A majority of senators voted Saturday to convict former President Donald Trump on an impeachment charge of inciting an insurrection at the U.S Capitol.
But the Democrats’ side needed 17 Republicans to join them in order to reach the two-thirds threshold needed to convict.
Seven GOP senators voted with Democrats — the most bipartisan impeachment vote in U.S. history, but well short of the 17 needed to convict the former president.
Of those seven Republicans, two are retiring and only one — Alaska’s Lisa Murkowski — faces her state’s voters in the next election cycle, 2022.
Here’s a closer look at the seven GOP senators who broke ranks with their party and some of the political calculations they face back home.
Senator: Richard Burr, North Carolina
Vote explanation: Burr’s vote to convict was largely unexpected. According to Capitol Hill reporters in the chamber during the vote, there were audible “wows” and rumblings from senators when he cast his vote. He had previously voted to dismiss the trial on the basis of constitutionality.
In a statement, Burr said he did “not make this decision lightly, but I believe it is necessary.”
“When this process started, I believed that it was unconstitutional to impeach a president who was no longer in office,” he said. “I still believe that to be the case. However, the Senate is an institution based on precedent, and given that the majority in the Senate voted to proceed with this trial, the question of constitutionality is now established precedent.”
He said he listened to the arguments from both sides and the “facts are clear.”
“The evidence is compelling that President Trump is guilty of inciting an insurrection against a coequal branch of government and that the charge rises to the level of high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
Political situation: Burr, who’s served in the Senate since 2005, announced years ago that this term would be his last.
Michael Whatley, the chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, released a statement on Saturday blasting Burr for his vote.
“North Carolina Republicans sent Sen. Burr to the United States Senate to uphold the Constitution and his vote today to convict in a trial that he declared unconstitutional is shocking and disappointing,” he said.
Meanwhile, former Congressman Mark Walker, who is running for the retiring Burr’s seat in the 2022 election, immediately tweeted “wrong vote.”
“I am running to replace Richard Burr because North Carolina needs a true conservative champion as their next senator,” he wrote.
Senator: Bill Cassidy, Louisiana
Vote explanation: Cassidy posted a video to Twitter after the trial, saying: “Our Constitution and our country is more important than any one person. I voted to convict President Trump because he is guilty.”
On ABC on Sunday he added that “it was clear that [Trump] wished that lawmakers be intimidated” while they counted electoral votes, and that he didn’t act quickly to dissuade the violent mob.
Political situation: The backlash to Cassidy’s vote to convict was swift. The state GOP voted unanimously to censure him, releasing a statement saying it condemns Cassidy’s action.
“Fortunately, clearer heads prevailed and President Trump has been acquitted of the impeachment charge filed against him,” the Republican Party of Louisiana statement read.
Cassidy just won reelection a few months ago, by 40 percentage points, and won’t face voters again until 2026. Additionally, Louisiana has an open primary system, which could insulate him some from a Republican challenge.
Sen. Susan Collins, seen here during a confirmation hearing on Feb. 4, had previously voted to acquit Trump during his first impeachment trial.
Graeme Jennings/Pool/Getty Images
Senator: Susan Collins, Maine
Vote explanation: After Trump was acquitted, Collins delivered a 16-minute address from the Senate floor about her decision to vote to convict.
“This impeachment trial is not about any single word uttered by President Trump on Jan. 6, 2021,” she said. “It is instead about President Trump’s failure to obey the oath he swore on January 20, 2017. His actions to interfere with the peaceful transition of power – the hallmark of our Constitution and our American democracy – were an abuse of power and constitute grounds for conviction.”
She added: “My vote in this trial stems from my own oath and duty to defend the Constitution of the United States. The abuse of power and betrayal of his oath by President Trump meet the constitutional standard of ‘high crimes and misdemeanors,’ and for those reasons I voted to convict Donald J. Trump.”
Political situation: Collins’ next election is in 2026. Like Cassidy, Collins just won reelection in 2020, though her race was much closer in a state Trump lost.
She won her fifth term after a contest in which much of her opposition cited her support of Brett Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Supreme Court and her vote to acquit Trump during his first impeachment trial.
Maine has ranked-choice voting, and many thought it could play a deciding role in her race last year, but Collins won an outright majority of Senate votes.
