Democrats lambast absent peers after Republicans block Hegseth impeachment attempt
Democrats lambast absent peers after Republicans block Hegseth impeachment attempt
Democratic lawmakers expressed outrage at nearly a dozen of their colleagues for missing a vote Tuesday evening to impeach the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, allowing Republicans to defeat the effort.
Eleven Democrats missed the key procedural vote on the impeachment effort, which failed by just seven votes. Some blamed traffic and conflicting events and others accused Speaker Mike Johnson of closing the vote early. Many of those not in the Capitol said they support the effort to impeach Hegseth.
“You should show up and do your job,” Abdul El-Sayed, the senator-elect of Michigan, said on CNN to the Democratic lawmakers Tuesday.
Richard Ojeda, the representative-elect of North Carolina, told CNN that the Democratic representatives “failed” by not voting.
“Shame on them for not showing up,” Ojeda said on Tuesday. “I mean, this is important … they had an opportunity to finally get rid of this buffoonery we had.”
The missing Democrats gave House Republicans the numbers to shelve the impeachment effort by voting 211 – 204 to refer eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth to a House committee.
Speaking at Arlington national cemetery to mark Veterans Day, Donald Trump praised Hegseth and said he had done a “fantastic job” as the Pentagon head.
“I had a feeling that was going to happen,” the president said of the failed effort to impeach Hegseth, adding: “He loves you, and he protects you – he’s all about you.”
The articles, introduced by Republican Thomas Massie, included charges of violating congressional authority by waging war in Iran. The effort came after voters overwhelming cast ballots for Democratic candidates in the 2026 midterms, largely in rebuke of the Trump administration’s policies – including the war in Iran.
Sydney Kamlager-Dove, a representative from California, told MeidasTouch there was “no reason why we should have lost this vote because of attendance issues”.
“This is what the people have been talking about … so shame on folks who were not here because these people lost,” Kamlager-Dove added.
Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico wrote on X that she was “blocked from entering the Capitol to vote due to a traffic incident and a police escort of a bus during the vote”.
“When she reached the chamber the vote had just gaveled out. She immediately filed a report of her vote of ‘NO’ to the motion meant to kill the impeachment articles and refer them to the Judiciary Committee, as documented in the Congressional Record,” Stansbury wrote, adding that Hegseth “must be impeached now”.
Laura Gillen of New York similarly wrote on X she too was stuck in traffic but “strongly” believes Hegseth should be impeached. Jonathan Jackson, of Illinois, wrote on X that he also was stuck behind the traffic jam.
Brittany Pettersen of Colorado wrote on X that she was “denied” the ability to vote. Member of Pettersen’s office later told 9News she too was stuck in traffic.
Julia Brownley of California wrote on Facebook that Johnson “closed the vote” before she could make it to the House floor.
“As I and many of my colleagues were rushing to the floor to support Hegseth’s impeachment, Mike Johnson closed the vote before we could,” Brownley wrote.
Marilyn Strickland of Washington also missed the vote by one minute because she was stuck behind a motocade, but that she would have voted to impeach Hegseth, Strickland’s office told Politico.
Nancy Pelosi of California missed the vote because she was in San Francisco to meet with local veterans and accept a Lifetime Advocate for Veterans Award, Pelosi’s spokesperson told SFGate.
Lou Correa of California wrote on Instagram that he was undergoing a medical procedure and remaining in his district until he was medically cleared.
Steven Horsford of Nevada, Haley Stevens of Michigan and Frederica Wilson of Florida did not provide public reasons for their absence on Tuesday.
Several Democratic lawmakers who did vote on the effort to impeach Hegseth noted that they were also busy with other life events but still made their way to the Capitol.
Pat Ryan of New York wrote on X that he was recovering from back surgery but left the hospital early in order to cast his vote.
Congressman Glenn Ivey, a Maryland Democrat, called the absence of the 11 lawmakers during Tuesday’s vote “certainly disappointing”, but said there would be “other chances” to advance impeachment efforts.
In an interview, Ivey said he was “absolutely” supportive of renewing the push when Democrats regain control of both chambers in January.
At the same time, he argued that voters made clear that concerns about the cost of living remain their top priority.
“There aren’t a lot of people, in my district anyway, [whose ability] to stay in their house depends on whether Hegseth gets impeached or not,” Ivey said. “We’ve been calling it the affordability agenda, but I think for many people, it’s really a survivability agenda, and we need to be focused on that.”
• This story was updated on 11 November 2026. A previous version incorrectly stated that Brittany Pettersen is a lawmaker from California; she is from Colorado.
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