Hegseth Impeachment Vote: 217 House Votes Needed to Pass
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Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) says he will force a House vote this week on impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries says he is a “hard yes.” Impeachment needs only a simple majority of members voting. With 433 members seated, that is 217 if everyone votes. Democrats hold 214 seats, so they need three more votes from the 218 Republicans and one independent. Massie is one of those three. Removing Hegseth is far harder: the Senate would need two-thirds, or 67 of 100 votes.
The House vote math
The Clerk of the House roster on 9 November 2026 shows 218 Republicans, 214 Democrats, one independent and two vacancies, in Florida’s 20th and Texas’s 23rd districts. The independent is Rep. Kevin Kiley of California, who left the GOP in March and said he would still caucus with Republicans for the rest of this term. Seats filled: 433. A majority of 433 is 217. A tie fails.
If all 214 Democrats vote yes and Massie does too, the count is 215. Two more Republicans, or Kiley, would get to 217. The count moves with attendance: only members present and voting count, so absences lower the bar. And Jeffries has not promised a unanimous caucus. Asked whether every Democrat would back it, he said Democrats would “have that conversation Tuesday morning.”
How many Republicans might cross over is unclear. Massie puts the odds of passage at “better than a 50 percent chance” and expects “a handful of Republicans.” The only recent head count to go on is a June Iran war powers resolution that passed 215-208 with four Republicans joining Democrats: Massie, Warren Davidson, Tom Barrett and Brian Fitzpatrick. For scale, Republicans impeached Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in 2024 by 214-213.
How Massie can force a vote
He is using a “privileged” resolution. Any member can give notice that a resolution raises a question of the privileges of the House. If the parliamentarian agrees it qualifies, the Speaker has up to two legislative days to schedule it. Massie says he will give notice this week.
Leaders have a way out. They can move to “table” the resolution, a vote to set it aside that kills it if a majority agrees, or send it to a committee, which also parks it. So the first vote may not be on impeachment itself. If tabling fails, the way is open to a vote on the articles. Massie has said as much.
That is what happened in September. On 15 September, Massie read his 34-page resolution on the floor for more than an hour, a couple of days before the pre-election recess. House leaders canceled the planned votes and Speaker Mike Johnson sent members home early. The two-day clock lapsed, so Massie has to start over.
What the eight articles allege
Articles I to III say Hegseth waged the Iran war in violation of different sections of the War Powers Resolution of 1973. Article IV accuses him of ignoring laws that protect civilians, citing a strike on a school in Minab, Iran, that the text says killed or wounded more than 200 people. Article V covers boat strikes on suspected drug smugglers in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, which it calls extrajudicial killings of at least 221 people. Article VI says he retaliated against Sen. Mark Kelly for telling troops they can refuse illegal orders. Article VII challenges the operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. Article VIII calls the Yemen campaign, Operation Rough Rider, unlawful. Massie says the final text will be “substantially the same eight articles, most likely.” You can read the originals in Massie’s resolution.
What happens if the House impeaches
Impeachment is only the charge. The Senate then holds a trial, and conviction needs two-thirds of senators present: 67 if all 100 are in the chamber. No trial date exists, because nothing has been impeached yet.
The numbers depend on which Senate hears it. The outgoing Senate has 53 Republicans, 45 Democrats and two independents who caucus with Democrats, per Al Jazeera. Against 47 Democratic votes, conviction would need 20 Republicans. The new Senate seated in January 2027 will have at least 54 Democratic seats, NBC News reports, with Alaska and Mississippi still uncalled. That would cut the number to 13. If Democrats won both, they would have 56 and the number would be 11. See our Senate results page and the Trump impeachment math for the same arithmetic.
Precedent: two cabinet secretaries
Only two Cabinet secretaries have ever been impeached. War Secretary William Belknap was impeached on 2 March 1876 and acquitted by the Senate. Mayorkas was impeached on 13 February 2024. The Senate never held a trial: on 17 April 2024 it dismissed the charges as unconstitutional. Hegseth would be the third. Source: History, Art & Archives of the House.
What Hegseth and Trump say
In a video on 5 November, Hegseth called the articles “sham” and Massie a “disgruntled, defeated congressman.” “Didn’t work against President Trump, and it won’t work with me,” he said. Trump said he had “every intention” of keeping him. The White House says Trump has “full confidence” in him. NBC News also reported that two people said Trump has asked allies who might succeed him. Massie says he will not refile if Hegseth resigns.
FAQ
How many Republicans does Massie need?
Three, counting himself, if all 214 Democrats vote yes and all 433 members vote. Fewer if Kiley votes yes or some members are absent.
What is a motion to table?
A vote to set the resolution aside. If a majority votes to table, the impeachment effort ends there, and no vote on the articles is held. If it fails, the House can proceed to the articles.
Would impeachment remove Hegseth?
No. The House only brings charges. Removal needs a Senate conviction by two-thirds of senators present.
Can Democrats try again in January?
Yes. Democrats take control of the House in January, and Newsweek notes the incoming majority could renew the impeachment if this attempt fails.
What happens next
House Democrats meet Tuesday morning to decide how to vote. Massie’s notice starts a two-legislative-day clock. Watch for a motion to table first, then a vote on the articles. If the vote happens, expect the roll call to show how many Republicans broke ranks. We will update this page with the result.
Sources: Clerk of the House, vacancies, History, Art & Archives of the House, Massie’s resolution, NBC News, ABC News, ABC News (15 Sept.), Newsweek, Newsweek (Hegseth), Roll Call, NBC News (Hegseth), NBC News (Senate), CBS News (Senate), Al Jazeera, CBS News (Kiley).
Photo: official portrait of Pete Hegseth, U.S. Department of Defense, public domain (Wikimedia Commons).
By the Around Prague newsroom
