The United States House of Representatives has voted in favour of measures to halt President Donald Trump’s war on Iran as the conflict drags into a fourth month and both sides remain at loggerheads in peace negotiations.
The vote on Wednesday marks the first successful effort by lawmakers to force the US to end a conflict that has had mounting catastrophic effects, from thousands of civilian deaths to global trade disruptions.
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It also comes as opposition to the conflict has grown significantly within camps of Trump’s Republican Party due to the effects on Americans themselves and Trump’s failure to swiftly secure a concrete, lasting deal with Iran.
But for now, the vote will remain largely symbolic because of Trump’s own presidential veto power on legislation and because of Republican dominance in the House and Senate – even though it marks a significant reprimand by lawmakers.
Here’s what happened, why it matters and why it doesn’t mean that Trump can’t – or won’t – launch new attacks on Iran:
What happened?
On Wednesday, lawmakers in the House, led by Democrats, voted to invoke the War Powers Act, which allows Congress to force an end to hostilities if the president does not get its authorisation after entering an armed conflict abroad.
Since the start of the war, Democrats have argued that Congress, not the president, holds the right to declare war. They’ve repeatedly tried to force a stop to the US-Israel war on Iran based on that argument.
However, the Trump administration has countered that the military operations in Iran do not require congressional approval.
The War Powers Act, which has been in force since 1973, requires the president to seek lawmakers’ approval before entering armed conflict.
Only imminent attacks on the US allow the president to unilaterally deploy troops. In such an instance, the president must inform Congress within 48 hours.
If Congress fails to declare war afterwards, the president must withdraw troops within 60 days of entering the war.
In the case of the war on Iran, critics argued that the US was not under any imminent threat: The US and Israel struck first.
Trump also failed to withdraw thousands of US troops deployed to fight the war at its 60-day mark: around April 29.
House Democrats, who hold a minority of seats in the House, have tried to invoke the act three times since the US and Israel ignited the war on February 28. However, all previous attempts had failed.
How did the House vote?
Wednesday’s vote count was 215 in favour of the resolution to restrain Trump and 208 against.
The success for Democrats came after four Republicans switched sides in what appeared to be a public rebuke of Trump’s policies.
While Republicans staunchly supported the war in public at its start, the mood has noticeably shifted as the US economy and global trade have been badly hit. Trump’s approval ratings have also dropped drastically.
Republican lawmakers Tom Barrett of Michigan, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Thomas Massie of Kentucky broke party lines two weeks ago when the last vote was held. On Wednesday, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania joined them.
Does the House vote restrict Trump’s actions?
Not necessarily. At this point, the yes vote is largely symbolic.
The Senate needs to pass the resolution as well, but Republicans also hold a slim majority in the upper chamber.
While Senate Democrats have been forcing votes to kick-start the process that would force a US halt to the war, Senate Republicans have so far mustered enough votes to reject the proposals.
The latest vote to advance exit procedures was held two weeks ago with a 50-47 tally in the 100-member Senate. Four Republicans joined Democrats in voting in favour while Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was the only Democrat to vote against the measure.
While the results reflected growing disapproval from Republican senators, the count was not enough.
Even if the Senate follows the House in invoking limits on Trump’s war on Iran, Trump could veto the resolution.
In that instance, Congress would have to pass the measure by a two-thirds majority to override the president’s veto. That’s not impossible. However, it could be unrealistic in the current climate: Some Republicans are unhappy, but the majority still publicly support Trump.
Is the US actually at war?
Then there’s the question of whether the US is even at war right now and if the resolution applies at all.
A ceasefire between the US and Iran has been in place since April 8, even if it’s fragile. The Trump administration argues that this means the US is technically not at war at the moment.
On May 1, Trump declared the ceasefire meant a “termination” of hostilities, even though the US has continued a blockade of Iran’s ports and has hit Iranian ships. Tehran too has continued blocking the Strait of Hormuz.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio raised that argument when he faced lawmakers in a series of hearings on Tuesday and Wednesday regarding the war. The lawmakers invited him to submit more information about the US plans to exit the conflict in Iran as well as to detail plans for Venezuela, where the US abducted President Nicolas Maduro in January.
In a sharp exchange with Senator Cory Booker, a Democrat, Rubio declared: “The [Iran] war is over.”
However, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, a Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accused Rubio of lacking accountability and failing to provide Congress with the right information.
“You sent Congress a war powers notification, saying we are not in active hostilities with Iran while the US was conducting strikes against Iran and Iran was bombing US embassies and bases throughout the Middle East,” she said.
“That was not consultation; it was an attempt to avoid answering to this committee and this Congress about this war.”
Can the US restart the war on Iran?
Some officials in Trump’s cabinet believe so.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed on May 12 that the 60-day allowance given to the president to deploy troops under the War Powers Act means the administration may begin striking Iran again without lawmakers’ approval.
Hegseth, in testimony to the Senate Appropriations Committee, essentially argued that the April 8 ceasefire reset the original timelines.
“Should the president make the decision to recommence [the war on Iran], we would have all of the authorities necessary to do so,” he said.
