History of Filibuster in Timeline

A filibuster is a tactic used in legislative bodies to obstruct or delay a vote on a proposed bill by extending debate. The goal is to prevent a decision from being made, effectively "killing" the bill. Filibusters are considered a form of obstruction. A supermajority vote invoking cloture can end a filibuster. Alternatively, the "nuclear option" allows for ending a filibuster with a simple majority, though this is a controversial maneuver.

1936: Tommy Henderson's Filibuster in Northern Ireland

In 1936, Tommy Henderson, an Independent Unionist MP, filibustered in the Northern Ireland House of Commons for nine and a half hours on the Appropriation Bill, using the opportunity to criticize the Unionist government on various topics.

1959: Last Use of Forceful End to Debate

Prior to 2025, the Althing had last used its power to forcefully end debate on a bill in 1959. This ability allows the Althing to conclude a debate through a majority vote.

November 22, 1960: Ahrn Palley's Filibuster Against Law and Order Maintenance Bill

On November 22, 1960, Independent member Ahrn Palley staged a filibuster in the Southern Rhodesia Legislative Assembly against the Law and Order Maintenance Bill. This involved moving a long series of amendments to the Bill, consisting of multiple individual speeches interspersed with comments from other Members, keeping the Assembly sitting from 8 PM to 12:30 PM the following day.

April 1963: Roseller Lim's Record Filibuster in Philippine Senate

In April 1963, Roseller Lim of the Nacionalista Party held the longest filibuster in Philippine Senate history, standing for over 18 hours to await party-mate Alejandro Almendras' arrival from the United States during the election for the President of the Senate. The Nacionalistas aimed to prevent Ferdinand Marcos from becoming Senate President, but despite Lim's efforts, Almendras ultimately voted for Marcos.

May 2, 1977: Senator Bill Meier's 43-Hour Filibuster in Texas

Starting on May 2, 1977, Senator Bill Meier spoke for 43 hours in the Texas Senate to delay the passage of a bill concerning workplace injury claims. He wore an "astronaut bag" to increase his speaking time.

May 6, 1991: Mike Harris's filibuster with Bill 95

On May 6, 1991, Mike Harris filibustered the implementation of the budget tabled by the NDP government by introducing Bill 95 (a.k.a. Zebra Mussel Act), which contained the names of every lake, river and stream in the province.

March 11, 1993: Madeleine Petrovic's filibuster

On March 11, 1993, Madeleine Petrovic held a filibuster for 10 hours and 35 minutes, which led to changes in standing orders, limiting speaking time to 20 minutes.

1993: Jorge Ulloa's six-hour speech

In 1993, Jorge Ulloa held a six-hour-long speech to allow Pablo Longueira to arrive and vote on the impeachment of three Supreme Court justices.

April 1997: Ontario NDP filibuster against Bill 103

In April 1997, the Ontario New Democratic Party filibustered Bill 103 by introducing 11,500 amendments. The Ontario Liberal Party also joined the filibuster with a smaller series of amendments.

1999: Filibuster on Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganization) Bill

In 1999, the Pro-establishment Camp filibustered the Provision of Municipal Services (Reorganization) Bill to delay voting until absentees could cast their votes.

1999: Reform Party of Canada filibuster

In 1999, the Reform Party of Canada held a filibuster on native treaty issues in British Columbia, which was the longest filibuster until the NDP's in 2011.

August 2000: New Zealand Opposition Delays Employment Relations Bill Vote

In August 2000, New Zealand opposition parties National and ACT delayed voting on the Employment Relations Bill by voting slowly and, in some cases, in Māori, which required translation into English.

December 2, 2005: Andrew Dismore's Filibuster in the UK House of Commons

On December 2, 2005, Andrew Dismore, a Labour MP, set the 21st-century record in the UK House of Commons for non-stop speaking by filibustering for three hours and 17 minutes. He did this to block a Conservative private member's bill, the Criminal Law (Amendment) (Protection of Property) Bill, which he argued amounted to "vigilante law."

