Cory Booker, democratic senator for the state of New Jersey, broke the record for the longest senate speech in the history of the United States on April 1, 2025, after speaking for 25 hours and five minutes, shocking the nation.
Before his record-breaking speech, Booker received his undergraduate and master’s degrees at Stanford University. While there, Booker played varsity football and wrote for the school’s newspaper. He then went on to study at the University of Oxford and Yale Law School. After starting a nonprofit organization that specialized in providing services for lower income families, Booker worked as the mayor of Newark, New Jersey from 2006 to 2013. He then became the first African American U.S. senator from the state of New Jersey during a special election in 2013.
The previous record for the longest running senate speech was held by Senator Strom Thurmond, who filibustered in the 1960’s in an attempt to prevent the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1957. Thurmond spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes. Some content creators on Tik Tok, a video sharing social media platform, have even pointed out the irony of Booker, an African American senator, beating Thurman’s record, a segregationist who never intended for him to hold that position of power in the first place.
Booker’s senate speech began on March 31, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. and lasted until 8:05 p.m. on April 1, 2025, making the length of the speech 25 hours and five minutes by the time he yielded the floor. Throughout the full day speech, no one tried to stop Booker from speaking, although Senator Chuck Shumar interrupted to tell Senator Booker that he broke the previous record.
The content of the speech consisted of 1,164 pages of prepared material. Over 200 personal testimonies of American citizens were shared, allowing the average citizen a chance for their voice to be heard, all in their own words. Booker’s speech protested President Trump’s second term, as well as the operation of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Booker set out to speak as long as he was able to, highlighting those who have been negatively affected by the current administration.
Cory Booker’s monumental speech will live on in the history books, long after his 25 hours and five minutes have come to an end.
