Chief Justice John Roberts of the Supreme Court is now facing a new impeachment proposal from a House Democrat.
This unlikely initiative was introduced on Thursday by Representative Steve Cohen.
The Democratic representative from Tennessee said last week that he would not run for reelection after realizing he probably wouldn’t win. This decision came as the state quickly moved to change district boundaries following a major Supreme Court ruling in late April that weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
So far, no other members have joined Cohen in supporting this resolution.
With Republicans holding a slim majority in the House, the proposal is not expected to make much progress, but it shows the frustration many Democrats have with the Supreme Court’s 6-3 conservative majority.
In his announcement about the resolution, Cohen stated that Roberts has led the court in a way that appears biased, making decisions that seem to benefit Republicans while undermining representative government.
He pointed to contradictory and unclear rulings, as well as a troubling pattern of ethical issues that raise concerns about the influence of wealthy individuals.
Cohen expressed, “I have come to the unfortunate conclusion that while John Roberts remains Chief Justice, fixing this wrongdoing and ensuring the Justices and the Court itself follow their legal duties will be impossible.”
In recent years, especially after three justices were appointed during President Donald Trump’s first term, the court has shown a readiness to reverse several controversial decisions related to abortion rights, voting rights, affirmative action, and more.
While many Republicans support these changes, most Democrats criticize them, feeling the court has become too political.
Roberts directly responded to such criticisms during a gathering of lawyers and judges in Pennsylvania this month.
He said, “I think at a very basic level, people think we’re making policy decisions, [that] we’re saying we think this is what things should be as opposed to this is what the law provides. I think they view us as truly political actors, which I don’t think is an accurate understanding of what we do. I would say that’s the main difficulty.”
Cohen’s impeachment resolution includes six articles against Roberts, mainly focusing on claims that the Supreme Court under his leadership has acted in a biased and inconsistent way.
The articles include:
Article I: “Failure of Stewardship: Politization of the Court” — accuses Roberts of letting the court become “a political tool” by how it handled election and redistricting cases.
Article II: “Violation of Oaths: Entrenchment of Minority Rule” — claims Roberts allowed partisan gerrymandering and weakened voting rights through decisions like Rucho v. Common Cause and Louisiana v. Callais.
Article III: “Violation of Oath: Empowering the Rich Over the Poor” — criticizes Roberts for his role in campaign finance cases like Citizens United v. FEC and McCutcheon v. FEC, saying these decisions favored wealthy interests.
Article IV: “Violation of Oath: Unaccountable Executive Branch” — questions Roberts’ opinion in Trump v. United States, claiming the ruling on presidential immunity weakened constitutional checks and balances.
Article V: “Violation of Oath: Arbitrary Decisions” — accuses the court of increasingly relying on unexplained emergency rulings that lack “meaningful analysis.”
Article VI: “Violation of Oath and Laws of the United States: Failure To Recuse” — states that Roberts did not recuse himself from cases involving law firms linked to his wife, Jane Sullivan Roberts, who worked as a legal recruiter.
The resolution concludes that Roberts “has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States” and should therefore be impeached, tried, and removed from office.
Cohen’s resolution shows the rising anger among many Democratic lawmakers after the Supreme Court’s recent rulings have changed key areas of American law and policy.
The conservative majority on the court has reversed the constitutional right to abortion established under Roe v. Wade, limited affirmative action in college admissions, broadened gun rights, and reduced federal regulatory power. Democrats have also strongly criticized decisions regarding voting rights, especially after the court’s late-April ruling that restricted the reach of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which had been used for many years to challenge racial discrimination in election laws and congressional district maps.
The congressman from Tennessee linked his choice not to run for reelection to the political consequences of that court ruling. Tennessee Republicans quickly worked to change congressional district maps after the court’s decision, leading Democrats to claim that this would worsen partisan gerrymandering and harm voting rights for minorities across the country.
Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University, previously wrote for Fox News that critics often overlook the fact that most Supreme Court decisions are either unanimous or almost unanimous.
In contrast, only a few cases split strictly along ideological lines of 6-3.
The reaction against the court has become a major topic in Democratic politics, as progressives and many mainstream liberals believe the judiciary has grown more ideological after Trump appointed three conservative justices during his first term.
Democrats are also pushing for new ethical standards and accountability measures for the Supreme Court.
Growing concerns about undisclosed gifts, luxury travel, and ties with wealthy donors have increased scrutiny of several conservative justices in the past three years, leading to renewed calls for reforms like enforceable ethics rules and term limits.
Last year, Democrats in Congress suggested a law that would allow for investigations into Supreme Court justices and possibly remove them for ethical misconduct.
This proposal highlighted issues related to disclosure and outside financial ties after reports involving Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito gained national attention. Although Roberts was not directly involved in the biggest controversies, he has faced criticism from Democrats who say he hasn’t done enough to restore public trust in the court.
The chief justice has consistently defended the court’s integrity.
In annual reports on the federal judiciary, Roberts has emphasized that the judiciary should stay independent from political influence and warned against actions that could erode trust in the courts. The Supreme Court also introduced a formal code of conduct for the first time in 2023, but critics argue that the code lacks strong enforcement measures.
Public trust in the Supreme Court has become increasingly divided along party lines.
Recent polls show that Democratic voters are losing faith in the institution, while Republicans tend to have a more positive view of the court. Surveys also reveal that many people support some structural changes, such as term limits for justices and stricter ethical standards.
Pew Research polling data from 2025 indicated that support for the high court has dropped by 22 percent over the past five years.
Only 48 percent of Americans view the court positively, while the other half has an unfavorable view. However, there is a clear partisan divide, with 71 percent of Republicans viewing it favorably compared to just 26 percent of Democrats.
Some Democrats have proposed significant changes, like increasing the number of justices or establishing 18-year term limits instead of lifetime appointments.
Supporters believe these changes would lessen the impression that any single presidential term can dramatically alter the judiciary for many years. On the other hand, Republicans often accuse Democrats of trying to undermine the court following several rulings against liberal goals.
At the same time, polls suggest that most Americans, regardless of their political affiliation, support certain reforms.
Data from the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) last year showed that 75 percent of Americans favor term limits for justices, including 67 percent of Republicans, 76 percent of independents, and 86 percent of Democrats.
The discussion around Supreme Court reform has grown more intense after the court’s significant rulings on abortion, voting rights, and executive power, with Democrats increasingly focusing on judicial accountability as a key issue leading up to the 2026 midterm elections.
At a recent conference, Roberts stated that the Supreme Court is “not simply part of the political process, and there’s a reason for that, and I’m not sure people understand that as well as they should.”
Impeaching a Supreme Court justice is very rare and hard to accomplish.
According to the Constitution, federal judges can be impeached by the House and removed by a two-thirds vote in the Senate for “high crimes and misdemeanors.” Only one Supreme Court justice, Samuel Chase, was impeached by the House in 1804, and he was later acquitted by the Senate.
This history, along with Republican control of both the House and Senate, means that Cohen’s push for impeachment is unlikely to succeed.
Nevertheless, the resolution highlights how the Supreme Court has become one of the most politically charged institutions as we approach the 2026 midterm elections, with Democrats making judicial reform and court accountability a major focus.
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