Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has informed colleagues that he will vote to acquit Donald Trump in the impeachment of the former president, multiple sources told NBC News.
“I am convinced that impeachment is primarily a tool of impeachment and therefore we lack jurisdiction,” McConnell wrote, according to an email obtained by the news network.
News of McConnell’s decision came Saturday ahead of what is expected to be the final day in the historic trial on the charge that Trump incited the deadly January 6 riot on Capitol Hill.
The Republican leader’s views are closely followed and dominate among Republican senators, and his decision on Trump is likely to influence others weighing his votes.
While a majority of Democrats are expected to condemn Trump, the two-thirds vote required for conviction seems unlikely, given that the Senate is evenly split between the parties.