Vote Smart provides easy access to congressional and state voting records and maintains a collection of key votes grouped by issue. Vote Smart uses the following criteria to select key votes:
Vote Smart provides a summary of the version of the bill text associated with each selected key vote. Our summaries are written by Vote Smart's staff and interns, who adhere to our strict policies and procedures in order to guarantee absolute impartiality and accuracy. They do not necessarily reflect the content of the final version of the bill, but rather the version voted on in that stage. While many procedural votes take place before a full chamber vote, our voting stages reflect the final reading of each chamber vote. Each key vote selection is reviewed by the project's community of advisors, who are political scientists and journalists from all fifty states.
For more information about the legislative process, see here.
| Date | State | Bill No. | Title | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 2, 2025 | National | PN 12-39 | Nomination of Dean Sauer to be Solicitor General of the United States | Cloture Invoked - Senate (53 - 46) |
| March 26, 2025 | National | PN 12-37 | Nomination of Aaron Reitz to be an Assistant Attorney General | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (52 - 46) |
| March 26, 2025 | National | PN 12-37 | Nomination of Aaron Reitz to be an Assistant Attorney General | Cloture Invoked - Senate (53 - 45) |
| March 14, 2025 | National | S 331 | Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act) | Bill Passed - Senate (84 - 15) |
| March 14, 2025 | National | S 331 | Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act) | Bill Passed - Senate (84 - 15) |
| March 11, 2025 | National | PN 12-41 | Nomination of Abigail Slater to be an Assistant Attorney General | Cloture Invoked - Senate (77 - 19) |
| March 6, 2025 | National | PN 12-14 | Nomination of Troy Edgar to be Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (53 - 43) |
| March 6, 2025 | National | S 331 | Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act) | Cloture Invoked - Senate (82 - 12) |
| March 6, 2025 | National | PN 12-14 | Nomination of Troy Edgar to be Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security | Cloture Invoked - Senate (53 - 43) |
| March 6, 2025 | National | S 331 | Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act (HALT Fentanyl Act) | Cloture Invoked - Senate (82 - 12) |
| March 5, 2025 | National | PN 12-5 | Nomination of Todd Blanche to be Deputy Attorney General | Cloture Invoked - Senate (51 - 46) |
| Feb. 26, 2025 | National | S J Res 10 | A joint resolution terminating the national emergency declared with respect to energy. | Joint Resolution Failed - Senate (47 - 52) |
| Feb. 20, 2025 | National | PN 12-35 | Nomination of Kashyap Patel to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (51 - 49) |
| Feb. 20, 2025 | National | PN 12-35 | Nomination of Kashyap Patel to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations | Cloture Invoked - Senate (51 - 47) |
| Feb. 18, 2025 | National | PN 12-35 | Nomination of Kashyap Patel to be Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations | Motion Agreed - Senate (48 - 45) |
| Feb. 12, 2025 | National | PN 11-16 | Nomination of Tulsi Gabbard to be Director of National Intelligence | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (52 - 48) |
| Feb. 10, 2025 | National | PN 11-16 | Nomination of Tulsi Gabbard to be Director of National Intelligence | Cloture Invoked - Senate (52 - 46) |
| Feb. 6, 2025 | National | PN 11-16 | Nomination of Tulsi Gabbard to be Director of National Intelligence | Motion Agreed - Senate (52 - 46) |
| Feb. 4, 2025 | National | PN 11-2 | Nomination of Pamela Bondi to be Attorney General | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (54 - 46) |
| Feb. 3, 2025 | National | PN 11-2 | Nomination of Pamela Bondi to be Attorney General | Cloture Invoked - Senate (52 - 46) |
| Jan. 25, 2025 | National | PN 11-11 | Nomination of Kristi Noem to be Secretary of Homeland Security | Nomination Confirmed - Senate (59 - 34) |
| Jan. 24, 2025 | National | PN 11-11 | Nomination of Kristi Noem to be Secretary of Homeland Security | Cloture Invoked - Senate (61 - 39) |
| Jan. 20, 2025 | National | S 5 | Laken Riley Act | Bill Passed - Senate (64 - 35) |
| Jan. 17, 2025 | National | S 5 | Laken Riley Act | Cloture Invoked - Senate (61 - 35) |
| Jan. 13, 2025 | National | S 5 | Laken Riley Act | Motion Agreed - Senate (82 - 10) |