The Senate is expected to end the last hours of impeachment proceedings on Saturday after an exceptionally speedy trial, and if it concludes later in the day, it will have only lasted five days.

And after it is presented Accountability directors in the Democratic House of Representatives made their case Earlier in the week, attorneys representing former President Donald Trump ended their presentation Friday that lasted just over three hours using less than a quarter of the 16 hours available to them.

Trump’s legal team provided a swift defense, looking to dismiss the case against the former president while repeating a series of complaints that Trump filed in his own defense and often about his Democratic opponents and the media, many of which were misleading or wrong. The prosecution and defense then answered 28 questions from senators.

With the bulk of the trial complete, House directors and Trump’s attorneys will have up to two hours to present their closing arguments on Saturday. Senators could move to conduct the vote on the conviction of the former president almost immediately afterwards, although some procedural surprises are still possible.

What surprises might remain?

Still, there is still the possibility that House directors will ask for a debate and a vote to call witnesses before the closing arguments begin, according to the New York Times, a possibility so far unlikely.

The trial is under way to determine whether former President Donald Trump was guilty of instigating a crowd of his supporters to storm the Capitol on January 6, violently breaching security measures and pushing lawmakers into hiding as they meet to certify President Biden’s victory.

The House of Representatives voted 232 to 197 to approve one article of impeachment, accusing Mr. Trump of “inciting violence against the United States government” in an effort to nullify the election results. Ten Republicans joined the Democrats in the vote to impeach him.

To convict Trump, the Senate will need a two-thirds majority approval. This means that at least 17 Republican senators will have to vote with Democrats in the Senate for conviction. A conviction appears unlikely.

Last month, only five Republicans in the Senate sided with Democrats blocking the Republicans ’attempt to dismiss the charges and the trial because Trump is no longer in office.

Condemn Trump

Only 27 senators said they are reluctant to convict Trump. And if the Senate convicts Trump and convicts him of “inciting violence against the United States government,” senators can vote on whether to prevent him from holding office in the future.

This vote will require only a simple majority, and if it comes to the party, the Democrats will win with Vice President Kamala Harris’ vote break.

If the Senate does not condemn Trump, the former president may be eligible to run for public office again. Public opinion polls show that he is still by far the most popular patriotic figure in the Republican Party.

On Friday, Mr. Trump’s lawyers repeatedly ridiculed the Democrats’ case as a “speedy trial.” They criticized lawmakers for not conducting a fuller investigation into what happened on January 6 and Trump’s actions in the moments before and during the riots.

And prosecutors in the House of Representatives said that their case was based on Evidence was overwhelmingly public, but they still had the opportunity to add testimonials under oath from officials who could present new perspectives. This month they called Trump to testify under oath at the trial, but his attorney rejected the request.

After the closing arguments, there is also the possibility that the senators, who spent the week listening to Offers, they will have the opportunity to speak for the first time before voting.

In the impeachment trial of Trump last year, several senators took turns explaining their positions before the final vote took place. Although it was not clear if this practice would be revived this time, or which of the members would speak.

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