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BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaAlejandro Mayorkas: House Republicans fails to impeach US homeland security secretaryPublished31 minutes agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, Getty ImagesThe Republican-led House of Representatives has failed to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas over the migrant crisis at the US-Mexico border. Four Republicans broke ranks and joined all Democratic members of the chamber in voting 216-214 against impeachment.Opponents of US President Joe Biden blame Mr Mayorkas for a surge in illegal immigration at the border.The White House said there was no basis for removing the cabinet official.Three Republicans, Ken Buck of Colorado, Tom McClintock of California and Mike Gallagher of Wisconsin, voted no on Tuesday evening. A fourth, Blake Moore of Utah, switched his vote from yes to no, possibly for procedural reasons.Even if the House had passed the vote, Mr Mayorkas was unlikely to have been found guilty by the Democratic-controlled Senate.The impeachment proceedings were initiated by Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican, and after the vote she said she would try again.”My colleagues who voted no, I think they’ll be hearing from their constituents,” she told reporters outside the Capitol.Signs of dissent among Republicans had become apparent earlier in the day. Mr McClintock said on Tuesday morning he would vote against impeachment as the measures “fail to identify an impeachable crime that Mayorkas has committed” and “stretch and distort the Constitution”.Impeachment, a process set out in the US Constitution, is the first step in removing a federal official. It results in a removal from office only if two-thirds of senators vote in favour. Democrats currently have a slight majority in the Senate.No cabinet secretary has been impeached for nearly 150 years.A Department of Homeland Security spokeswoman said in a statement: “This baseless impeachment should never have moved forward; it faces bipartisan opposition and legal experts resoundingly say it is unconstitutional. “If House Republicans are serious about border security, they should abandon these political games,” it added.Image source, Library of CongressImage caption, William Belknap was the last cabinet secretary to be impeached after facing allegations of corruption in 1876House Republicans held two hearings in January and charged Mr Mayorkas with failing to enforce immigration policies and lying to lawmakers about whether the southern border was secure. The secretary did not testify during the hearings. Border security has become a critical issue for the Biden administration. A January poll conducted by CBS – the BBC’s US partner – suggests that nearly half of Americans view the situation at the border as a crisis, with 63% saying that the administration should adopt “tougher” policies. More than 6.3 million migrants are known to have entered the US illegally since Mr Biden took office in 2021. About 2.4 million were allowed into the US, where the majority wait for immigration court dates in which they can make a case for asylum. The system is so overwhelmed that this can take years.This week, a bipartisan group of US senators announced a bill that would step up border enforcement efforts as well as provide additional aid for Ukraine and Israel. 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