The majority of senators also voted against calling witnesses into the impeachment.
On the evening of Friday 31 January, the US Senate voted 51-49 against calling new evidence or witnesses for President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial.
According to BBC News, Democrats had hoped four swing Republicans would vote in favour of calling the witnesses, which would have extended the trial. Instead, only two of the four Republicans voted with Democrats.
Senate Leader Mitch McConnell said in a statement: “Senators will now confer among ourselves, with the House Managers, and with the President’s counsel to determine next steps as we prepare to conclude the trial in the coming days.”
The trial will now move on to a vote as to whether President Trump should be acquitted entirely, which is widely believed he will win.
The Guardian reported that House manager Adam Schiff made one last appeal to Republicans senators, stating:
“The facts will come out – in all of their horror, they will come out. The witnesses the president is concealing will tell their stories.”
A two-thirds majority in the chamber is required to remove President Trump from office, with the Republicans control the Senate with a 53-47 majority over Democrats.
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