House impeaches Alejandro Mayorkas, first Cabinet secretary to be impeached in almost 150 years

The House of Representatives, by an extremely narrow margin, voted Tuesday to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, the first Cabinet secretary to be impeached in almost 150 years.

The result came one week after the stunning loss House Republicans suffered when they last tried to impeach Mayorkas and GOP defections and an absence sank the initial floor vote, a move Republicans had hoped to use to spotlight the Biden administration’s handling of the southern border.

The impeachment comes as House Republicans have faced building pressure from their base to hold President Joe Biden and his departments and agencies accountable over immigration and border security policies. House Republicans claim Mayorkas has committed high crimes and misdemeanors for his handling of the southern border, even though several constitutional experts have said the evidence does not reach that high bar.

FILE PHOTO: Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas takes his seat to testify before a Senate Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing on the department's budget request on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., May 26, 2021. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

Related article How each US House member voted on impeaching Alejandro Mayorkas

Only one Cabinet official has previously been impeached in American history: Secretary of War William Belknap in 1876.

Tuesday’s vote was 214 to 213. Three Republicans – Ken Buck of Colorado, Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, and Tom McClintock of California – voted with Democrats against the measure.

The Department of Homeland Security said that House Republicans “will be remembered by history for trampling on the Constitution” following the vote to