The Senate voted Monday night to advance the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, granting workplace protections to LGBT people, by a margin of 61-30.
ENDA would make it illegal for businesses to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.
Seven Republican senators voted for cloture and begin debate on the bill: Mark Kirk (R-IL), Susan Collins (R-ME), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), Dean Heller (R-NV), Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), Rob Portman (R-OH) and Pat Toomey (R-PA). Nobody from the Republican caucus voiced opposition to ENDA during floor debate on the bill Monday.
During the Senate cloture vote, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released a statement in response to House Speaker John Boehner’s Monday announcement that he opposes ENDA.
“Next year Americans will have the opportunity to replace House Republicans who stand in the way of common sense – and elect Democrats who will stand up for the right of all Americans to do their jobs without fear of being fired because of who they love,” DCCC Chairman Steve Israel said in the statement.
