Can anyone become President of the United States?
When kids are asked what they want to be when they grow up, you’ll hear at least a few say that they want to become President.
That’s a great aspiration to have, but the founding fathers included guidelines in the Constitution detailing the requirements for presidential candidates.
Before we dive in, I’d love to share the Election 2024 Map that I’m using with my students. Grab it here:
A Presidential Candidate Must…
The Constitution tells us that an individual seeking the presidency must:
- Be 35 years of age or older
- Have been born in the United States
- Have lived inside the United States for at least 14 years
As you can see, the requirements are fairly straightforward.
One question that comes up with students: “Why didn’t they specify that women could or could not become president?”
This question is so interesting to me because the founding fathers mostly used gender neutral language in the Constitution.
When the Constitution was written, women didn’t have the right to vote or hold office. Women had few, if any, legal rights.
Did the founding fathers just “assume” that women would never enter a presidential election OR did they purposely leave gender out of the requirements because they thought that future generations may see female presidential candidates?
I’d love to hear what you think!
Can he/she become President of the United States?
We can easily help students understand the Constitutional requirements for President.
Just choose a few celebrities, hometown personalities, or other people who your students would know.
Decide whether or not the person could become president by asking students to find out how old the person is, where they were born, and how long they’ve lived inside the United States.
Students really enjoy using the Constitutional criteria to decide if their favorite celebrities are eligible to become president!
This no prep, completely fair, ready-to-use resource is what I’m using with my students during the election cycle:
