Shortly after 1 a.m. Thursday, the South Carolina House passed a bill to remove the Confederate flag from the Capitol grounds by a vote of 94-20, according to reports from The State.
The vote came after several hours of House members debating — and rejecting — a series of amendments that had been introduced to thwart the bill’s passage, or to soften the symbolic meaning of the flag’s removal by replacing it with other, less well-known symbols of Southern pride.
The state Senate already passed the bill 37-3 on Monday, and it now goes to Gov. Nikki Haley’s desk; Haley has stated she will sign it.
Haley called for the flag’s removal at a press conference shortly after the massacre at the “Mother Emanuel” church in Charleston.
The Confederate flag has flown on the South Carolina State House grounds since 1962.
Related: Meet Mike Pitts — The SC State Rep. Who Fought To Fly The Confederate Flag
Photo: Jimmy Emerson DVM via Flickr
