What would be the procedural steps and timeline if the House voted to impeach President Trump in 2026?

1. How an impeachment formally begins: introduction and referral

Impeachment begins when a member of the House introduces a resolution or articles of impeachment, or when the House directs an inquiry; the resolutions now on the congressional record (H.Res.353, H.Res.537, H.Res.939 among others) are examples of that first formal step in the 119th Congress ^{[4] [5] [6]}. Those texts set out alleged "high crimes and misdemeanors" and, once introduced, are typically referred to the House Judiciary Committee or other investigative committees for action under House rules ^[5].

2. Committee work: investigation, hearings, and drafting articles

Customarily the relevant House committee opens an investigation that can include subpoenas, depositions, document review and public hearings to develop evidence and draft articles; the committee then votes on whether to recommend articles to the full House—this committee phase can take weeks to many months depending on scope and cooperation (sources describe the committee role in prior impeachments and current resolutions, but do not set fixed deadlines) ^{[1] [5]}. The reporting shows multiple, detailed articles already drafted in 2025–26 texts alleging abuse of power and other misconduct, which is the product of that drafting stage ^{[5] [6]}.

3. House floor action: majority vote to impeach and transmit

If the committee recommends impeachment, the full House debates and must adopt each article by a simple majority to impeach; historically that is the decisive floor threshold and has been reaffirmed in explanatory journalism and government summaries of the process ^{[1] [2]}. Once the House adopts articles, they are "exhibited" to the Senate and the House appoints managers to present the case in the Senate trial, a procedural step reflected in the language of current House resolutions ^[5].

4. The Senate trial: who presides and what votes matter

The Senate conducts a trial, and when a president is tried the Supreme Court chief justice presides; conviction on any article requires a two‑thirds majority of sitting senators, the only vote that can remove a president from office ^{[2] [1]}. The Senate can set its own trial rules (time for argument, subpoena power, witness testimony) by majority votes or unanimous consent, so trial length and format vary considerably and are governed by Senate precedent and political negotiations ^[2].

5. Timeline realities and precedents: variable and political

There is no fixed statutory timetable: committee investigations, House debate, and a Senate trial can together span from weeks to many months depending on evidentiary complexity and political will; past impeachments demonstrate wide variation and sources stress that nothing in the record mandates a specific calendar ^{[1] [2]}. Political context matters: reporting in January 2026 emphasizes that Republican control of the House and Senate would create "significant political barriers" to conviction and could shape whether or when proceedings proceed—President Trump himself has framed midterm outcomes as determinative of impeachment prospects ^{[3] [7] [8] [9]}.

6. Political aftermath and limitations of the record

Even if the House impeaches, conviction in the Senate is rare—historically only a handful of federal officials have been removed and presidents remain in office unless two‑thirds of senators vote to convict—and sources note that as of early 2026 formal proceedings had not been completed and political maneuvering continues ^{[2] [7] [10]}. The reporting consulted outlines the constitutional mechanics and current resolutions but does not supply a fixed calendar for 2026 events; any specific timeline projection beyond these structural steps would be speculative and is not contained in the provided sources ^{[4] [5] [6]}.