Senate roll call 170 · 87th Congress · Sep 1, 1961
HR 6974. Amend merchant marine act of 1936. Authorize owners of federally subsidized vessels to finance equipment and machinery from capital reserve fund. Bu
On Sep 1, 1961, the Senate voted 40–41 (HR 6974). Result: failed. By party: Democrats 26–37, Republicans 23–10. It was a split vote: the parties took opposite sides, with some members crossing over. 36 members voted against their own party.
During the 87th Congress (1961–1962), John F. Kennedy was president, and Democrats held majorities in both the House and Senate.
- Yes
- 40
- No
- 41
- Did not vote
- 5
- Date
- Sep 1, 1961
By party
- Democrats26 yes · 37 no · 1 didn’t vote
- Republicans23 yes · 10 no · 4 didn’t vote
Who broke with their party
- John Jackson Sparkman D-AL voted yes
- Joseph Lister Hill D-AL voted yes
- James William Fulbright D-AR voted yes
- Thomas Henry Kuchel R-CA voted no
- Gordon Llewellyn Allott R-CO voted no
- Thomas Joseph Dodd D-CT voted yes
- George Armistead Smathers D-FL voted yes
- Spessard Lindsey Holland D-FL voted yes
- Herman Eugene Talmadge D-GA voted yes
- Richard Brevard Russell Jr. D-GA voted yes
- Hiram Leong Fong R-HI voted no
- Henry Clarence Dworshak R-ID voted no
- Everett McKinley Dirksen R-IL voted no
- Homer Earl Capehart R-IN voted no
- Andrew Frank Schoeppel R-KS voted no
- John Sherman Cooper R-KY voted no
- Benjamin A. Smith II D-MA voted yes
- Edmund Sixtus Muskie D-ME voted yes
- James Oliver Eastland D-MS voted yes
- John Cornelius Stennis D-MS voted yes
- Benjamin Everett Jordan D-NC voted yes
- Samuel James Ervin Jr. D-NC voted yes
- Milton Ruben Young R-ND voted no
- Harrison Arlington Williams Jr. D-NJ voted yes
- Frank John Lausche D-OH voted yes
- Stephen Marvin Young D-OH voted yes
- Joseph Sill Clark D-PA voted yes
- Claiborne de Borda Pell D-RI voted yes
- John Orlando Pastore D-RI voted yes
- James Strom Thurmond D-SC voted yes
- Olin DeWitt Talmadge Johnston D-SC voted yes
- Ralph Webster Yarborough D-TX voted yes
- Wallace Foster Bennett R-UT voted no
- Absalom Willis Robertson D-VA voted yes
- Harry Flood Byrd D-VA voted yes
- William Proxmire D-WI voted yes
The bill
H.R. 6974: To amend section 607(b) of the Merchant Marine Act, 1936, as amended
How each senator voted: Yes
- John Jackson Sparkman D-AL
- Joseph Lister Hill D-AL
- James William Fulbright D-AR
- Barry Morris Goldwater R-AZ
- Prescott Sheldon Bush R-CT
- Thomas Joseph Dodd D-CT
- James Caleb Boggs R-DE
- John James Williams R-DE
- George Armistead Smathers D-FL
- Spessard Lindsey Holland D-FL
- Herman Eugene Talmadge D-GA
- Richard Brevard Russell Jr. D-GA
- Bourke Blakemore Hickenlooper R-IA
- Jack Richard Miller R-IA
- Thruston Ballard Morton R-KY
- Benjamin A. Smith II D-MA
- James Glenn Beall R-MD
- John Marshall Butler R-MD
- Edmund Sixtus Muskie D-ME
- Margaret Chase Smith R-ME
- James Oliver Eastland D-MS
- John Cornelius Stennis D-MS
- Benjamin Everett Jordan D-NC
- Samuel James Ervin Jr. D-NC
- Carl Thomas Curtis R-NE
- Roman Lee Hruska R-NE
- Norris H. Cotton R-NH
- Clifford Philip Case R-NJ
- Harrison Arlington Williams Jr. D-NJ
- Jacob Koppel Javits R-NY
- Kenneth Barnard Keating R-NY
- Frank John Lausche D-OH
- Stephen Marvin Young D-OH
- Hugh Doggett Scott Jr. R-PA
- Joseph Sill Clark D-PA
- Claiborne de Borda Pell D-RI
- John Orlando Pastore D-RI
- James Strom Thurmond D-SC
- Olin DeWitt Talmadge Johnston D-SC
- Francis Higbee Case R-SD
- Karl Earl Mundt R-SD
- John Goodwin Tower R-TX
- Ralph Webster Yarborough D-TX
- Absalom Willis Robertson D-VA
- Harry Flood Byrd D-VA
- George David Aiken R-VT
- Winston Lewis Prouty R-VT
- Alexander Wiley R-WI
- William Proxmire D-WI
How each senator voted: No
- Edward Lewis (Bob) Bartlett D-AK
- Ernest Henry Gruening D-AK
- Carl Trumbull Hayden D-AZ
- Clair Engle D-CA
- Thomas Henry Kuchel R-CA
- Gordon Llewellyn Allott R-CO
- John Albert Carroll D-CO
- Hiram Leong Fong R-HI
- Oren Ethelbirt Long D-HI
- Frank Forrester Church D-ID
- Henry Clarence Dworshak R-ID
- Everett McKinley Dirksen R-IL
- Paul Howard Douglas D-IL
- Homer Earl Capehart R-IN
- Rupert Vance Hartke D-IN
- Andrew Frank Schoeppel R-KS
- John Sherman Cooper R-KY
- Allen Joseph Ellender D-LA
- Russell Billiu Long D-LA
- Patrick Vincent Mcnamara D-MI
- Philip Aloysius Hart D-MI
- Eugene Joseph Mccarthy D-MN
- Hubert Horatio Humphrey Jr. D-MN
- Edward Vaughn Long D-MO
- William Stuart (Stuart) Symington D-MO
- Lee Warren Metcalf D-MT
- Michael Joseph (Mike) Mansfield D-MT
- Milton Ruben Young R-ND
- Quentin Northrup Burdick D-ND
- Clinton Presba Anderson D-NM
- Dennis Chavez D-NM
- Alan Harvey Bible D-NV
- Howard Walter Cannon D-NV
- Almer Stillwell Mike Monroney D-OK
- Robert Samuel Kerr D-OK
- Maurine Brown Neuberger D-OR
- Wayne Lyman Morse D-OR
- Albert Arnold Gore D-TN
- Carey Estes Kefauver D-TN
- Frank Edward (Ted) Moss D-UT
- Wallace Foster Bennett R-UT
- Henry Martin (Scoop) Jackson D-WA
- Warren Grant Magnuson D-WA
- Jennings Randolph D-WV
- Robert Carlyle Byrd D-WV
- Gale William Mcgee D-WY
- John Joseph Hickey D-WY
Voted present
Did not vote
Other votes
From Voteview roll call records.
Cite or embed this page
Capitol Receipts, “HR 6974. Amend merchant marine act of 1936…: Senate Vote, Sep 1, 1961,” https://www.capitolreceipts.com/vote/87-S-170/hr-6974-amend-merchant-marine-act-of-1936-authorize (accessed 2026-10-17).