TERM LIMITS  (CONT)

Jacobs, of U.S. Term Limits, said term limits remain popular with voters. Ballot initiatives to weaken or undo limits have failed in several states, including Arkansas, California, Michigan and Montana, he noted.
He said lobbyists often are the most vigorous opponents of term limits, and he rejected the contention that legislative term limits enhance a governor's power. "If a legislator says 'I'm not smart enough to stop the governor,' the answer is not to get rid of term limits but to elect a new legislator," Jacobs said.
Nine states with term limits allow state lawmakers to run again for the same seat after sitting out for two to four year: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Louisiana, Maine, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio and South Dakota.
The other six states with term limits are stricter and bar lawmakers from returning to the same chamber once they've served their limit. In both cases, legislators forced to retire from one house may run for a seat in the opposite chamber.
Thirty-six states limit gubernatorial terms, with all but two allowing two consecutive terms or eight years in office. Governors may serve 12 years in Utah, and Virginia is the only state that does not allow its governor to seek a second consecutive term.

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