Nearly half of House Democrats support impeachment. But that doesn’t mean it’s imminent.

There’s substantial support among House Democrats for at least taking the first step to impeach President Trump. Almost half of House Democrats back beginning an impeachment proceeding, a proportion that has been steadily growing for months. But that doesn’t mean the House will start the process.

To get a better understanding of the likelihood of impeachment, let’s look at the trends before we analyze why things don’t appear to be going anywhere.