Many people are asking if it’s possible to impeach Donald Trump. He hasn’t even been inaugurated, but we decided to explore the possibilities for you:

Last night was … shall we say, a shock? By 10 p.m., Canadian immigration website had crashed, and by 11 p.m. I had to shut down my Facebook feed because the anxiety levels were getting too intense.

Living in the Bay Area, we are surrounded by a mostly liberal echo chamber, where it’s hard to imagine that the outcome of last night’s presidential election could have ever actually been an outcome. In the aftermath of last night, I’ve already seen multiple friends post on Facebook asserting that all is not lost, because — worst case scenario — we can just impeach the president. As much of a wonderful fantasy that is for the Pantsuit Nation, I feel like it’s important that we get the facts straight, so we don’t waste our time on impractical solutions.

So, for those of us who haven’t had to think about impeachment since we were in elementary and middle school, here’s how to impeach a president and why it’s probably not going to happen this time ‘round:

How to Impeach a President

From a purely political and historical standpoint, impeachment is a process that requires action and consensus from the Congress.

For those who slept through history class, that means that both the House of Representatives and the Senate have to step up and say, “This guy did some serious shit, and we need to consider his fitness continue the presidency.”

It starts with the House Judiciary Committee, which is a small committee within the House of Representatives that is responsible for legal oversight. It’s headed by a majority leader and a minority leader.

The majority leader serves as Chairman. They are responsible for proposing a resolution to start an inquiry into impeachment. That gets sent to the House Committee on Rules, which also has a majority and minority leader. The Committee on Rules decides if it’s okay to start the inquiry, and if so, the inquiry leads to a formal recommendation of impeachment, which is sent from the Judiciary Committee to the rest of the House.

The full House, which is led by a Speaker who represents the majority party, then debates and votes on whether or not to bring the case to be tried by the Senate. All they need is a simple majority to bring the case to the Senate.

The Senate, which normally performs a legislative function, acts like a court of law and tries the President for impeachment, based on the indictment voted on by the House.The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court acts as the judge, and the Senate acts as the jury. The House elects representatives to act like lawyers, who then present the case to the Senate.

The Senate then deliberates and votes — but they need a ⅔ vote. It is only then that a president can be removed from office.

Oh, and for the semantics lovers in the audience, “impeachment” is the indictment that the House levels against the President, not the removal from office, as decided by the Senate.

Why Trump Isn’t Going to Get Impeached (or Removed from Office)

Okay, so now that you know the process, let’s look at the facts of this particular case:

The Majority Is Republican — in Both Houses

Here in California, we didn’t even have the option to vote Republican for the Senate, so I know it seems like everyone’s got our back … but if you look at the election results, the Republicans won both the House and Senate pretty handily.

I know that there were a bunch of Republicans who refused to compromise on their values and didn’t back Trump, but the fact of the matter is … Trump, and the movement he galvanized, is part of the reason they’re in office right now. They’re not going to want to ruffle feathers and stir up trouble when their seats — or the seats of their fellow Republicans go up for grabs in two to four years.

The Republican majority is the number one reason why Trump pretty much can’t get impeached: for impeachment to even get started, the Chairman has to move to make the inquiry. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, the Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee didn’t not endorse Trump. After the primaries, he promised to support whichever candidate was elected to represent the Republicans.

Rep. Pete Sessions, the Chairman of the House Committee on Rules, openly endorsed Trump after the primaries, so even if Goodlatte’s Committee thought an inquiry was a good idea, Sessions’ Committee would still have to approve it.

(Mind you, some of the committee makeup may change; however, both Goodlatte and Sessions continue serving in the 115th Congress, which begins when Trump takes office.)

If by some freak accident the inquiry was approved and articles of impeachment were sent to the House for a vote, the House would have to give it a majority vote — and right now, Republicans make up a big majority of the House. (It’s 239 – 132, in case anyone was curious about the results of last night’s election.)

Just for the sake of argument, let’s say that the House voted to impeach (which is highly unlikely), and the indictment then moved to the Senate. The judge of this trial would be the conservative Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, John Roberts — a man appointed by George W. Bush.

The Senate also would never reach a ⅔ vote — right now, the Republicans have a simple majority with a 51 – 47 split, and the President of the Senate is going to be Vice President Mike Pence.

And this is all assuming that every Democrat would vote along partisan lines to impeach. I have a feeling that many centrist Dems would take into careful consideration both sides of the argument and consider the outcomes of an impeachment on the future of American leadership. We’ve only had a few Presidential impeachments (or resolutions to impeach) in the 240 year history of this country, and none have ever been officially voted on by the Senate. (For the history nerds in the audience, that’s Johnson and Clinton. Tyler had an inquiry against him in the House, and Nixon most likely would have been impeached had he not resigned.)

He Hasn’t Been Indicted of Committing an Impeachable Offense

Before you freak out, please know that I do NOT condone any of the actions or words of the man who has been elected President. I fear for my safety as a woman and a Jew, and for the safety of my friends who are people of color, queer, Muslim, immigrants (or children of), and trans/non-binary.

That said, he hasn’t officially been convicted of a crime. His “locker room talk” is deplorable (yes, I’m using that word on purpose), but until a court convicts him of sexual assault, he’s legally not guilty. (This is why the Brock Turners of the world don’t give AF and keep doing what they’re doing. Innocent until proven guilty, even if people suffer.)

“But what about the rape trial?” You ask. Good question: the case was dropped a few days ago. He has not, in the eyes of the court, done anything illegal, no matter how many accusers speak up.

(“What rape trial?” You may also be asking. He was accused of raping a minor, and the HuffPo did a good job of covering why it wasn’t really covered in the mass media.)

He also found legal loopholes in the law regarding his taxes, and he still hasn’t faced trial for his part in Trump University.

Even if his actions put him on the wrong side of the law, Congress has to agree to investigate. Which, as we’ve seen, isn’t going to happen.

And, as President, with a willing Congress, he can help introduce and influence legislation to basically commit hate in the name of the law (banning religions, kicking out immigrants, reducing the rights of the LGBTQ+ community, taking away women’s sovereignty over their bodies, etc.). Hate, but not hate crimes.

If You Impeach Donal Trump, You Get Mike Pence

Just remember: if you impeach the President, the next-in-line becomes President. Trump only scares me because of his supporters; Pence scares me because of his beliefs.

Look, if you’re reading this article in dismay about not having a last-ditch option for turning this ship around, please don’t despair yet. There’s a slim chance that now that the vitriol of the election is done, Trump’s most vehement supporters will cool down, and Trump, who promised in his election speech to unite the country, will not do half of the awful things he’s promised on the campaign trail.

There’s also hope for turning the Congress around in 2018. We vote again in two years, not four — which means that if you want to see change, you have to make it happen. There are 23 Democratic seats up for reelection, and only 8 Republican seats. With the Senate now split at 47 – 51, you do the math. The House of Representatives is also up to you, since seats are open every two years. Do your research. Get out the vote. Take a road trip and volunteer in parts of the country that aren’t our blue echo chamber.

And please, until then, remember to be kind to one another. This is, without a doubt, going to be remembered as a particularly troubled time in the history books. People on both sides of the aisle have been riled up, and many on both sides feel vulnerable (whether or not that vulnerability is based in a lack of privilege or not). It is absolutely a time for action, but please don’t forget kindness — both to yourself, and to those who will need it in the coming months. We’re going to have to rebuild someday, and as America’s young people, it’s going to fall on our shoulders. Let’s do better than our predecessors and make this country truly great.