Capital Closeup: Term-limits changes on November 2026 ballots in two Midwest states

Term limits is coming back to the ballot in two Midwestern states, this time as the subject of two legislatively referred constitutional amendments approved in 2025 by the Nebraska and North Dakota legislatures. Both measures seek to alter, rather than abolish, legislative term limits previously approved by voters in those two states.

Nebraska’s law dates back 25 years and prevents members of the Unicameral Legislature from serving more than two consecutive, four-year terms in office. The proposed constitutional amendment would allow up to 12 years of consecutive legislative service. “By adding one term to the current term limit, we can allow senators to represent their constituents [when] they’re most knowledgeable and effective,” Nebraska Sen. Robert Dover, the sponsor of LR 19CA, said in committee testimony.

Sixteen U.S. states currently have legislative term limits. The most recent such law was enacted by North Dakota voters in 2022 — a lifetime cap of eight years in the House and eight years in the Senate. Under the change being sought by legislators, members could serve up to four four-year terms, amounting to a total of 16 years, regardless of legislative chamber.

In his floor testimony in favor of SCR 4008, North Dakota Sen. Michael Dwyer said his work as a legislator has been positively impacted by the guidance of more-experienced colleagues. Allowing members to serve longer in the House or Senate will allow this kind of legislator-to-legislator mentoring and support to continue, he said.

Michigan voters changed the state’s term-limits law in 2022, supporting a legislatively referred constitutional amendment. The previous law had set lifetime limits of three two-year terms in the House and two four-year terms in the Senate. Now, the lifetime cap is set at 12 years (instead of 14), but all of those years can be spent in a single chamber. Legislators sought this tweak, in part, to allow for more legislative continuity and institutional knowledge in each chamber.

Capital Closeup is an ongoing series of CSG Midwest articles focusing on institutional issues in state governments and legislatures.