During an interview with Reason TV on Wednesday, Krasner was asked about the impeachment articles introduced by Pennsylvania House Republicans, to which he responded by saying that “the reason it’s illegitimate is you impeach people for committing crimes, you impeach them for deep, deep corruption. This is a legislature that has almost never done it. It has never happened in the history of the commonwealth.”

On Wednesday, Pennsylvania House Republicans introduced the articles against Krasner citing “misbehavior in office.”

“The Articles of Impeachment cite, as misbehavior in office, Krasner’s mismanagement of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office and his soft-on-crime policies as having a direct and proximate negative impact on the crime and violence crisis gripping Philadelphia, which is a dereliction of his obligation to the people of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,” Pennsylvania House Republicans said in a statement.

During a news conference, state House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff cited a rise in crime in Philadelphia, saying, “Over the last 22 months, there have been nearly 1,000 homicides in Philadelphia….There have been over 1,000 carjackings since the beginning of the year.”

Data from the Major Cities Chiefs Association shows that, as of June this year, the number of homicides and rapes was down compared to 2021 in Philadelphia. However, according to the data, the number of robberies increased from the previous year.

Crime data from the Philadelphia Police Department shows that, as of October 25, there have been 438 homicide victims in the city. While this number is slightly down from the same period in 2021, it is an increase from previous years dating back to 2007.

Several other House Republicans criticized Krasner, including state Representative Josh Kail, who said, “Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has run the DA’s office into the ground.”

“The mismanagement of his office has clearly been a direct and proximate cause of the crime crisis in Philadelphia and led to a dereliction of his obligation to the people of the City of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania,” Kail added.

In a statement sent to Newsweek, Philadelphia City Council members Kendra Brooks, Helen Gym and Jamie Gauthier said that the impeachment articles are a “baseless attempt to unseat a duly-elected district attorney.”

“This callous attempt to overturn the will of Philadelphia voters, who reelected DA Krasner by a 2-1 margin, is nothing more than a thinly veiled political stunt intended to sway voters during an election year. And we won’t stand for it,” the statement said. “This move is a direct threat to the integrity of our democracy. It sends a clear message to Black and Brown voters that their votes don’t matter. And it sets the stage for any future election to be thrown out, purely for political reasons. As women of color, we are no strangers to outsiders attempting to dismiss the power of our voices and the validity of our votes.”

Reggie Shuford, the executive director of the Pennsylvania ACLU, also responded to the impeachment articles and said, “DA Krasner was reelected by the voters of Philadelphia in a landslide just one year ago, with many voters citing Krasner’s progressive reforms on issues ranging from prosecutorial discretion to holding police accountable for misconduct. But the will of voters doesn’t seem to matter to the right-wing politicians leading this impeachment charge.”

Krasner’s office directed Newsweek to the statements from the Council members and Shuford.