Ashley Sullivan, a candidate for the Massachusetts state house representing the 5th Essex district, has signed a pledge to support term limits for members of Congress. The pledge is part of an effort by U.S. Term Limits (USTL), a nonpartisan organization focused on advocating for term limits at the federal level.
The USTL pledge states: “I pledge that, as a member of the state legislature, I will cosponsor, vote for, and defend the resolution applying for an Article V convention for the sole purpose of enacting term limits on Congress.”
Nick Tomboulides, Chief Executive Officer of USTL, emphasized that only a Constitutional Amendment can impose term limits on members of Congress. He referenced the 1995 Supreme Court case Thornton v. U.S. Term Limits to support this position. Tomboulides explained that amendments can be proposed either by two-thirds of Congress or by two-thirds of state legislatures through an Article V Proposal Convention.
“The Constitution allows for amendments to be proposed by either 2/3 of Congress or 2/3 of the states. While we’d like for Congress to take the high road and propose term limits on itself, we know they are too self-interested to do that without external pressure,” said Tomboulides. “That is why it is important to get buy-in from state legislators,” he added. Once proposed, the amendment must be ratified by 38 states.”
Tomboulides also noted broad public support for congressional term limits: “More than 87% of Americans have rejected the career politician model and want to replace it with citizen leadership. The way to achieve that goal is through a congressional term limits amendment. Ashley knows this and is willing to work to make sure we reach our goal.”
A recent Pew Research poll found bipartisan backing for congressional term limits, with 87% of adults in favor and just 12% opposed.
U.S. Term Limits describes itself as the largest nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated solely to advocating for congressional term limits.
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