The U.S. House of Representatives voted 211-204 on Tuesday, November 10, to refer eight articles of impeachment against Hegseth to the House Judiciary Committee. The procedural move effectively stopped the resolution from advancing to a full House debate and vote on the impeachment charges.

Massie, a Republican who represents Kentucky's 4th Congressional District, was the only member of his party to vote against referring the resolution to committee. He joined Democrats in opposing the motion, while the rest of the Republicans who voted supported sending the measure to the committee.

Massie introduced the impeachment resolution, accusing Hegseth of violating the Constitution and federal law through the Trump administration's military operations. Three of the eight articles focused on the war in Iran, alleging that Hegseth continued military action without congressional authorization and disregarded provisions of the War Powers Resolution.

The remaining charges included allegations involving civilian casualties, U.S. military strikes against suspected drug traffickers, retaliation against Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., over his comments about military orders, the operation that captured former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and military operations in Yemen. The allegations are contained in Massie's impeachment resolution and have not been established as findings of wrongdoing.

The vote did not constitute a vote on whether Hegseth should be impeached. Instead, lawmakers voted on whether to refer the resolution to committee, a procedural step that prevents it from moving directly to consideration by the full House. The Judiciary Committee is not required to advance the measure.

President Donald Trump has defended Hegseth and criticized Massie's effort. Massie, meanwhile, has argued that the secretary's actions warrant impeachment regardless of whether lawmakers agree with the administration's military objectives.

Democrats are expected to have another opportunity to pursue impeachment after taking control of the House in January. A successful impeachment would require a majority vote in the House, while removing Hegseth from office would require conviction by a two-thirds majority in the Senate