Home > 4.2 Presidential elections > Report on Term-Limits Part I - Presidents
 
 
 
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Term limits aim to protect a democracy from becoming a de facto dictatorship. Furthermore, term limits may strengthen a democratic society, as they impose the logic of political transition as a predictable event in public affairs. They can be “important mechanisms to safeguard against “winner-take-all” politics”. They also keep alive the opposition parties’ hope of gaining power in the near future through institutionalized procedures, with little incentive to seize power in a coup. Term limits therefore aim to protect human rights, democracy and the rule of law, which are legitimate aims within the meaning of international standards.