As the leader of the free world, the President of the United States has some heavy burdens on his—or her—shoulders. Logically, you’d probably think that any candidate who wishes to run in a presidential election would need to meet some serious requirements before being sworn into office. In reality, this isn’t the case. Here are the three qualifications you need to meet if you wish to become the U.S. President one day. They’re simpler than you think.
Age
In order to become president, you need to be at least 35 years of age. While age does not necessarily equal competence, the Founding Fathers determined at the Constitutional Convention in 1787 that there should be a minimum age for federal officers. These were 25 years old to serve in the House of Representatives, 30 for the Senate, and 35 for the presidency. For whatever reason, these stipulations remain in effect today.
Citizenship
Any candidate for the U.S. presidency must be a “natural-born citizen”, meaning that they were born within the United States or were born abroad to parents who are U.S. citizens. An American citizen who was naturalized after immigrating to the country is not eligible to run for the nation’s highest office.
A Resident of the Land
While being an American citizen is key to becoming president, it’s not enough to secure your candidacy on its own. Anyone who wants to run for president needs to have lived within the United States for at least 14 years in total throughout their life.