Democrats divided on filibuster's future if they take control of U.S. Senate

The Center Square spoke with Juliana Stratton and Jamie Davis, Democrats running for U.S. Senate in Illinois and Louisiana, respectively, about their plans for legislation if elected into the upper chamber.

Stratton said she supports eliminating the filibuster. She pointed to ensuring the right to abortion, voting rights protections and a federal assault weapons ban as issues a Democratic U.S. Senate would address it if it eliminated the filibuster.

“There’s so many issues that we’ve been able to tackle here in Illinois and get done that have been held up in Washington, D.C.,” Stratton told The Center Square. “I want to see us be able to move past that.”

The filibuster is a procedure in the U.S. Senate used to continue debate and prolong a vote on a bill, resolution or nomination. In recent years, narrow partisan advantages in the upper chamber allowed the minority party to invoke filibuster rules to prevent key legislation from moving forward.

Lawmakers seeking to advance legislation out of the filibuster must obtain a 60-vote supermajority to overcome the procedure. The last time either political party had a 60-vote supermajority in the U.S. Senate was when the Democratic caucus had exactly 60 members from April 2009 until February 2010.

In 2022, Democratic senators proposed modifying the rules of the filibuster to require the initiating party to talk through the remainder of a filibuster period. However, opposition from former Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.V., and Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., did not allow the change to go through.

“I will not support actions that worsen the underlying disease of division infecting our country,” Sinema said at the time.

In May, Sen. Raphael, Warnock, D-Ga., proposed ending the filibuster to advance voting rights legislation, a sentiment with which Stratton agreed. He called for passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, legislation that would counter moves by the U.S. Supreme Court restricting the Voting Rights Act.

The legislation would allow voting congressional districts in certain states to be composed of majority-minority voters, in an effort to increase representation.

“No arcane Senate procedure should block people’s right to have their voices heard,” Warnock said. “When we’re back in power, we’ve got to pass voting rights.”

Supporters of the change appear to have increasing favor among Democrats in the U.S. Senate, making the issue key for a potential return to power.

“When Democrats take back the Senate, I want us to end the filibuster and get things done,” Stratton said.

However, other Democrats do not believe it is appropriate to end the filibuster if the party takes power in the chamber. Jamie Davis, a Democrat running for U.S. Senate in Louisiana, said ending the filibuster is not the right solution to serve the American people.

“We need a government that is able to negotiate and communicate and be able to come to an agreement like the way the Constitution was made,” Davis told The Center Square. “I’m so sick of Washington playing politics”

Among some Republicans, however, eliminating the filibuster has also remained a sought-after proposal, including from the president. President Donald Trump repeatedly called on Senate Republicans to eliminate the filibuster in order to pass legislation and avert government shutdowns.

In a push to pass the SAVE America Act, which would bring about several changes to voter ID laws, Trump called for the end of the filibuster. He picked up support from Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, who previously opposed an end to the procedure.

“We won’t pass the SAVE America Act unless we start by making filibustering senators speak,” Lee said, proposing similar changes as Democrats in 2022. “This will take time and effort, but we would be crazy not to give it the effort it deserves.”

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., has repeatedly said Republicans in the upper chamber do not support the measure to adjust its rules. Even with 53 Republicans leading the Senate chamber, Thune has not attempted to invoke options that would end the filibuster procedure.

“I can’t guarantee a result if the result is only achieved by nuking the legislative filibuster,” Thune said. “We don’t have the votes to do that, and so that’s just not a realistic option, and I’ve made that clear to anybody who’s asked.”

With a battle for partisan control of the Senate on the line in the midterms, the filibuster’s future remains unclear.

"I like the filibuster because I like the fact that we are able to negotiate and come to a mutual agreement," Davis told The Center Square.