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The 25th Amendment to the United States Constitution, passed in the 1940s, limited the President to two 4-year terms. Franklin Roosevelt was the only President to serve more than 8 years (1933-1945). In Canada, however, there is no limit to the length of time the Prime Minister can stay in office. William Lyon Mackenzie King currently holds the record for the longest serving Prime Minister, at more than 21 years. Macdonald, Trudeau, and Laurier all served more than 15 years each. On the other end of the scale, Sir Charles Tupper and John Turner both served for just over two months. It also may be interesting to note here that five of Canada's Prime Ministers died in office or as Members of Parliament after being Prime Minister. |
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| Rank | Prime Minister | Dates of Office | Length of Term |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | The Right Honourable William Lyon Mackenzie King | 29 Dec 1921 - 28 Jun 1926 25 Sep 1926 - 7 Aug 1930 23 Oct 1935 - 15 Nov 1948 | 7824 days 21 years, 5 months, and 1 day |
| 2. | The Right Honourable Sir John A. Macdonald | 1 Jul 1867 - 5 Nov 1873 8 Oct 1878 - 6 Jun 1891 | 6934 days 18 years, 11 months, and 24 days |
| 3. | The Right Honourable Pierre Elliott Trudeau | 20 Apr 1968 - 4 Jun 1979 3 Mar 1980 - 30 Jun 1984 | 5640 days 15 years, 5 months, and 9 days |
| 4. | The Right Honourable Sir Wilfrid Laurier | 11 Jul 1896 - 6 Oct 1911 | 5564 days 15 years, 2 months, and 24 days |
| 5. | The Right Honourable Jean Chrétien | 4 Nov 1993 - 12 Dec 2003 | 3690 days 10 years, 1 month, and 8 days |
| 6. | The Right Honourable Stephen Harper | 6 Feb 2006 - 4 Nov 2015 | 3558 days 9 years, 8 months, 29 days |
| 7. | The Right Honourable Brian Mulroney | 17 Sep 1984 - 25 Jun 1993 | 3202 days 8 years, 9 months, and 6 days |
| 8. | The Right Honourable Sir Robert Borden | 10 Oct 1911 - 10 Jul 1920 | 3194 days 8 years, 8 months, and 28 days |
| 9. | The Right Honourable Louis St. Laurent | 15 Nov 1948 - 21 Jun 1957 | 3139 days 8 years, 7 months, and 3 days |
| 10. | The Right Honourable John Diefenbaker | 21 Jun 1957 - 22 Apr 1963 | 2130 days 5 years, 9 months, and 29 days |
| 11. | The Right Honourable Richard Bennett | 7 Aug 1930 - 23 Oct 1935 | 1902 days 5 years, 2 months, and 14 days |
| 12. | The Right Honourable Lester B. Pearson | 22 Apr 1963 - 20 Apr 1968 | 1824 days 4 years, 11 months, and 28 days |
| 13. | The Honourable Alexander Mackenzie | 5 Nov 1873 - 8 Oct 1878 | 1796 days 4 years, 11 months |
| 14. | The Right Honourable Paul Martin | 12 Dec 2003 - 6 Feb 2006 | 787 days 2 years, 1 month, and 25 days |
| 15. | The Right Honourable Sir John Thompson | 5 Dec 1892 - 12 Dec 1894 | 737 days 2 years, and 6 days |
| 16. | The Right Honourable Arthur Meighen | 10 Jul 1920 - 29 Dec 1921 28 Jun 1926 - 25 Sep 1926 | 623 days 1 year, 8 months, and 14 days |
| 17. | The Honourable Sir John Abbott | 6 Jun 1891 - 24 Nov 1892 | 527 days 1 year, 5 months, and 9 days |
| 18. | The Honourable Sir Mackenzie Bowell | 12 Dec 1894 - 27 Apr 1896 | 493 days 1 year, 4 months, and 6 days |
| 19. | The Right Honourable Joe Clark | 4 Jun 1979 - 3 Mar 1980 | 272 days 8 months and 28 days |
| 20. | The Right Honourable Kim Campbell | 25 Jun 1993 - 4 Nov 1993 | 131 days 4 months and 9 days |
| 21. | The Right Honourable John Turner | 30 Jun 1984 - 17 Sep 1984 | 78 days 2 months and 17 days |
| 22. | The Honourable Sir Charles Tupper | 1 May 1896 - 8 Jul 1896 | 68 days 2 months and 7 days |
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