WI the US had instituted a cursus honorum instead of an age requirement for the Presidency?

[Alstein]

My idea is perhaps a requirement of something like 6 years of federal legislative experience combined with a term of state executive experience such as governor, or being given the rank of general (this part would be so Washington could be first president) ?

Perhaps an amendment later to allow large-city mayorships to count (if population exceeds that of a state) in the Progressive era.

How would this have impacted American history/politics, especailly early on?

 

[bpbruce]

Maybe do this with judges- governors go on state courts, Presidents go to the Supremes. With presidents we've already got too many oldies who lack the stamina for the job.

 

[FairlyUninformedGraduate]

Were there many Presidents who didn't have a few years of experience of Federal government iotl? I can see that needing Federal experience PLUS governorship might limit the pool shall we say. My uneducated guess is it would be even more plutocratic and oligarchic, as it takes lots of money to get Senate and Governor posts and doubtless aspiring politicians would even more than iotl need friends in high places. Rather like ancient Rome itself, in fact!

 

[Tonifranz]

Were there many Presidents who didn't have a few years of experience of Federal government iotl?

About 12

We have: Donald Trump, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Dwight Eisenhower, Woodrow Wilson, Grover Cleveland, Rutherford Hayes, Ulysses S Grant, Zachary Taylor, George Washington

 

[FairlyUninformedGraduate]

About 12

We have: Donald Trump, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Dwight Eisenhower, Woodrow Wilson, Grover Cleveland, Rutherford Hayes, Ulysses S Grant, Zachary Taylor, George Washington

Thanks, I suspected there were a few but my US history isn't strong enough to figure it out. So in essence, a Cursus Honorum would limit the field even further? I'm assuming a number of those who did have 6 years plus federal experience didn't necessarily have experience as a governor - so in order to meet that criteria people would throw money at getting themselves the bare minimum and 95% of the population wouldn't even consider it possible for them (or is that OTL? ). My guess is that the system would become unworkable and would need overhauling within a few decades as the same names (and their kids) would keep coming up at elections and the electorate start getting fatigued. Perhaps make it Senate OR Congress OR state Governorship experience? Perhaps have equivalents - Generals were mentioned, but perhaps broadened to other professions?

 

[FairlyUninformedGraduate]

Another possibility would be a sort of civil service apprenticeship rather like a beefed up civil service fast stream we have int he uk - graduates sign up and spend five years rotating between different postings (Homeland security, defence, health and social security, overseas etc) and atthe end are eligible to runin elections and need only a short stint to qualify. the pool of places on the scheme would be much larger than than number of elected posts, and would form a more meritocratic route in, whilst the other routes remain open and are used by the rich?

 

[Alstein]

About 12

We have: Donald Trump, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Dwight Eisenhower, Woodrow Wilson, Grover Cleveland, Rutherford Hayes, Ulysses S Grant, Zachary Taylor, George Washington

Many would be exempt due to the general requirement. Most of the rest were governors and would just need a legistive term

 

[George Washington]

About 12

We have: Donald Trump, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Dwight Eisenhower, Woodrow Wilson, Grover Cleveland, Rutherford Hayes, Ulysses S Grant, Zachary Taylor, George Washington

Actually, even more. Chester A. Arthur was a New York customs collector and was elected VP to James Garfield, who died a couple of weeks into his term. Lincoln only had one House of Representatives term to boast, and that was a decade before he was elected. To meet the requirements, (assuming cabinet positions count) , only these U.S. President ITTL qualify:

1. George Washington
2. John Adams
3. Thomas Jefferson
4. James Madison
5. James Monroe
6. John Quincy Adams
7. Martin Van Buren
8. James K. Polk
9. Millard Fillmore
10. Franklin Pierce
11. James Buchanan
12. Andrew Johnson
13. Rutherford B. Hayes
14. James Garfield
15. Chester A. Arthur
16. Grover Cleveland
17. Benjamin Harrison
18. Grover Cleveland
19. Franklin D. Roosevelt
20. Harry S. Truman
21. Dwight D. Eisenhower
22. John F. Kennedy
23. Lyndon B. Johnson
24. Richard M. Nixon
25. Gerald R. Ford
26. James Carter
27. Ronald Reagan
28. George H. W. Bush
29. William J. Clinton
30. George W. Bush
31. Barack Obama

John Tyler only had five years of experience. Lincoln only had four years in the house. Assuming the six year apply to a general, Ulysses S. Grant is out, as well as William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, and even Andrew Jackson. Benjamin Harrison barely qualifies. Theodore Roosevelt is out too, as well as William Howard Taft (partially because he was ineligible with the requirement, and his two-year cabinet term was under T. Roosevelt. Woodrow Wilson is out. Harding, Coolidge and Hoover are gone (Hoover's position is butterflied away as Harding and Coolidge are ineligible). Finally, Trump is out with no government experience at all. The list above is the 31 eligible presidents, but most would probably be butterflied away. Jackson would probably get his experience somewhere else, and get elected, but most others are likely gone for good.