Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) says he will vote to have witnesses at President Donald Trump’s impeachment trial.
Romney’s long-awaited decision came Friday morning, and the vote is expected to happen Friday afternoon. It’s a significant bucking of the Republican party, which has tried to prevent new witnesses from appearing, but it’s unclear whether Romney’s vote will be enough to change the course of the trial.
“As [Senator Mitt Romney] has said, he wants to hear from Ambassador Bolton, and he will vote in favor of the motion today to consider witnesses,” Romney’s communications director wrote on Twitter.
Romney joins two other senators — Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) — who said they plan to vote for witnesses. That’s enough to force a tie on the vote, but there is a strong consensus that Supreme Court Justice John Roberts, who is overseeing the Senate trial, will abstain from breaking any ties. That means unless another Republican breaks ranks, the trial is likely to move forward without witnesses. Trump could be acquitted as early as Friday night.
Late Thursday night, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) announced he would vote against additional testimony from witnesses. Alexander was considered a key swing vote in the trial, and he left Senate Democrats without any apparent path forward to approving witnesses.
In a statement, Alexander said he would let the voters decide how to handle Trump’s conduct, which he described as “inappropriate.”
“There is no need for more evidence to prove that the president asked Ukraine to investigate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter,” he wrote. “He said this on television on October 3, 2019, and during his July 25, 2019, telephone call with the president of Ukraine.”
The Senate will convene early Friday afternoon for four hours of debate on the motion to consider witnesses. It’s unclear if any other Senate Republicans are considering advancing the motion.