[Deschler-Brown Precedents, Volume 14,  Chapter 30]
[Chapter 30. Voting]
[B. Non-recorded Votes]
[Â§ 14. Division Vote as Related to Demand for Yeas and Nays]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]


[Page 11539-11542]
 
                               CHAPTER 30
 
                                 Voting
 
                         B. NON-RECORDED VOTES
 
Sec. 14. Division Vote as Related to Demand for Yeas and Nays

In General

Sec. 14.1 A demand for the yeas and nays in the House takes precedence 
    of a request for a division.

    Where the vote on the approval of the Journal was postponed to 
follow debate on certain motions to suspend the rules, the yeas and 
nays were demanded when the Chair eventually put the ques-tion. The 
proceedings of Mar. 29, 1993,(20) were as follows:
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20. 139 Cong. Rec. 6666, 103d Cong. 1st Sess.

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[[Page 11540]]

                  announcement by the speaker pro tempore

        The Speaker Pro Tempore: (1) Debate has concluded on 
    all motions to suspend the rules.
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 1. Romano L. Mazzoli (Ky.).
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        Pursuant to clause 5, rule I, the Chair will now put the 
    question on agreeing to the approval of the Journal and on each of 
    the first two motions to suspend the rules on which further 
    proceedings were postponed earlier today in the order in which each 
    arose.
        Votes, therefore, will be taken in the following order:
        On agreeing to the Journal, de novo:
        H.R. 175, by the yeas and nays; and H.R. 829, as amended, by 
    the yeas and nays.

                                the journal

        The Speaker Pro Tempore: Pursuant to clause 5 of rule I, the 
    pending business is the question of the Chair's approval of the 
    Journal.
        The question was taken.
        Mr. [Robert S.] Walker [of Pennsylvania]: Mr. Speaker, I demand 
    a division.
        Mr. [John] Lewis of Georgia: Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the 
    yeas and nays.
        The yeas and nays were ordered.
        The Speaker Pro Tempore: The Chair will announce that this will 
    be a 15-minute vote, and subsequent votes on the two motions to 
    suspend the rules upon which proceedings were postponed will be 5-
    minute votes.
        The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 
    231, nays 137, not voting 62, as follows: . . .

Sec. 14.2 The House, first by division vote resulting in a tie, and 
    then by the yeas and nays, rejected a preferential motion to recede 
    and concur in a Senate amendment.

    On Dec. 10, 1963,(2) the House agreed to the conference 
report on a bill (H.R. 8747) making appropriations for various 
executive bureaus and offices for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1964.
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 2. 109 Cong. Rec. 23949-53, 88th Cong. 1st Sess.
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    Thereafter, the House entertained discussion as to those Senate 
amendments remaining in disagreement. One of these was Senate amendment 
No. 92. Mr. Harold C. Ostertag, of New York, offered a preferential 
motion that the House recede from its disagreement to the Senate 
amendment and concur therein.
    Following debate, the Speaker (3) put the question on 
the preferential motion; it was taken; and on a division demanded by 
Mr. Ostertag, there were--ayes 102, noes 102.
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 3. John W. McCormack (Mass.).
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    Mr. Albert Thomas, of Texas, then sought the yeas and nays, and a 
sufficient number having seconded his demand, they were ordered. The 
question was taken; and there were--yeas 171, nays 204, not voting 59. 
Accordingly,

[[Page 11541]]

the motion to recede and concur was rejected.

Where Demand Is Refused

Sec. 14.3 The Chair having abstained from a division vote to adjourn, a 
    demand for the yeas and nays was seconded by 20 percent of those 
    participating in the vote--but refused when the Chair noted that, 
    counting himself, less than the minimum number of Members present 
    had seconded the demand.

    On June 30, 1937,(4) Mr. Sam Rayburn, of Texas, moved 
that the House adjourn. The Speaker (5) put the question; it 
was taken and on a division vote demanded by Mr. John E. Rankin, of 
Mississippi, there were--ayes 41, noes 24.
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 4. 81 Cong. Rec. 6642, 75th Cong. 1st Sess.
 5. William B. Bankhead (Ala.).
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    Immediately thereafter, Mr. Rankin demanded the yeas and nays. The 
Speaker then proceeded to count those in favor of that demand, and soon 
announced that:

        . . . Thirteen gentlemen have arisen, not a sufficient number. 
    The rule provides that the yeas and nays may be ordered by one-
    fifth of the Members present.

    Since the Speaker had counted himself in reaching the total number 
of Members present, the 13 seconding Members--while clearly comprising 
one-fifth of those who had risen on the division vote--did not comprise 
one-fifth of those present. Accordingly, the demand was refused.

In the Senate

Sec. 14.4 In the Senate the Chair does not announce the number of 
    Members voting ``aye'' and ``no'' on a division vote, and after a 
    request that such announcement be made, the Chair has held that it 
    was too late to ask for a yea and nay vote.

    On Jan. 19, 1944,(6) the Senate entertained 
consideration of a bill (S. 469) relating to the use of the emblem and 
name of the Red Cross in the United States and its territorial 
possessions.
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 6. 90 Cong. Rec. 387, 390, 398, 78th Cong. 2d Sess.
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    In the course of the bill's consideration, Senator Joseph C. 
O'Mahoney, of Wyoming, offered an amendment on behalf of Senator 
Millard E. Tydings, of Maryland, the Presiding Officer (7) 
put the question, and the following exchange transpired:
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 7. Hattie W. Caraway (Ark.).
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        The Presiding Officer: The question now recurs on the amendment 
    of

[[Page 11542]]

    fered by the Senator from Wyoming [Mr. O'Mahoney] in behalf of the 
    Senator from Maryland [Mr. Tydings]. [Putting the question.] The 
    ``noes'' seem to have it.
        Mr. Tydings: Mr. President, I ask for a division.
        Mr. [Claude] Pepper [of Florida]: Mr. President, will the Chair 
    restate the question.
        The Presiding Officer: The question is on agreeing to the 
    amendment offered by the Senator from Wyoming in behalf of the 
    Senator from Maryland. A division has been requested.
        Mr. Pepper: Would a vote ``aye'' be in favor of the amendment.
        The Presiding Officer: Yes.
        On a division, the amendment was rejected.
        Mr. Tydings: Mr. President, for the Record will the Chair 
    please announce the vote?
        The Presiding Officer: Under the rules the Chair does not 
    announce the result on a division.
        Mr. Tydings: I know that the Chair is not obliged to announce 
    the result. However, I do not wish to ask for a roll call, and if 
    the Chair will accommodate the Senator from Maryland he will try to 
    cooperate with the Chair and get on with the discharge of business. 
    There can be no reason why the result of the vote should be secret.
        The Presiding Officer: Is there objection to the request of the 
    Senator from Maryland that the Chair announce the result of the 
    vote?
        Mr. [Robert M.] Lafollette [Jr., of Wisconsin]: I object.
        The Presiding Officer: Objection is heard.
        Mr. Tydings: Mr. President, I ask for the ``yeas'' and 
    ``nays.''
        Mr. Lafollette: I make the point of order that the request 
    comes too late.
        The Presiding Officer: The Chair rules that the request comes 
    too late.
        The point of order is sustained.