Terms of Office

The following charts show the terms of office for federal, state and judicial offices in North Carolina.

Federal

Table 1: Federal Terms of Office by Governing Statute
OfficeTerms of OfficeGoverning Statute
President4 years; Two-term limitU.S. Const. Art II, § 1
Vice President4 years; No term limitU.S. Const. Art II, § 1
U.S. Senator6 years; No term limitU.S. Const. Art 1, § 3
U.S. Representative2 years; No term limitU.S. Const. Art 1, § 2

Statewide

Table 2: North Carolina Statewide Terms of Office by Governing Statute
OfficeTerms of OfficeGoverning Statute
Governor4 years; limited to two consecutive termsN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Lt. Governor4 years; limited to two consecutive termsN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Secretary of State4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
State Auditor4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
State Treasurer4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
State Superintendent of Public Instruction4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Attorney General4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Commissioner of Agriculture4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Commissioner of Labor4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7
Commissioner of Insurance4 years; No term limitN.C. Const. Art. III, §§ 2, 7

General Assembly

Table 3: North Carolina General Assembly Terms of Office by Governing Statute
OfficeTerms of OfficeGoverning Statute
North Carolina State Senator2 years; no term limitN.C. Const. Art. II, § 2
North Carolina State Representative2 years; no term limitN.C. Const. Art. II, § 4

Judicial

Table 4: North Carolina Judicial Terms of Office by Governing Statute
OfficeTerms of OfficeGoverning Statute
District Attorney4 yearsN.C. Const. Art. IV, § 18
Supreme Court Justices8 yearsN.C. Const. Art. IV, § 16
Appellate Court Judges8 yearsN.C. Const. Art. IV, § 16
Superior Court Judges8 yearsN.C. Const. Art. IV, § 16
District Court Judges4 yearsN.C. Const. Art. IV, § 10
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