Senate Democrats Are Only One Vote Away From Saving Net Neutrality

The fight for Net Neutrality has been fraught and strained since the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) got Ajit Pai as its chair. Now, Senate Democrats just need one more vote to finally save a truly free and open internet. Unfortunately, with a Republican majority house, these senators are facing a tough battle to get that vote.

Senator Chuck Schumer, the current big boss in the Democrat side of the house, said that their side only needs one more Republican to come over and give the FCC a slap for voting to end Net Neutrality, Engadget reports. The Democrats already have 50 votes and one more would give them the majority.

Once the vote has been passed, it would not only restore actual internet freedom and regulations on ISPs, it would also take away the FCC’s power to make similar moves in the future. As such, this one vote could ensure that Net Neutrality would be protected for the foreseeable future.

So far, only one Republican has opted to support the resolution, Senator Susan Collins of Maine. All 49 Senate Democrats are firmly behind the bill. Unfortunately, if staunch Republican, Vice President Mike Pence decides to cast his vote to break the tie, it could all come tumbling down. At this point, it’s safe to say that the pressure on the Democrat’s side is enormous.

Adding to the strain is the time limit in which the vote can be decided. As Phone Arena notes, the Senators only had 60 days to challenge the FCC’s decision to gut Net Neutrality and now, they only have half of that time to work with.

With so many other legislation on the floor and a potential government shutdown hanging over everyone’s heads, Senate Democrats have a very brief window to push this resolution through. If they fail, Net Neutrality officially dies.