The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to send the Senate two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump, appointing seven Democrats to prosecute the case and initiating only the third presidential impeachment trial in American history.
The 228-193 vote came almost a month after the House impeached Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, formally accusing him of seeking foreign election assistance from Ukraine and then trying to conceal his actions from a House inquiry. Like that earlier vote, Wednesday’s fell largely along party lines.
Only one Democrat, Rep Collin C Peterson of Minnesota, joined every Republican in voting “no.”
Earlier Wednesday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced the lawmakers who would serve as prosecutors, or managers, of the case. Both chambers were also grappling Wednesday with a trove of new documents related to Trump’s pressure campaign that played into Democrats’ arguments that any trial must include new witnesses and evidence. More material was expected to be disclosed, according to an official working on the impeachment inquiry.
At the White House, Trump denounced the inquiry anew as a “hoax” and encouraged Republicans to rally to his defence shortly before the vote.
As expected, the House prosecution team will be led by Reps Adam B Schiff of California, chairman of the Intelligence Committee who led the Ukraine inquiry.
He will be joined by Reps Jerrold Nadler of New York, chairman of the Judiciary Committee; Zoe Lofgren of California; Hakeem Jeffries of New York; Val B Demings of Florida; Jason Crow of Colorado; and Sylvia R Garcia of Texas. Crow and Garcia are both first-term members.
The managers are scheduled to reconvene in the Capitol at 5pm to finalise the articles with Pelosi in a formal “engrossment ceremony” that will mark the beginning of an elaborate ritual. From there, accompanied by the House clerk and sergeant-at-arms, the managers will file from the House, through the old House chamber and the Capitol Rotunda to the Senate, where Democrats will present the articles to the secretary of the Senate.
