congress. They’ll want open seats as soon as possible. Congress can’t allow that to happen. So, they’ll report out an amendment that includes grandfathering for the current incumbents. And we’re OK with that."
The partnership between DeSantis and Trone shows that term limits aren’t a partisan issue.
Voters across the political spectrum want to drain the swamp and bring citizen legislators back to Washington, D.C.
Career politicians have had their chance and failed the American people repeatedly.
Now the states are stepping up to force the change that voters have been demanding for decades.
¹ David Trone, Wikipedia, accessed October 24, 2025.
² Governor Ron DeSantis Advocates for a Constitutional Amendment for Congressional Term Limits, Executive Office of the Governor, 2025.
³ Ibid.
⁴ Why term limits for Congress face a challenging constitutional path, Constitution Center, accessed October 24, 2025.
⁵ Pros and Cons of Congressional Term Limits, The Fulcrum, June 20, 2025.
⁶ Term Limits Convention Progress Map, U.S. Term Limits, May 7, 2025.
⁷ Georgia Senate Passes Resolution to Term Limit Congress, U.S. Term Limits, February 20, 2025.
⁸ Kansas House Committee Passes Resolution to Term Limit Congress, U.S. Term Limits, February 27, 2025.
⁹ Why term limits for Congress face a challenging constitutional path, Constitution Center, accessed October 24, 2025.
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ DeSantis, former Rep. Trone join push for congressional term limits, The National News Desk, October 23, 2025.
