Alabama lawmakers vote to make Juneteenth an official state holiday

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MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — Alabama lawmakers on Wednesday gave final passage to legislation that will make Juneteenth, the day that commemorates the end of slavery after the Civil War, an official state holiday.

The Alabama Senate voted 13-5 for the legislation that now goes to Gov. Kay Ivey for her to sign or veto. Ivey, for the last four years, has used her executive powers to designate Juneteenth as a state holiday. The legislation will make the designation permanent.

Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, the day enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, learned from Union soldiers that they were free. The news came two months after the end of the Civil War.

Juneteenth has been a federal holiday since 2021.

If signed into law, state offices will close on June 19 for the Juneteenth holiday as they do for other state holidays.

The bill, which cleared the House of Representatives last month by an 85-4 vote, was sponsored by Republican Rep. Rick Rehm. Alabama senators approved the bill without debate. However, many Republicans in the 35-member chamber opted not to vote on the legislation.

Alabama has three Confederate-related state holidays that close state offices.

Alabama marks Confederate Memorial Day in April and the birthday of Confederate President Jefferson Davis in June. The state jointly observes Robert E. Lee Day with Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January.