The House on Tuesday killed a Democratic attempt to impeach President Trump over his administration’s immigration crackdown and deadly shootings involving federal immigration agents, as Democrats split over whether to allow the effort to move forward.
The majority of Democrats opposed a Republican bid to quash the impeachment measure, which was introduced by Representative Al Green of Texas. But dozens of them, including the party’s three House leaders, voted “present,” declining to take a position in a reflection of the dilemma the issue presented as Democrats campaign to take the majority in the midterm elections.
Even as they have regularly condemned Mr. Trump as corrupt and his actions as unlawful, Democratic leaders have tried to keep the party’s message focused on the high cost of living and the economy. Some rank-and-file lawmakers, particularly those in competitive or conservative-leaning districts, have argued that calls for impeachment are a distraction from issues of more concern to a broad swath of voters. Many in the Democratic base, however, have demanded that their elected representatives challenge the president more aggressively.
The top three House Democrats said on Monday night that they would not support Mr. Green’s resolution because he did not undertake a formal impeachment, including a “comprehensive investigative process” or hearings, before bringing his charge to the floor.
“None of that serious work has been done, with the Republican majority focused solely on rubber stamping Donald Trump’s extreme agenda,” those Democrats — Representatives Hakeem Jeffries of New York, Katherine M. Clark of Massachusetts and Pete Aguilar of California — said in a statement.
But the 232-to-147 vote to table the impeachment articles highlighted divisions that the party will need to confront if it wins the House majority and considers using its power to check Mr. Trump. Ultimately, 18 Democrats voted with Republicans to table Mr. Green’s articles of impeachment, while 46 Democrats, including Mr. Jeffries, Ms. Clark and Mr. Aguilar, voted “present.” They were joined by Representative Thomas Massie, the Kentucky Republican who is a frequent critic and target of the president and who separately moved on Tuesday to impeach Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Mr. Green, who will leave Congress at the end of the year after losing a primary in a seat Republicans redistricted, has repeatedly defied his party’s leaders and moved to impeach Mr. Trump, including twice last year. All of his efforts have been defeated in bipartisan procedural votes.
In a speech on the House floor, Mr. Green acknowledged he had been “a proponent of impeachment for years.” But he also took a swipe at members of his party who did not back his effort, saying that “anything other than a vote to impeach” Mr. Trump was akin to supporting the president.
“It is hard for me to believe that we have Democrats who are going to vote to maintain the president in office,” he said.
Tuesday’s vote suggested a continued shift in Democrats’ approach, particularly as they prepare for potential control of the House and try to animate their base to vote in November.
When Mr. Green tried to impeach Mr. Trump in June 2025 over military strikes in Iran, most Democrats voted with Republicans to kill the measure. When Mr. Green introduced an impeachment effort months later accusing Mr. Trump of inciting violence and threats against lawmakers and judges, most Democrats voted against Republicans’ efforts to kill it.
Representative Adelita Grijalva, Democrat of Arizona, said that she believed Mr. Trump deserved to be impeached and rejected the idea of voting “present” over procedural concerns. “I think that my constituents in Southern Arizona sent me here to vote yea or nay, and that’s what I’m going to do,” she said.
The vote reflected a shift among Democrats, who spent much of the first year of Mr. Trump’s second term pointedly avoiding impeachment talk out of concern that their two efforts to remove the president during his first term may have politically benefited Mr. Trump and contributed to his return to power.
As Republicans try to hold onto their narrow majority, they have highlighted Democrats’ support for impeachment as part of an effort to present them as radical.
Olivia Diaz contributed reporting.
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