11 Hours, 50 Minutes: Vote on Bernie Sanders' Minimum Wage Amendment Breaks Senate Record On 3/6/21 at 11:08 AM EST The procedural vote to include Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders' $15-an-hour minimum wage amendment in the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill ultimately failed—but not before breaking the Senate record for longest ever vote. The record-breaking Senate vote came as many in the upper chamber were already prepared for a long night, with several offices stocking Red Bull energy drinks and snacks in advance. But debate and procedural stoppages occurred for nearly 12 hours, or 11 hours and 50 minutes, before enough moderate Democrats decided to oppose the minimum wage hike. A call between President Joe Biden and West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin was part of the lengthy process, which ended with only 42 senators siding with Sanders. Sanders needed 60 votes to waive the budget rules, which would have allowed him to use reconciliation to push his minimum wage hike through the Senate. Now, the $15 wage provision is officially excluded from the coronavirus package.