Democrats are about to take the biggest step of their impeachment campaign on President Trump. On Thursday, Oct. 31, House Democrats will vote on a resolution formally laying out the next steps and procedures of their impeachment inquiry. Although House committees have been in impeachment inquiries since September, this vote will mark the next big step, as lawmakers are transitioning these talks from behind closed doors to public hearings.

There are five key components to solve how the impeachment inquiry will be handled from this point on. The components include detailing how the House Intelligence Committee will actually conduct the public hearings, explaining who will get to ask the questions, and saying that the House Judiciary Committee will be in charge of advancing the articles of impeachment – if necessary. The resolution also stated how the House Intelligence Committee will provide public transcripts for some of the hearings and for the private dispositions that have already been held.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also signaled that Democrats are ready to a more public phase. “This process determining whether [the president] should be impeached will be open to the public view, just as it should be,” she wrote.

This resolution is expected to move forward, thanks to the House’s Democratic 233- member majority. However, that isn’t stopping House Republican leaders from urging their members to oppose the measure, saying it wouldn’t benefit Republicans and isn’t fair to Trump. The vote’s “limited and closed, and frankly I think we’re moving toward a preordained result,” said Representative Tom Cole, top Republican on the House Rules Committee. 

Several Democrats in competitive ‘swing’ districts have expressed their frustration over the lack of coordinated leadership from the resolution and the lack of advance notice. Democratic Representative Jared Golden stressed that although he will vote for the resolution, it doesn’t mean he supports impeachment. “While I disagreed with the initial decision to open the impeachment inquiry, it is clear that the investigation has confirmed [important] information,” he said. “For the good of our country and the public’s understanding of the process, the investigation should no longer continue in a closed setting.”

The resolution’s vote is simply the next step on how the Democrats will start to make their case public for impeaching Trump. It’s still a big moment though; it will be the first time lawmakers will take a recorded vote on whether Trump is worth investigating.

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