Also known as: yea and nay · yeas and nay · roll call vote · recorded vote
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
The affirmative and negative votes on a bill or resolution before a deliberative assembly. The names of members voting for and against are entered on the journal when the Constitution or rules require a recorded vote.
Representative Yvette Yates introduced a revenue bill in the House that later passed both chambers. After the President returned the bill with objections, the House took a recorded vote to override. The clerk tallied the yeas and nays and entered each member's name in the journal, confirming the two-thirds majority needed to enact the measure over the veto.
Senator Yusuf Yadav moved to restore funding that the President had canceled under a line-item veto statute. The Senate conducted a vote by yeas and nays on the restoration resolution. The journal listed every senator's position, allowing the court to confirm that both houses had satisfied the constitutional presentment requirements.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Senator Yelena Yakovlev and several colleagues sued after the Line Item Veto Act altered the effect of their earlier votes. The Court examined whether the senators could assert injury from the change in how their yeas and nays had been counted. Because the recorded votes remained part of the official journal, the justices assessed whether any concrete harm had occurred.
Yvonne Yeager, a state legislator, challenged a public-records request seeking the names of lawmakers who had signed a referendum petition. The Court compared the state procedure to the federal requirement that yeas and nays be entered on the journal. The decision turned on whether disclosure of individual votes served an important governmental interest.
Yosef Young, a customs collector, defended an import duty by pointing to an enrolled bill signed by the President. Opponents argued that the yeas and nays recorded in the journal showed the measure had not passed both houses. The Court held that the signed enrolled bill controlled over any journal discrepancies.
Yannick Yoo, an immigration official, faced a challenge to a one-house resolution ordering deportation of an alien. The Court reviewed whether the resolution had been passed by the yeas and nays and entered on the journal as the Constitution requires for legislative action. The absence of bicameral passage and presentment rendered the resolution ineffective.
The Constitution requires a recorded vote by yeas and nays whenever the President returns a bill with objections and Congress considers overriding the veto. It also mandates entry of the names on the journal in that circumstance.
Supporting sources
Recording the names creates a public, verifiable record of each member's position on important questions. This promotes accountability and allows courts and the public to confirm that constitutional voting thresholds were met.
Supporting sources
The requirement applies to the reconsideration of a vetoed bill and to any order, resolution, or vote requiring the concurrence of both houses, with the exception of adjournment questions. Other votes may be recorded at the request of one-fifth of those present under Article I, Section 5.
Supporting sources
An enrolled bill signed by the President is presumed valid even if the journal appears to show a defect in the recorded yeas and nays. Courts generally will not look behind the enrolled bill to contradict the journal entries.
…opinion of the committee that their deportation should not be suspended." Ibid. The resolution was passed without debate or recorded vote.[^maj-3] Since the House action was pursuant to § 244(c)(2), the resolution was not treated as an Art. I legislative act; it was not submitted to the Senate or presented to the President…