House Blocks Hegseth Impeachment 211-204, Sending Massie's Eight Articles to Committee
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 211-204 on Tuesday evening, November 10, 2026, to send Rep. Thomas Massie's eight articles of impeachment against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee — a procedural move that effectively killed the effort to impeach a sitting Cabinet secretary, just one day after Massie forced the vote.
Rep. Darrell Issa, a California Republican, offered the motion to refer the resolution to committee at 5:34 p.m. Eastern. The House Clerk recorded the motion as agreed to by the yeas and nays under Roll Call 317 at 6:02 p.m. Eastern. The referral means the House will not vote on the articles themselves, and the dramatic final vote that had been expected on Wednesday, November 11, is now off the table.
The short answer: On Tuesday, November 10, 2026, the House voted 211-204 to refer Rep. Thomas Massie's impeachment resolution against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to the Judiciary Committee. The referral effectively kills the impeachment push: all Democrats present voted to keep it alive, while every Republican except Massie himself voted to send it to committee. Hegseth is not impeached, and no trial will take place in the Senate.
How the Vote Went Down on Tuesday Evening
The House took up the resolution, formally titled "Impeaching Peter Brian Hegseth, Secretary of Defense, for high crimes and misdemeanors" and numbered H.Res.1655, as a privileged matter at 5:33 p.m. Eastern. Because Massie filed the 34-page resolution as a privileged resolution on Monday, November 9, House leaders had two legislative days to deal with it — by voting on the articles, tabling them, or referring them to a committee. Republican leaders chose the third option.
The recorded vote began at 5:35 p.m. Eastern. A simple majority was all the referral motion needed, and it passed by seven votes. It was the only substantive vote the House held on Tuesday, and it came at the end of a day in which Hegseth himself had addressed the effort head-on. At his first Pentagon news briefing since May, held at 8 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday, Hegseth called the impeachment push a "farce" and a "political spectacle" driven by policy disagreements over the Trump administration's military operations. On Monday he had said simply, "We're not worried about that."
Massie had warned in advance that this was how it would play out. In a post on X on Tuesday, he wrote that the first vote would be "on a procedural motion to kill the resolution such as motion to 'refer to committee,'" adding: "If we can overcome that effort, we will proceed to a real debate and vote on the Articles of Impeachment." The effort was not overcome.
The Vote Breakdown: Massie Stands Alone Among Republicans
The 211-204 tally tells the story of a party that closed ranks. All Democrats present voted against the referral — in other words, they voted to keep the impeachment effort alive and force a vote on the articles themselves. All Republicans except Massie voted for the referral. Massie, the Kentucky Republican who wrote and filed the eight articles, was the sole Republican to vote against sending his own resolution to committee.
House Speaker Mike Johnson secured the win for Republican leadership, even as he prepares to leave the speakership. The Associated Press reported that the vote came as Republicans grapple with the fallout from sweeping midterm losses last week, which some in the party have blamed on the war in Iran and the resulting surge in gas prices. The narrow margin — seven votes — also reflects the House's razor-thin balance: 219 Republicans, 214 Democrats, one independent, and two empty seats, for a total of 434 members. Of those, 415 cast votes on Tuesday evening.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had called himself a "hard yes" on impeaching Hegseth, backed the effort, as did every Democrat who voted. But with only Massie breaking from the Republican side, the pro-impeachment camp fell well short of the simple majority that impeachment itself would have required. As covered in our earlier report on Massie forcing the House vote, the math had always been daunting: Democrats plus Massie made 215 votes, three short of the 218 needed if all 434 members voted.
What the Eight Articles Charged
The resolution Massie filed on Monday accused Hegseth of high crimes and misdemeanors across eight articles. Three of the articles charged Hegseth with waging the war with Iran in violation of the War Powers Resolution of 1973, the post-Vietnam law that limits how long U.S. forces can remain in hostilities without Congress's approval. The articles allege the war was waged with no declaration of war, no statutory authorization, no attack on the United States, and no imminent threat. The United States entered hostilities against Iran on February 28, 2026.
