Thirteen House Republicans broke ranks Wednesday night, siding with Democrats to move ahead on a bill aimed at gutting President Donald Trump’s executive order clamping down on federal worker unions.

The push came from Rep. Jared Golden of Maine, who used a procedural weapon known as a discharge petition to force the issue onto the floor. The maneuver lets a majority of lawmakers drag a bill forward even if leadership wants it buried.

The House voted 222-200 to start debate and set up a final vote. All 209 Democrats joined 13 Republicans to advance the measure, which faces another procedural test Thursday.

The GOP defectors were Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey, Nicole Malliotakis of New York, Nick LaLota of New York, Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Rob Bresnahan of Pennsylvania, Don Bacon of Nebraska, Mike Lawler of New York, Tom Kean of New Jersey, Ryan Mackenzie of Pennsylvania, Zach Nunn of Iowa, Chris Smith of New Jersey, Pete Stauber of Minnesota, and Mike Turner of Ohio.

Congressman Jeff Van Drew speaks at an event.

Five of them — Fitzpatrick, Bresnahan, Bacon, Lawler, and LaLota — had already signed Golden’s petition alongside 213 Democrats.

Golden’s bill, the Protect America’s Workforce Act, seeks to wipe out Trump’s March 2025 order that halted collective bargaining across major federal agencies, including Defense, State, Veterans Affairs, Justice, and Energy. The order also applied to workers at Homeland Security, Treasury, Health and Human Services, Interior, and Agriculture.

Discharge petitions almost never succeed, since members of the majority usually avoid crossing their own leadership. But many of the Republicans who sided with Democrats are facing tough re-election fights, or they represent districts where voting with unions isn’t just tolerated but expected.

The razor-thin GOP majority has also made procedural rebellions more common, with Republicans able to lose only two votes on party-line business.

Several of the defectors, including Lawler, LaLota, and Malliotakis, have long courted union support.

The bill now heads into full House debate before a final vote. If it clears the chamber, the Senate must take it up before it can land on Trump’s desk.

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