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In Texas, impeachment does not itself remove an official. The House brings the accusation; the Senate conducts the trial, and conviction requires a two-thirds vote of senators present. While the case is pending, the official is suspended from exercising the duties of office. If the Senate does not convict, there is no impeachment judgment of removal.
What happens at each stage?
| Stage | What it means | Effect on the official |
|---|---|---|
| House prefers articles of impeachment | The House has formally accused the official; this is not a Senate conviction. | The official is suspended from exercising the duties of office while impeachment is pending. |
| Senate trial is pending | The Senate considers the articles under its trial procedures. | The suspension continues. The Constitution permits the Governor to make a provisional appointment until the Senate decides the case. |
| Senate does not convict | The required two-thirds of senators present has not voted to sustain an article. | The official is not removed by impeachment judgment. The 2023 Senate rules provide for acquittal when no article is sustained. |
| Senate convicts | The Senate reaches the constitutional threshold for conviction. | Removal follows; disqualification from Texas office may also be imposed. |
The governing rules are in Article XV of the Texas Constitution, Texas Government Code Chapter 665, and, for the 2023 proceeding, the Senate’s adopted trial rules in Senate Resolution 35.
Does an impeached official keep doing the job?
No. Article XV, Section 5 says: “All officers against whom articles of impeachment may be preferred shall be suspended from the exercise of the duties of their office, during the pendency of such impeachment.” That is a temporary suspension while the Senate case is unresolved, not the final removal judgment imposed upon conviction.
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What does a Senate vote not to convict mean?
Conviction requires two-thirds of the senators present, not two-thirds of the full Senate membership. If that threshold is not met, the official is not removed through an impeachment conviction. Under the rules the Senate adopted for its 2023 Court of Impeachment, articles were decided separately; an article not sustained was treated as an acquittal, and if no article was sustained the Senate entered a judgment of acquittal.
The 2023 rules offer a concrete procedural example, not a guarantee that every future trial will use identical wording or procedure. The Texas Senate’s official record of the Ken Paxton proceeding states that the House adopted 20 articles on May 27, 2023, and the Senate served as the court of impeachment.
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Can the official still face other consequences?
Yes. Impeachment and criminal proceedings are separate. The Constitution provides that a person convicted on impeachment remains subject to indictment, trial, and punishment according to law. Conversely, an impeachment acquittal does not decide a separate criminal case.
Other removal procedures may also apply. Government Code Chapter 665 describes impeachment as cumulative of other remedies, and Texas law provides additional removal mechanisms for certain offices. Which route applies depends on the official’s position and circumstances.
Which Texas officials does this process cover?
Article XV identifies the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Commissioner of the General Land Office, Comptroller, and justices or judges of specified state courts for trial by the Senate. Government Code Chapter 665 also addresses state officers, heads of state departments or institutions, and certain members, regents, trustees, or commissioners who manage state institutions or enterprises.
That does not mean every municipal, county, or state official follows the same impeachment process. The Texas Legislative Reference Library’s May 26, 2023 overview of impeachment by the Texas Legislature describes impeachment as an accusation followed by trial and conviction for removal, and notes that Texas has multiple removal methods. For a particular position, identify the office and check the current procedure that governs it.
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The Constitution limits the judgment in an impeachment case to removal from office and disqualification from holding an office of honor, trust, or profit under Texas. In the 2023 Senate rules, a motion to extend a conviction judgment to disqualification was considered separately and required two-thirds of members present. That is the procedure in those rules; it should not be treated as a universal description of every future proceeding.
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