What is the 25th Amendment, and how can it be used to remove Donald Trump from office?

The past month has seen a growing chorus of public figures urging for US President Donald Trump to be removed from office, including some prominent Republicans.

Though there have long been left-wing critics of the president who would like to see him gone, the calls for his removal are now becoming mainstream after an increased frequency in memory lapses and recent social media posts in which he threatened to annihilate Iran and another in which he shared a picture of himself appearing to represent Jesus.

On Tuesday, Democrats introduced a bill with 50 co-sponsors to use the 25th Amendment to evaluate Trump's fitness to remain in office.

This is the first major official step toward pushing for Trump’s removal from office, following weeks of increased talk of invoking the 25th Amendment by a largely left-leaning movement comprising Democratic politicians and organisations, though, given its momentum, this could soon change.

"Public trust in Donald Trump's ability to meet the duties of his office has dropped to unprecedented lows as he threatens to destroy entire civilisations, unleashes chaos in the Middle East while violating Congressional war powers, aggressively insults the Pope of the Catholic Church and sends out artistic renderings online likening himself to Jesus Christ," said Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, who introduced the bill.

"We are at a dangerous precipice, and it is now a matter of national security for Congress to fulfil its responsibilities under the 25th Amendment to protect the American people from an increasingly volatile and unstable situation," Raskin added.

Also this week, in an unprecedented move, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) called for Trump's removal.

What is the 25th Amendment?

The 25th Amendment of the US Constitution sets a framework for the vice president to become president if the president dies, resigns, is unable to fulfil his constitutional duties, becomes incapacitated or is removed from office by impeachment.

This includes a transfer of power when the president is incapacitated (e.g., while undergoing surgery).

Why now?

The growing calls to remove Trump from office follow recent social media posts that go beyond Trump's typical inflammatory rhetoric.

"We're going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks; we’re going to bring them back to the Stone Age where they belong," Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on 1 April.

On 7 April, Trump warned that a "whole civilisation will die tonight" if Iran didn't meet his demands, leading to backlash from prominent Republicans, including former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson.

This was followed by Pope Leo XIV calling for peace and criticising the "delusion of omnipotence" that he suggested was fueling the war. He also said that "God does not bless any conflict."

This week, Trump shared an image that appeared to depict himself as Jesus. This led to further backlash and calls for his removal, including from prominent Republicans. He has also referred to Pope Leo XIV as a radical leftist and said that the Pope was soft on crime.

Why is this significant?

Since the 25th Amendment was adopted in 1967, it has been invoked in only a handful of cases, such as medical emergencies in which the president was temporarily incapacitated. The move by members to invoke the 25th Amendment to push for the president's removal is highly unusual.

Given the Republican majority in Congress, they are unlikely to succeed, as this would require a two-thirds vote.

Nevertheless, this move comes at a time when Trump's approval ratings are at record lows, and Republicans are expected to face significant losses in the 2026 midterms.