August 2006: Left-wing opposition submits amendments to Gaz de France law

In August 2006, the left-wing opposition submitted 137,449 amendments to the proposed law bringing the share in Gaz de France owned by the French state from 80% to 34% in order to allow for the merger between Gaz de France and Suez.

October 26, 2006: Tom Lukiwski filibusters Kyoto Accord bill

On October 26, 2006, Tom Lukiwski filibustered for almost 120 minutes to prevent the Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development from studying a private member's bill to implement the Kyoto Accord.

2007: Privatization law as a political argument

In 2007, the privatization law could be used by the left-wing in the presidential election as a political argument.

January 2008: Time Limits on Althing Speeches

As of January 2008, the Althing implemented time limits on all speeches by its members, restricting most members to two speeches each during the first and third readings of bills, though the second reading remained unrestricted.

February 5, 2008: Tom Lukiwski filibusters election spending inquiry

On February 5, 2008, Tom Lukiwski spoke for about 6 hours at the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs meetings to block inquiry into allegations that the Conservative Party spent more than the maximum allowable campaign limits during the 2006 Canadian federal election.

February 7, 2008: Tom Lukiwski continues filibuster of election spending inquiry

Continuing from February 5, 2008, on February 7, 2008, Tom Lukiwski spoke at the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs meetings to block inquiry into allegations that the Conservative Party spent more than the maximum allowable campaign limits during the 2006 Canadian federal election.

July 2008: Reform of Article 49.3

A reform in July 2008 restricted the use of Article 49 paragraph 3 to budgetary measures only, plus one time each ordinary session.

December 18, 2009: Filibuster on Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link financing

On December 18, 2009, legislators of the Pro-democracy Camp filibustered a debate about financing the construction of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link by raising many questions on very minor issues.

2009: Filibuster Against Local Government Bill in New Zealand

In 2009, several parties in New Zealand filibustered the Local Government (Auckland Reorganisation) Bill. They opposed the government setting up a new Auckland Council under urgency and without debate. They proposed thousands of wrecking amendments and voted in Māori, requiring each vote to be translated into English. Amendments included satirical renamings of the council.

January 16, 2010: Filibuster on Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link financing ends

Continuing from December 18, 2009, the filibuster about financing the construction of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link delayed the passing of the bill to January 16, 2010.

December 16, 2010: Werner Kogler's budget speech filibuster

On December 16, 2010, Werner Kogler of the Austrian Green Party filibustered a budget committee speech, criticizing budget failings. His 12-hour and 42-minute speech broke the previous record.

June 23, 2011: NDP filibuster against Bill C-6

On June 23, 2011, the New Democratic Party (NDP) began a filibuster session in the House of Commons of Canada to prevent the passing of Bill C-6, which imposed a four-year contract on Canada Post workers.

June 25, 2011: NDP filibuster against Bill C-6 continues

Continuing from June 23, 2011, the New Democratic Party (NDP) filibuster session lasted until June 25, 2011, totaling fifty-eight hours in an attempt to prevent the passing of Bill C-6.

May 17, 2012: Termination of debate on Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill

On May 17, 2012, the President of the LegCo terminated the debate on the Legislative Council (Amendment) Bill, and all motions to amend the bill were defeated and the bill was passed.

2012: Liberal National coalition filibuster

In 2012, Tony Abbott's Liberal National coalition used suspension of standing orders to filibuster during question time against the Labor government.

November 21, 2013: Senate Vote on Executive and Judicial Nominees Filibuster Rule

On November 21, 2013, the Democratic-controlled Senate voted 52 to 48 to require only a majority vote to end a filibuster of all executive and judicial nominees, excluding Supreme Court nominees, rather than the previously required three-fifths vote.

2013: Attempt to ban filibuster in Finance Committee

In 2013, Ip Kwok-him sought to limit each member to move only one motion by amending the procedures of the Finance Committee and its two subcommittees to ban filibuster.

2014: Alan Shatter's Filibuster "Drone Attack"

In 2014, Justice Minister Alan Shatter engaged in a filibuster that was described as a "Drone Attack" due to his perceived excessive and prolonged speech.

2014: David Christopherson filibusters the Fair Elections Act

In early 2014, NDP MP David Christopherson filibustered the government's bill C-23, the Fair Elections Act, at the Procedure and House Affairs Committee, speaking for over 8 hours in the last meeting.

