Trump leaves door open for unprecedented third term as US president

US President Donald Trump has again refused to rule out running for an unprecedented third term in the White House, saying that he would "love to do it".

Speaking to journalists aboard Air Force One while travelling from Malaysia to Tokyo on Monday, Trump said he had his "best numbers ever" as he referred to the possibility of a third term.

When asked by a journalist whether he was not ruling out a third term, the US president said: "Am I not ruling it out? I mean you'll have to tell me."

However, Trump did say he would not run for the vice-presidency in the 2028 US election.

Some of his supporters have suggested Trump could run as the next president’s VP and, if the ticket won, that he could simply replace that person if they resigned.

"I'd be allowed to do that," Trump said on Monday.

But he said that he would not go down that route.

"I wouldn't do that. I think it's too cute. Yeah, I would rule that out because it's too cute. I think the people wouldn't like that. It's too cute. It's not — it wouldn't be right," he said.

The 22nd Amendment of the US Constitution stipulates that "no person shall be elected to the office of the president more than twice". This applies to both consecutive and non-consecutive terms.

The US Constitution also states that only people qualified to be president can be vice president, which would appear to prevent Trump from pursuing the route proposed by some of his supporters.

In response to a question about whether he would be willing to fight in court over the legality of seeking a third term, Trump said: "I haven't really thought about it."

Backing for Vance and Rubio

Yet, Trump, who will be 82 when his term ends, has also repeatedly said that this will be his last presidency.

On Monday, he praised Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, calling them "great people" who could run for office in 2028.

"I think if they ever formed a group, it'd be unstoppable," Trump said. "I really do. I believe that."

His comments come a week after Steve Bannon, a conservative commentator and former Trump adviser, said that there was "a plan" to get Trump elected for a third term.

Meanwhile, over the weekend, former US vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris — who lost to Trump last November — told the BBC that she was not ruling out running again in 2028.