Senate roll call 185 · 97th Congress · Jul 13, 1981
To close further debate on the helms substitute amendment to S. 951, the authorization of funds for fiscal 1982 for the department of justice, that prohibits TH
On Jul 13, 1981, the Senate voted 54–32 (S 951). Result: passed. By party: Republicans 32–15, Democrats 23–20. It was a bipartisan vote: majorities of both parties voted yes. 35 members voted against their own party.
During the 97th Congress (1981–1982), Ronald Reagan was president, and Democrats held the House majority and Republicans the Senate majority.
- Yes
- 54
- No
- 32
- Did not vote
- 11
- Date
- Jul 13, 1981
By party
- Republicans32 yes · 15 no · 7 didn’t vote
- Democrats23 yes · 20 no · 3 didn’t vote
Who broke with their party
- Dale Bumpers D-AR voted no
- Alan Cranston D-CA voted no
- Christopher John Dodd D-CT voted no
- Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. R-CT voted no
- Daniel Ken Inouye D-HI voted no
- Spark Masayuki Matsunaga D-HI voted no
- Alan John Dixon D-IL voted no
- Charles Harting Percy R-IL voted no
- Nancy Landon Kassebaum R-KS voted no
- Edward Moore (Ted) Kennedy D-MA voted no
- Paul Efthemios Tsongas D-MA voted no
- Charles McCurdy Mathias Jr. R-MD voted no
- Paul Spyros Sarbanes D-MD voted no
- George John Mitchell D-ME voted no
- William Sebastian Cohen R-ME voted no
- Carl Levin D-MI voted no
- Donald Wayne Riegle Jr. D-MI voted no
- David Ferdinand Durenberger R-MN voted no
- Rudolph Eli (Rudy) Boschwitz R-MN voted no
- Thomas Francis Eagleton D-MO voted no
- Max Sieben Baucus D-MT voted no
- Quentin Northrup Burdick D-ND voted no
- Alfonse Marcello D'Amato R-NY voted no
- Daniel Patrick Moynihan D-NY voted no
- Howard Morton Metzenbaum D-OH voted no
- John Herschel Glenn Jr. D-OH voted no
- Mark Odom Hatfield R-OR voted no
- Robert William Packwood R-OR voted no
- Arlen Specter R-PA voted no
- Henry John Heinz III R-PA voted no
- John Hubbard Chafee R-RI voted no
- Larry Lee Pressler R-SD voted no
- Patrick Joseph Leahy D-VT voted no
- Robert Theodore Stafford R-VT voted no
- Henry Martin (Scoop) Jackson D-WA voted no
How each senator voted: Yes
- Frank Hughes Murkowski R-AK
- Howell Thomas Heflin D-AL
- David Hampton Pryor D-AR
- Barry Morris Goldwater R-AZ
- Dennis Webster Deconcini D-AZ
- Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa R-CA
- William Lester Armstrong R-CO
- Joseph Robinette (Joe) Biden Jr. D-DE
- William Victor Roth Jr. R-DE
- Lawton Mainor Chiles Jr. D-FL
- Paula Hawkins R-FL
- Mack Francis Mattingly R-GA
- Samuel Augustus Nunn D-GA
- Charles Ernest Grassley R-IA
- James Albertus Mcclure R-ID
- Steven Douglas Symms R-ID
- James Danforth (Dan) Quayle R-IN
- Richard Green Lugar R-IN
- Robert Joseph (Bob) Dole R-KS
- Walter Darlington Huddleston D-KY
- Wendell Hampton Ford D-KY
- John Bennett Johnston Jr. D-LA
- Russell Billiu Long D-LA
- John Claggett Danforth R-MO
- John Cornelius Stennis D-MS
- William Thad Cochran R-MS
- John Melcher D-MT
- Jesse Helms R-NC
- John Porter East R-NC
- Edward Zorinsky D-NE
- J. James Exon D-NE
- Gordon John Humphrey R-NH
- Harrison Hagan Schmitt R-NM
- Pete Vichi Domenici R-NM
- Howard Walter Cannon D-NV
- Paul Dominique Laxalt R-NV
- David Lyle Boren D-OK
- Donald Lee Nickles R-OK
- Claiborne de Borda Pell D-RI
- Ernest Frederick (Fritz) Hollings D-SC
- James Strom Thurmond R-SC
- James Abdnor R-SD
- Howard Henry Baker Jr. R-TN
- James Ralph Sasser D-TN
- John Goodwin Tower R-TX
- Lloyd Millard Bentsen Jr. D-TX
- Edwin Jacob (Jake) Garn R-UT
- Orrin Grant Hatch R-UT
- Thomas Slade Gorton III (Slade) R-WA
- Robert Walter Kasten Jr. R-WI
- William Proxmire D-WI
- Jennings Randolph D-WV
- Robert Carlyle Byrd D-WV
- Alan Kooi Simpson R-WY
- Malcolm Wallop R-WY
How each senator voted: No
- Dale Bumpers D-AR
- Alan Cranston D-CA
- Christopher John Dodd D-CT
- Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. R-CT
- Daniel Ken Inouye D-HI
- Spark Masayuki Matsunaga D-HI
- Alan John Dixon D-IL
- Charles Harting Percy R-IL
- Nancy Landon Kassebaum R-KS
- Edward Moore (Ted) Kennedy D-MA
- Paul Efthemios Tsongas D-MA
- Charles McCurdy Mathias Jr. R-MD
- Paul Spyros Sarbanes D-MD
- George John Mitchell D-ME
- William Sebastian Cohen R-ME
- Carl Levin D-MI
- Donald Wayne Riegle Jr. D-MI
- David Ferdinand Durenberger R-MN
- Rudolph Eli (Rudy) Boschwitz R-MN
- Thomas Francis Eagleton D-MO
- Max Sieben Baucus D-MT
- Quentin Northrup Burdick D-ND
- Alfonse Marcello D'Amato R-NY
- Daniel Patrick Moynihan D-NY
- Howard Morton Metzenbaum D-OH
- John Herschel Glenn Jr. D-OH
- Mark Odom Hatfield R-OR
- Robert William Packwood R-OR
- Arlen Specter R-PA
- Henry John Heinz III R-PA
- John Hubbard Chafee R-RI
- Larry Lee Pressler R-SD
- Patrick Joseph Leahy D-VT
- Robert Theodore Stafford R-VT
- Henry Martin (Scoop) Jackson D-WA
Did not vote
- Theodore Fulton (Ted) Stevens R-AK
- Jeremiah Andrew Denton Jr. R-AL
- Gary Warren Hart D-CO
- Roger William Jepsen R-IA
- Mark Andrews R-ND
- Warren Bruce Rudman R-NH
- Harrison Arlington Williams Jr. D-NJ
- Nicholas Frederick Brady R-NJ
- William Warren (Bill) Bradley D-NJ
- Harry Flood Byrd Jr. I-VA
- John William Warner R-VA
Other votes
From Voteview roll call records.
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Capitol Receipts, “To close further debate on the helms…: Senate Vote, Jul 13, 1981,” https://www.capitolreceipts.com/vote/97-S-185/to-close-further-debate-on-the-helms-substitute-amendment (accessed 2026-10-17).