Removing a Cabinet Secretary Requires a Two-Thirds Senate Vote
The Constitution grants Congress the power to impeach any civil officer, but the path to removing a department head is narrow and rarely traveled.
By Grace Almasi ·
Only two Cabinet secretaries have ever been impeached in U.S. history. William W. Belknap, the War Secretary under President Ulysses S. Grant, was the first. He resigned hours before the House voted to impeach him in 1876. The second was Alejandro Mayorkas, the Homeland Security Secretary in the Biden administration, whom the House narrowly impeached in February 2024.
Article II, Section 4 of the Constitution provides the legal basis for these actions. The clause states that the President, Vice President, and all civil officers of the United States shall be removed from office upon impeachment and conviction for treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors. Cabinet secretaries fall under the category of civil officers.
The process begins in the House of Representatives. Lawmakers must introduce a resolution or form a committee to investigate alleged misconduct. The House then decides whether to formally charge the official through articles of impeachment. A simple majority of the House is required to pass these charges and technically impeach the secretary.
Following impeachment, the case moves to the Senate for a trial. The Constitution explicitly mandates that the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court presides over presidential trials. For Cabinet secretaries, the rules are less defined, leaving it unclear who oversees the proceedings. The Senate must then vote on the charges.
Impeachment does not remove an official from their position. It is a formal accusation. A secretary can continue serving while the Senate deliberates. Removal requires a conviction, which demands a two-thirds vote in the Senate. This threshold is significantly higher than the simple majority needed in the House to initiate the process.
Belknap was accused of accepting bribes in a trading post scandal. Despite his resignation, the House voted to impeach him, and the Senate subsequently acquitted him. In the case of Mayorkas, the Senate dismissed the case two months after the House vote. The Senate determined the charges did not meet constitutional standards. Mayorkas remained in his role until President Joe Biden left office in January 2025.
The definition of high crimes and misdemeanors is not strictly limited to violations of criminal statutes. Historically, the power has been used to address abuses of official power and breaches of public trust. The high bar for removal reflects the constitutional intent to keep department heads in their posts unless there is a substantial consensus of misconduct.
