Kansas Democrat bucks impeachment effort against Kristi Noem. Here’s why
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- Rep. Sharice Davids declines to join House impeachment effort targeting DHS Secretary Noem
- Davids cites political realities, calls for transparency, investigations, accountability.
- Her immigration votes and potential Senate run heighten political scrutiny.
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids has no immediate plans to sign onto her Democratic colleagues’ effort to impeach Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
As anger over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown intensified with the killing of two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis last month, House Democrats filed articles of impeachment accusing Noem of committing “high crimes and misdemeanors.”
Of the 213 Democratic lawmakers in the chamber, 182 have signed onto the resolution as cosponsors as of Tuesday, including Kansas City’s longtime Congressman Emanuel Cleaver.
Davids, the lone Democrat in Kansas’ congressional delegation, is not among them.
In a statement to The Star, Davids called the shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti “horrific,” and renewed her call for federal immigration authorities to be held accountable for their actions in U.S. cities. But she suggested the impeachment effort is doomed to fail.
“Something has to change, and that means all options should be on the table,” Davids said. “I’m also realistic about the political makeup of Congress. While an impeachment vote against the Secretary likely isn’t going to pass, we should keep pursuing meaningful ways to make sure accountability actually happens.
“That means demanding full transparency, independent investigations, and real consequences for misconduct — not political spin or lies — so that no family ever has to endure this kind of loss again,” she continued.
Impeachment requires the support of a simple majority of lawmakers in the House. Republicans hold a slim majority, and so far, no GOP lawmakers have signed onto the articles of impeachment against Noem.
Convicting Noem and removing her from office would be even more challenging, requiring the support of two-thirds of members in the Republican-controlled Senate.
The articles of impeachment raise a series of allegations against Noem and her federal agency, including violence against U.S. citizens, barring lawmakers from visiting immigration facilities and using her position for personal gain.
Davids’ outlook on impeachment stands in stark contrast to Cleaver’s. Upon adding his name to the list of cosponsors on Friday, the former Kansas City mayor cast the effort to remove Noem as a moral imperative.
“At its core, this is about right and wrong,” Cleaver said. “It is about whether we are willing to meet the moment with integrity or whether we will avert our eyes while power is misused and lives are diminished.”
Davids on ICE
Davids, whose 3rd Congressional District includes all of Johnson, Miami, Franklin, and Anderson counties as well as southern Wyandotte County, has fueled speculation that she may challenge Roger Marshall for his Senate seat this year.
She recently embarked on a tour around Kansas with stops in Topeka, Wichita, Dodge City, and other areas of the state that she doesn’t represent in Congress.
If she does decide to make a run for Senate, Davids’ voting record on immigration-related issues will surely be scrutinized.
Late last month, Davids joined Cleaver and the vast majority of House Democrats in voting against a DHS funding package that included a $10 billion infusion for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Davids said the appropriations bill irresponsibly pulled resources away from local law enforcement, drug enforcement and terrorism prevention efforts.
On Tuesday, though, Davids and 20 other House Democrats joined the majority of Republican members to help narrowly pass a funding package designed to end a partial government shutdown. The package included funding for DHS through Feb. 13.
Another vote Davids cast last year drew criticism from the left flank of her party.
In June 2025, she was one of 75 Democratic House members who broke with party leadership to support a Republican-sponsored resolution condemning the firebombing attack in Boulder, Colorado, on demonstrators advocating for the release of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.
Tucked away in that resolution was a line thanking law enforcement officers, including ICE agents, for “protecting the homeland.”
Zac Donely, a spokesperson for Davids, said in an email that the resolution was “99% about condemning antisemitism” and that Davids’ support for it had nothing to do with ICE.
“There is a single, passing line at the very end referencing ICE, which is not the substance of the resolution and not what the vote was about,” Donley said. “Suggesting otherwise misrepresents both the intent and the content of the measure.”
Context matters, he said.
“This vote took place less than one month after a Jewish woman from Prairie Village was murdered in an antisemitic attack,” Donley said. “Rep. Davids has always been clear that antisemitism and that kind of violence have no place in our community and must be confronted head-on.”
This story was originally published February 3, 2026 at 3:36 PM with the headline "Kansas Democrat bucks impeachment effort against Kristi Noem. Here’s why."
