Systems and methods for voltage control of a short circuit during a pulse welding process

Systems and methods for clearing a short during a GMAW-P welding process are disclosed. A welding-type power supply may include a power conversion circuitry configured to convert input power to welding-type power, and a controller configured to control the power conversion circuitry based on a plurality of operating parameters. In examples, if the controller senses an occurrence of a short circuit during the welding cycle (e.g., during the background state), the voltage-controlled process can adjust an output current to increase in order to achieve one or more short state target voltage values. Once the short has cleared (as evidenced by a spike in voltage) and/or a desired short state target voltage value is achieved, the controller can again adjust the output current to decrease until the voltage has returned to a background voltage level.