Impeachment

Explanation

Impeachment is the constitutional mechanism for removing a president or other senior official from office for serious misconduct. The process typically involves two stages: the legislature brings formal charges (impeachment), and then a trial determines whether the official should be removed. In the United States, the House of Representatives impeaches (brings charges) by simple majority, and the Senate tries the case with a two-thirds vote required for removal. Brazil has used impeachment to remove two presidents (Collor in 1992, Rousseff in 2016). South Korea impeached and removed President Park Geun-hye in 2017. The grounds for impeachment vary by country but generally involve serious crimes, corruption, or constitutional violations.