Senate roll call 274 · 97th Congress · Sep 21, 1981
To confirm the nomination of sandra d. O'connor, of arizona, to be an associate justice of the supreme court. (motion passed)
On Sep 21, 1981, the Senate voted 99–0. Result: passed. By party: Republicans 53–0, Democrats 46–0, Independents 1–0. It was a bipartisan vote: majorities of both parties voted yes.
During the 97th Congress (1981–1982), Ronald Reagan was president, and Democrats held the House majority and Republicans the Senate majority.
- Yes
- 99
- No
- 0
- Did not vote
- 1
- Date
- Sep 21, 1981
By party
- Republicans53 yes · 0 no · 1 didn’t vote
- Democrats46 yes · 0 no
- Independents1 yes · 0 no
Who broke with their party
Every member who voted sided with their party's majority.
How each senator voted: Yes
- Frank Hughes Murkowski R-AK
- Theodore Fulton (Ted) Stevens R-AK
- Howell Thomas Heflin D-AL
- Jeremiah Andrew Denton Jr. R-AL
- Dale Bumpers D-AR
- David Hampton Pryor D-AR
- Barry Morris Goldwater R-AZ
- Dennis Webster Deconcini D-AZ
- Alan Cranston D-CA
- Samuel Ichiye Hayakawa R-CA
- Gary Warren Hart D-CO
- William Lester Armstrong R-CO
- Christopher John Dodd D-CT
- Lowell Palmer Weicker Jr. R-CT
- 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
- Daniel Ken Inouye D-HI
- Spark Masayuki Matsunaga D-HI
- Charles Ernest Grassley R-IA
- Roger William Jepsen R-IA
- James Albertus Mcclure R-ID
- Steven Douglas Symms R-ID
- Alan John Dixon D-IL
- Charles Harting Percy R-IL
- James Danforth (Dan) Quayle R-IN
- Richard Green Lugar R-IN
- Nancy Landon Kassebaum R-KS
- 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
- 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
- John Claggett Danforth R-MO
- Thomas Francis Eagleton D-MO
- John Cornelius Stennis D-MS
- William Thad Cochran R-MS
- John Melcher D-MT
- Max Sieben Baucus D-MT
- Jesse Helms R-NC
- John Porter East R-NC
- Mark Andrews R-ND
- Quentin Northrup Burdick D-ND
- Edward Zorinsky D-NE
- J. James Exon D-NE
- Gordon John Humphrey R-NH
- Warren Bruce Rudman R-NH
- Harrison Arlington Williams Jr. D-NJ
- William Warren (Bill) Bradley D-NJ
- Harrison Hagan Schmitt R-NM
- Pete Vichi Domenici R-NM
- Howard Walter Cannon D-NV
- Paul Dominique Laxalt R-NV
- Alfonse Marcello D'Amato R-NY
- Daniel Patrick Moynihan D-NY
- Howard Morton Metzenbaum D-OH
- John Herschel Glenn Jr. D-OH
- David Lyle Boren D-OK
- Donald Lee Nickles R-OK
- Mark Odom Hatfield R-OR
- Robert William Packwood R-OR
- Arlen Specter R-PA
- Henry John Heinz III R-PA
- Claiborne de Borda Pell D-RI
- John Hubbard Chafee R-RI
- Ernest Frederick (Fritz) Hollings D-SC
- James Strom Thurmond R-SC
- James Abdnor R-SD
- Larry Lee Pressler 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
- Harry Flood Byrd Jr. I-VA
- John William Warner R-VA
- Patrick Joseph Leahy D-VT
- Robert Theodore Stafford R-VT
- Henry Martin (Scoop) Jackson D-WA
- 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
Did not vote
Other votes
From Voteview roll call records.
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Capitol Receipts, “To confirm the nomination of sandra d…: Senate Vote, Sep 21, 1981,” https://www.capitolreceipts.com/vote/97-S-274/to-confirm-the-nomination-of-sandra-d-oconnor-of (accessed 2026-10-17).