Colorado Rep. Brittany Pettersen among Democrats who missed Hegseth impeachment vote

Robert Tann, The Denver Post on Nov 11, 2026

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U.S. Rep. Brittany Pettersen was among 11 Democrats who missed Tuesday’s high-stakes vote on whether to move forward with impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, an effort that was ultimately blocked by House Republicans.

Fellow Democrats lambasted the absences, which allowed Republicans to block the impeachment effort through a procedural motion, which passed in a 211-204 vote.

Pettersen, who represents Colorado’s 7th Congressional District, said in a social media post Tuesday that she had been “denied the ability to vote on this motion while (Republican U.S. House Speaker) Mike Johnson worked overtime to shield (Hegseth) from accountability.” Pettersen noted that she helped introduce articles of impeachment against Hegseth in April, though that was a separate attempt from what was debated on Tuesday.

In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for Pettersen said she was returning from an event for incoming members of Congress when Pettersen and “a number of other members” encountered a traffic incident outside the U.S. Capitol on her way to vote, and blamed Republican leadership for not holding the vote open.

An Axios reporter said in a social media post that some of the Democrats who missed the vote were on their way back from an event held by Elect Democratic Women, a political action committee, at a venue near the Capitol. Pettersen’s office did not confirm whether this was the event she was coming from.

Colorado’s three other Democratic representatives, Joe Neguse, Jason Crow and Diana DeGette, voted against blocking Hegseth’s impeachment. GOP Reps. Jeff Hurd, Lauren Boebert and Jeff Crank joined nearly every other voting House Republican to defeat the effort.

Just one Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, who introduced articles of impeachment against Hegseth on Monday, joined with Democrats to try to advance the measure. Massie’s impeachment charges revolved around Hegseth’s handling of the Iran war, which he said has been illegally waged without approval from Congress.

The statement from Pettersen’s spokesperson argued that even if she and the other lawmakers who were stuck in traffic had been present, Democrats still would not have had the votes to move forward with impeachment because only one Republican, Massie, supported the measure.

Not all the Democrats who missed the vote were stuck in traffic. Former House Speaker and California Rep. Nancy Pelosi was back in her home city of San Francisco for an event with veterans, while Rep. Lou Correa, also of California, said he was in his district for a medical procedure.

Seven Republicans, however, also missed Tuesday’s vote, meaning Democrats could have had the numbers to defeat the effort to kill Massie’s measure.

Democrats may try to revive an impeachment push against Hegseth when they return to Congress in January with a wide House majority after winning sweeping victories in the Nov. 3 midterm elections. With votes still being counted in several races, Democrats are on track to win upwards of 260 House seats.

Colorado will also likely have a 7-1 Democratic delegation after Crank lost his reelection bid to Democratic challenger Jessica Killin and Boebert appeared poised to lose to Democrat Eileen Laubacher.

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