"No Third Term" Wendell Willkie Campaign Button, 1940

In 1940, President Franklin Roosevelt, the Democratic incumbent, ran for an unprecedented third term, breaking the tradition George Washington set that limited a President to eight years in office. Some voters questioned Roosevelt's decision. Republicans certainly did not want a third-term Roosevelt presidency -- they backed Wendell Willkie, and some conservative Democrats also voiced concerns. However, they could not stop Roosevelt's reelection victory.