Norton Votes on House Floor in Committee of the Whole

Press Release

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) voted today on the House floor in the Committee of the Whole, a right that was suspended during the pandemic and restored today. Norton first won the vote for the District of Columbia in the Committee of the Whole in the 103rd Congress. Since then, when Democrats have been in the majority, Norton has been allowed to vote on the House floor in the Committee of the Whole. When Republicans have been in the majority, Norton has not been allowed to do so.

"The delegate vote's importance to the taxpaying American citizens who live in the District cannot be overstated," Norton said. "D.C. residents have fought in every war since the Revolutionary War, and D.C. pays more federal taxes per capita than any state and more federal taxes than 23 states."

Norton, soon after becoming a member of the House, submitted a legal memorandum to her own leadership arguing that since D.C. had a vote in standing committees under the rules of the House, D.C. should also have a vote on the House floor in the Committee of the Whole, which is also established by House rules. Republicans challenged the rule allowing Norton to vote on the House floor in the Committee of the Whole in federal court, but it was found constitutional under Article I of the U.S. Constitution by both a federal district court and a federal appeals court.

The House has passed Norton's D.C. statehood bill twice since 2020, most recently on April 22, 2021.

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