News

South Carolina Senate votes to remove Confederate flag

by Jesse Byrnes - 07/06/15 4:26 PM ET

The South Carolina Senate has voted overwhelmingly to remove the Confederate flag from the Statehouse grounds.

Senate members voted 37-3 on Monday to remove the flag, according to the Post and Courier.

{mosads}The flag in front of the South Carolina Statehouse has caused uproar following the shooting deaths of eight people at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C., on June 17.

The state House must still vote to remove the flag.

Flanked by high-profile state lawmakers last month, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (R) called for the flag’s removal in the aftermath of the shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

The suspect in the attack, Dylann Roof, was seen in photos waving the Confederate battle flag, reigniting debate across the country and in South Carolina over displaying it.

South Carolina legislators voted in 2000 to move the Confederate symbol from the Capitol dome to a memorial within eyeshot.

Lawmakers are set to reconvene Tuesday for a third procedural vote on legislation moving the flag. The legislation also needs a two-thirds majority in the state House, where the schedule is less clear.

A survey out last week showed enough support in both chambers to remove the flag.

— This story was updated at 4:58 p.m.

Tags Charleston shooting Confederate flag South Carolina