Okay, to be fair, it wasn’t technically a filibuster. Professionals are calling it a “marathon speech.” A filibuster is when a long speech is delivered to prevent voting on a legislative action (such as a bill). This was not preventing any voting or legislative action, but rather was an opportunity for Booker to give his opinion in front of a captive audience.

From March 31 to April 1, 2025, Cory Booker, the senior Democratic Party U.S. senator from New Jersey, delivered the longest recorded speech in United States Senate history while protesting the second presidency of Donald Trump and the operations of Elon Musk‘s Department of Government Efficiency.

Filibusters are only possible in the Senate. In the House, there are strict limits on who can speak and for how long.

Filibusters can be strategically used within the senate, and there is also something called a “silent filibuster” where a group refuses to vote, resulting in the bill being dismissed. To pass a bill in the Senate, they need 60 votes (out of the 100 total members). If enough people agree not to vote, then they can avoid the process without having to stand up and speak for hours on end.

Now, back to Cory Booker. He spoke for 25 hours and 5 minutes, breaking the record previously set by Strom Thurmond in 1957 when he spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes.

Booker delivering his marathon speech.