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On the Motion to Proceed S.Con.Res. 42

Totals

All Votes D R I
Yea 16%
 
 
 
16
0
 
16
 
0
 
Nay 83%
 
 
 
83
51
 
30
 
2
 
Not Voting 1%
 
 
 
1
0
 
1
 
0
 

Date: May 16, 2012

Required: Simple Majority

Result: Motion to Proceed Rejected

Source: senate.gov

Ideology Vote Chart

Key: R Yea D Nay R Nay
Seat position based on our ideology score.

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Vote Details

Notes: *Minority Leader’s Vote

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R), the Minority Leader, voted Yea against his party.

Somtimes a party leader will vote on the winning side, even if it is against his or her position, to have the right to call for a new vote under a motion to reconsider. For more, see this explanation from The Washington Post.

We do not know the rationale behind any vote, however.

“Aye” or “Yea”?

“Aye” and “Yea” mean the same thing, and so do “No” and “Nay”. Congress uses different words in different sorts of votes.

The U.S. Constitution says that bills should be decided on by the “yeas and nays” (Article I, Section 7). Congress takes this literally and uses “yea” and “nay” when voting on the final passage of bills.

All Senate votes use these words. But the House of Representatives uses “Aye” and “No” in other sorts of votes.

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Statistically Notable Votes

Statistically notable votes are the votes that are most surprising, or least predictable, given how other members of each voter’s party voted and other factors.

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