Rep. Elise Stefanik was one of 47 Republicans voting with all Democrats on July 19 in the U.S. House for the Respect for Marriage Act. All 220 Democrats voted for the bill, which would require the U.S. government to recognize the validity of same-sex marriages and interracial marriages. In his opinion in the Supreme Court's recent ruling letting states ban abortions, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested the same logic would make the court also allow states to ban gay marriage. Local Democrats Paul Tonko and Sean Maloney voted for the bill, and there was no vote cast for the 19th Congressional District, as Antonio Delgado resigned months ago to become New York's lieutenant governor. Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney was the only New Yorker to vote against the bill. It would take at least ten Republican Senators to pass the bill and get it to President Joe Biden's desk to sign.