House Speaker Nancy Pelosi signed the Trump impeachment articles at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Wednesday that were then formally delivered to the Senate, where Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said they would be presented.
Pelosi-signed impeachment articles formally sent to Senate
The Democratic-led House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to send two formal charges against President Donald Trump to the Senate, clearing the way for only the third impeachment trial of a U.S. president to begin in earnest next week.
Lawmakers voted 228 to 193 to give the Senate, controlled by Trump's fellow Republicans, the task of putting him on trial on charges of abuse of power for asking Ukraine to investigate political rival Joe Biden and of obstruction of Congress for blocking testimony and documents sought by Democratic lawmakers.
The vote, which also approved a team of seven Democratic lawmakers named by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to serve as prosecutors in the trial, was largely along party lines.
The 100-seat Senate is expected to acquit Trump, keeping him in office, as none of its 53 Republicans has voiced support for removing him, a step that under the U.S. Constitution would require a two-thirds majority.