US President Donald Trump. Photo: Xinhua

US President Donald Trump was acquitted on Wednesday by the Senate after the chamber voted down both articles of impeachment against him that the House approved late last year.

Senators voted 52 to 48 to reject the first charge of abuse of power, and 53 to 47 against the second charge of obstruction of Congress.

Senator Mitt Romney, a Republican from Utah, broke from the party by voting in favor of convicting Trump over the abuse of power charge. No Democrats voted against the two articles of impeachment.

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, who presided over the Senate trial of Trump's impeachment, announced the votes, saying that they are not enough to convict the president and remove him from office.

The result was widely expected as Republicans, largely unified during the impeachment proceeding, control the Senate, making it almost impossible for the 67-vote conviction threshold to be reached.