February 23, 2016: South Korean Filibuster Against Anti-Terrorism Bill Begins

On February 23, 2016, South Korean opposition lawmakers began a filibuster to stall the Anti-Terrorism bill, citing concerns that it would grant excessive power to the National Intelligence Service and infringe upon citizens' privacy.

April 6, 2017: Senate Vote on Supreme Court Nominees Filibuster Rule

On April 6, 2017, the Republican-controlled Senate voted 52 to 48 to require only a majority vote to end a filibuster of Supreme Court nominees. A three-fifths (60 vote) supermajority is still required to end filibusters on legislation.

April 2017: Senators Support 60-Vote Threshold for Legislation

In April 2017, a bipartisan group of 61 senators (32 Republicans, 28 Democrats, and one independent) signed a letter affirming their support for the 60-vote threshold for legislation and their opposition to abolishing the filibuster for legislation. This came in opposition to calls from then-President Donald Trump to eliminate the 60-vote requirement.

September 6, 2017: Catalonian Lawmakers Filibuster Independence Referendum

On September 6, 2017, opposition lawmakers in the Catalonian parliament started a filibuster to stall the independence referendum.

2017: Conservative and NDP MPs filibuster motion from Bardish Chagger

In the spring of 2017, Conservative and NDP Opposition MPs filibustered a motion from Government House Leader Bardish Chagger, which lasted from March 21 until May 2, when the governing Liberals dropped the most controversial elements of their proposal.

November 8, 2021: Jaime Naranjo's fifteen-hour speech

On November 8, 2021, Jaime Naranjo spoke for almost 15 hours to allow Gonzalo Winter and Giorgio Jackson to arrive in Congress to participate in the impeachment session against President Sebastián Piñera.

2021: Filibuster's Racist Past Fuels Arguments for its End

In 2021, the historical usage of the Senate filibuster in blocking civil rights legislation, described as racist by the Associated Press, strengthened arguments for its elimination.

January 19, 2022: Senate Vote Fails to Change Filibuster Rules

On January 19, 2022, the Democratic-controlled Senate voted to change the filibuster rules. However, the vote failed 52–48 due to the defection of Democratic Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema.

2022: Michaelia Cash's filibuster

In 2022, Liberal Senator Michaelia Cash engaged in a nine-hour filibuster in committee of the whole to stall the passage of industrial relations laws.

2024: South Korean Martial Law Crisis

In 2024, there was a South Korean martial law crisis, which later led to a filibuster in December 2025 by Jang Dong-hyeok against a bill that would require the judiciary to designate judges for trials related to the crisis.

December 2025: Jang Dong-hyeok Holds Longest Filibuster Record in South Korea

As of December 2025, Jang Dong-hyeok of the People Power Party holds the record for the longest filibuster in South Korea. He filibustered for 24 hours and a minute on December 23, 2025, before the National Assembly voted to end the filibuster. Jang opposed a bill requiring the judiciary to designate judges for trials related to the 2024 South Korean martial law crisis.

December 2025: Lithuania's Opposition Staged First Parliamentary Filibuster

In December 2025, Lithuania’s opposition staged the country’s first-ever parliamentary filibuster to block controversial amendments that would have eased the dismissal of the Lithuanian National Radio and Television (LRT) Director General.

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2025: Hakeem Jeffries Sets Record for Longest House Floor Speech

In 2025, Hakeem Jeffries used the "magic minute" in the United States House of Representatives to deliver a record-breaking speech lasting 8 hours and 44 minutes. This was the longest speech on the House floor and was made in opposition to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

2025: Althing ends 160-hour debate

In 2025, the Althing forcefully ended a 160-hour debate on a bill, marking the first time this power had been used since 1959. This action was taken to bring the extensive debate to a conclusion.

January 2026: Filibuster Success Postpones Vote on LRT Law Amendments

In January 2026, the LRT Law Amendments Filibuster, which began in December 2025 and featured hundreds of satirical proposals, successfully delayed the final vote until January 2026, following the committee chair’s sudden hospitalization.