Eleven senators skipped procedural vote on bill to create commission to probe Capitol riot

Nearly a dozen U.S. senators skipped the Friday procedural vote about legislation that would have established a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

The absences were bipartisan, with two Democrats and nine Republicans missing the vote which ultimately did not reach the 60 votes required to surmount the Republican filibuster. The vote tally was 54-35. 

Fox News noted that the vote had first been scheduled for Thursday but was later shifted to the Friday, which fell prior to the Memorial Day holiday weekend.

The lawmakers who skipped the vote included: Democratic Sens. Patty Murray of Washington and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, as well as GOP Sens. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, Roy Blunt of Missouri, Mike Braun of Indiana, Richard Burr of North Carolina, James Inhofe of Oklahoma, James Risch of Idaho, Mike Rounds of South Dakota, Richard Shelby of Alabama and Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania.

Murray said in a statement that she flew home "for a personal family matter."

Toomey had a family commitment to attend, a spokesperson said, according to Fox News which also reported that Shelby went to Alabama due to a family engagement, according to his office. Risch went to Idaho to go to his granddaughters' high school graduation.

Blunt passed up the vote so he could follow through with a commitment to go to a reopening ceremony for Wilson's Creek National Battlefield. 

"Senator Rounds is currently fulfilling his responsibilities critical to his role on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees by meeting with strategic partners and military leaders in war zones overseas," that senator's communications director said.