Members of the U.S. House of Representatives have personally delivered a document indicting former President Donald Trump to the Senate.

With the indictment sent from the lower house to the upper house of parliament, the second impeachment trial against Trump is formally launched. The prosecution against Trump for his role in storming the Capitol on January 6 will not begin until the week of February 8 so that his defence can prepare sufficiently.

The nine so-called impeachment managers of the House of Representatives presented the charges against Trump to the Senate on Monday evening (local time). A majority accuses him in the House of Representatives of inciting his supporters to insurrection.

On Monday, it was announced that it would not be Chief Justice John Roberts, who presided over the first impeachment trial against Trump, but Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy. Leahy is the oldest senator of the largest party and the acting president of the Senate. He has traditionally presided over impeachment trials against former presidents.

President Joe Biden, who prefers to focus on tackling the corona epidemic and economic recovery in the US, made it clear last week that he will not interfere in the impeachment process. His spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the president would “leave it up to the Democrats and Republicans in the Senate to decide how to hold the previous president to account.”