What citizenship is required to be President?

• A. Dual citizen
• B. Citizen by birth abroad
• C. Natural-born
• D. Naturalized

Answer: (C)

Being eligible to be President hinges on being a natural-born citizen. Natural-born means you’re a citizen from birth—not someone who later becomes a citizen through naturalization. In practice, this usually means you were born in the United States, or born abroad to U.S. citizen parents under the laws in effect at birth, so allegiance is established at birth. The other paths—being a dual citizen, being born abroad but not qualifying as natural-born, or becoming a citizen through naturalization—do not meet the constitutional requirement.