House Democrats have ended their daylong sit-in demanding action on gun control legislation, but the fight is not over. Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) has pledged to return and continue to push for reforms, NPR reports.
For now, lawmakers will go home for their Fourth of July recess and reconvene Tuesday, July 5.
The Democrats caused a stir late Wednesday morning, demanding to be allowed to vote on two gun control measures and refusing to yield until the vote was had. Many sat on the floor of the House chamber, and there were chants of "No bill, no break" as they waved posters with the names of victims of gun violence.
However, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) refused to listen to the calls of his fellow lawmakers and adjourned the House for recess after passing a Zika funding bill—which Democrats were against—in the middle of the night.
"We are not going to allow stunts like this to stop us from carrying out the people's business," Ryan said at his weekly news conference.
Although television cameras usually broadcast chamber proceedings, yesterday they went dark for most of the day, keeping in line with the policy of turning the cameras off once the chamber goes into recess. This left C-SPAN and other broadcasters relying on social media, using Facebook and Periscope to get messages from the protesting lawmakers out to the rest of the world.
"Just because they cut and run in the dark of night, just because they have left, doesn't mean we are taking no for an answer," said Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Thursday morning, according to NPR, quoting AP.
Read more at NPR.