On April 24, 2024, President Biden signed a U.S. funding bill, Public Law 118-50, that included a provision to force ByteDance, a Chinese-based company, to divest, or sell, TikTok or risk having the application banned from any use within the U.S. The law was to take effect on January 19, 2025. However, President Trump has issued multiple executive orders and other actions that extended the period to either sell the app or face being banned in the United States. The latest executive order issued in June 2025, gives TikTok 90 days to comply with the law. However, the original law would have made it the President’s desk for signature without majority ‘Yes’ votes from the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. We look behind the numbers of the House votes that set the stage for TikTok’s lifeline to operate in the U.S.
The House Bill that Passed
On March 5, 2024, the House introduced House Representative (H.R.) 7521 – Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act that would call for ByteDance, parent company to TikTok, to sell the application by a designated date or be forced to sell it.
On March 13, 2024, the House passed the bill that would advance to the U.S. Senate for a vote.
Breakdown of the Vote
The House has 432 individuals elected as members of Congress. These Congress members are representatives among the 50 states. However, the following were not represented and did not have a vote in the House.
- American Samoa
- Guam
- Northern Mariana Islands
- Puerto Rico
- U.S. Virgin Islands
- Washington, D.C.
By Yeas, Nays, Not Voting, and Present
352 of the 432 House votes were Yeas, or Yes, in favor of forcing a sell or be banned in the United States.
65 of the 432 House votes were ‘Nays, or No, against forcing a sell or be banned in the United States.
14 of 432 House votes were not voting, or opted not to vote on the bill that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok or have its app banned in the United States.
1 of 432 House votes was noted as present or opted not to vote on the bill that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok or have its app banned in the United States.
By Political Party Affiliation
Of the 432 Congressmembers in the House, 219 are Republicans who voted on H.R. 7521. Of the 219 Republicans, 197 voted in favor of the bill, 15 voted against the bill, and seven opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
The remaining 213 of the 432 Congressmembers in the House are Democrats voted on H.R. 7521. Of the 213 Democrats, 155 voted in favor of the bill, 50 voted against the bill, seven opted not to cast a vote on the bill, and one stated “Present” that does not support or is against the bill.
By U.S. Region
The 432 Congressmembers come from one of the four regions within the U.S. Based on the U.S. Census definition, the regions are as follows: Northeast, Midwest, South, and West. Using this information, there are 75 Democrats and Republicans in the Northeast; 90 Democrats and Republicans in the Midwest; 164 Democrats and Republicans in the South; and 103 Democrats and Republicans in the West.
For the Democrats, there are 54 congressmembers in the Northeast, 37 in the Midwest, 53 in the South, and 69 in the West.
- In the Northeast, 37 voted in favor of the bill, 16 voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- In the Midwest, 26 voted in favor of the bill, nine voted against the bill, and two opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- In the South, 43 voted in favor of the bill, seven voted against the bill, two opted not to cast a vote on the bill, and one voted “Present” that does not support or is against the bill.
- In the West, 49 voted in favor of the bill, 18 voted against the bill, and two opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
For the Republicans, there are 21 congressmembers in the Northeast, 53 in the Midwest, 111 in the South, and 34 in the West.
- In the Northeast, 20 voted in favor of the bill and one voted against the bill.
- In the Midwest, 51 voted in favor of the bill, one voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- In the South, 98 voted in favor of the bill, nine voted against the bill, and four opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- In the West, 28 voted in favor of the bill, four voted against the bill, and two opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
By Generational Group
The 432 Congressmembers represent five generational groups within the House. Those generational groups included Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X (Gen X), Millennials, and Generation Z (Gen Z). Please note that there may be a difference of opinion and research on the age range among the generational groups. For our research, we settled on an age range to use when categorizing the generational groups. Based on this information, there are 21 Democrats and Republicans of the Silent Generation; 191 Democrats and Republicans of the Baby Boomer Generation; 165 Gen X Democrats and Republicans; 54 Millennial Democrats and Republicans; and one Gen Z Democrat.
For the Democrats, 16 are from the Silent Generation, 90 are Baby Boomers, 79 are Gen Xers, 27 are Millennials, and one is a Gen Z.
- Among the Silent Generation, 13 voted in favor of the bill, two voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the Baby Boomers, 70 voted in favor of the bill, 17 voted against the bill, and three opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among Gen Xers, 54 voted in favor of the bill, 24 voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the Millennials, 18 voted in favor of the bill, six voted against the bill, two opted not to cast a vote on the bill, and one voted “Present” that does not support or is against the bill.
- The one Gen Z voted against the bill.
For the Republicans, five are from the Silent Generation, 101 are Baby Boomers, 86 are Gen Xers, and 27 are Millennials.
- Among the Silent Generation, four voted in favor of the bill, zero voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the Baby Boomers, 90 voted in favor of the bill, six voted against the bill, and five opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among Gen Xers, 77 voted in favor of the bill, eight voted against the bill, and one opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the Millennials, 26 voted in favor of the bill and one voted against the bill.
By Gender
The 432 Congressmembers consists of 300 males and 132 females representing both the Democratic and Republican parties.
For the Democratic party, there are 118 males and 95 females serving as congressmembers in the House.
- Among the males, 86 voted in favor of the bill, 27 voted against the bill, and five opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the females, 69 voted in favor of the bill, 23 voted against the bill, two opted not to cast a vote on the bill, and one was “Present” during the vote to signify no support for and against the bill.
For the Republican party, there are 182 males and 37 females serving as congressmembers in the House.
- Among the males, 165 voted in favor of the bill, 12 voted against the bill, and five opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
- Among the females, 32 voted in favor of the bill, three voted against the bill, and two opted not to cast a vote on the bill.
Takeaway
Overall, there was significant show of support, or 352 to force the sale of TikTok or risk being banned from the U.S. The remaining 80 House votes involved members from Congress to vote against, not vote, or state ‘present’ against H.R. 7521 that would force ByteDance to sell TikTok or face having its app banned from use in the United States. The House votes broken down by political party affiliation, U.S. regions, generational group, and gender provided more insight into how the voting played out among certain demographics. For those impacted, it is important to obtain as much information as possible on those congressmembers in the House who voted for, against, did not vote, and was present. Having this information helps strategize your business or nonprofit decisions, plan outreach efforts, better educate yourself about congressmembers, and become more proactive in dealing with the political matters that impact you, business, or nonprofit that operates in the U.S.
Contact us for more information on obtaining the dataset on the U.S. House vote breakdown.