The remaining five articles alleged that Hegseth ignored laws requiring the military to minimize civilian casualties; ordered extrajudicial killings in the lethal strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats, a campaign Massie's office says has killed at least 243 people; retaliated against Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona for protected speech; seized Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and Cilia Flores without authority; and waged an unlawful war in Yemen.
It is important to be clear about what the resolution was: the articles are allegations in a political charging document. They are not findings by a court, a military tribunal, or an inspector general, and Hegseth has not been charged with any crime. Tuesday's vote did not judge whether the allegations were true — it decided only that the House would not vote on them now. Follow the latest developments in Washington here as the lame-duck session continues.
Why This Vote Matters — and Why the Fight May Not Be Over
Tuesday's result is a clear victory for Hegseth and for President Donald Trump, who has backed his defense secretary throughout the push. Had the House voted to impeach, Hegseth would have become only the third Cabinet secretary impeached in American history, and the case would have gone to the Senate, where removal from office would require a two-thirds vote. Instead, the referral to committee buries the resolution in the same place where most House measures quietly die — and the Judiciary Committee is under no obligation to take it up.
But the Associated Press noted that the vote may only delay an impeachment push against Hegseth. Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate in last week's midterm elections, and they take office at noon Eastern on January 3, 2027. A Democratic-led House could revive the articles — or file new ones — with a majority of its own. For now, though, the lame-duck Republican majority has spoken, and the defense secretary keeps his job.
The vote also fits a pattern in this Congress: in September, the House voted 220-204 to direct the president to pull U.S. forces out of the war with Iran, with seven Republicans joining Democrats — the largest Republican break on the war yet. On Tuesday, only one Republican broke ranks, and he broke the other way. The difference between September and November is the difference between a symbolic war-powers vote and a vote to impeach a Cabinet secretary in the middle of a war. As covered in our report on Trump saying the Iran war is "effectively over", the administration insists the conflict is winding down — a claim the impeachment fight put directly in question.
For Massie, who lost his primary this spring and is retiring at the end of this Congress, Tuesday was the final act of a two-month campaign. His first attempt died on September 15, 2026, when Speaker Johnson sent the House home a day early. His second attempt forced a real vote — and lost it, 211-204.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What did the House vote on Tuesday, November 10, 2026?
The House voted 211-204 on a motion to refer Rep. Thomas Massie's impeachment resolution against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (H.Res.1655) to the House Judiciary Committee. The motion was offered by Rep. Darrell Issa and recorded as agreed to under Roll Call 317 at 6:02 p.m. Eastern.
Does the 211-204 vote mean Pete Hegseth was impeached?
No. The House did not vote on the eight articles of impeachment themselves. It voted to send the resolution to committee, which effectively kills the effort in this Congress. Hegseth was not impeached, and no Senate trial will take place.
How did the parties vote on the Hegseth impeachment referral?
All Democrats present voted against the referral, meaning they wanted the impeachment effort to proceed to a vote on the articles. All Republicans except Rep. Thomas Massie voted for the referral. Massie, who filed the articles, was the sole Republican to vote against sending his own resolution to committee.
What were the eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth?
The 34-page resolution charged Hegseth with high crimes and misdemeanors, including three violations of the War Powers Resolution of 1973 over the war with Iran, ignoring laws that minimize civilian casualties, extrajudicial killings in strikes on suspected drug-trafficking boats, retaliation against Senator Mark Kelly, the seizure of Nicolás Maduro, and an unlawful war in Yemen.
Could the impeachment effort against Hegseth come back?
Yes, possibly. Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate in the midterm elections and take office at noon Eastern on January 3, 2027. A Democratic-led House could revive the articles or file new ones. The Associated Press reported that Tuesday's vote may only delay an impeachment push.
What did Hegseth say about the impeachment effort?
At his first Pentagon news briefing since May, held at 8 a.m. Eastern on Tuesday, November 10, Hegseth called the impeachment effort a "farce" and a "political spectacle" driven by policy disagreements. On Monday he had said, "We're not worried about that." President Donald Trump has backed Hegseth, and Speaker Mike Johnson opposes the effort.
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