US Vice President Kamala Harris breaks 200-year-old record for most tie-breaking Senate votes

US Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday (Dec 5) created history by casting the most tiebreaking votes in the Senate, a first in nearly200 years.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, called Harris’ 32nd tiebreaking vote a “great milestone.”

“Today is historic. Vice President Harris has just cast her 32nd tie-breaking vote, the most tie-breakers ever. I join all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle thanking the Vice President for her leadership, and for making the work of the Senate possible,” Schumer said, according to CNN reports.

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“Without her tie-breaking votes, there would be no American Rescue Plan, no Inflation Reduction Act, and we would not have confirmed many of the excellent judges now presiding on the bench. Every time duty is called, Vice President Harris has answered, more than any other Vice President in our nation’s long history,” he further added.

Schumer presented Harris with a golden gavel after which the vice president said that she was “truly honoured.”

With the 32nd voting, that was done to break the tie on judicial nomination, Harris broke John Calhoun's record which was set at 31 tie-breakers.

The voting came on the nomination of Loren Alikhan to be a US District Judge for the District of Columbia.

Among the main constitutional duties of vice presidents in the United States is casting tiebreaker votes and Harris has been frequently called on to break the gridlocks as the Senate is closely split between Democrats and Republicans.

The pace at which Harris cast the votes plunged in 2023 when Democrats extended their narrow majority by a single seat. However, she still managed to beat John Calhoun’s record in less than half the time that he took to set it.

As per Senate records, her vote on Tuesdayput the United States at 300 tie breaks since 1789.

(With inputs from agencies)