US President Donald Trump at a press conference in Washington DC on October 23, 2019. (Photo: AFP/ VNA)

In a largely party-line vote of 232-196, the House embarked on a path that seems likely to lead to Donald Trump’s impeachment. Prior to Thursday's vote, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said the vote is not a partisan exercise but a solemn step to protect US democracy.

In a tweet sent immediately after the vote, Mr. Trump declared the impeachment probe “The Greatest Witch Hunt In American History” — echoing language he has often used to describe the impeachment inquiry and special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation before that. White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham, in a separate statement derided “Democrats’ unhinged obsession with this illegitimate impeachment proceeding.”