Even though voting rights activists have pushed as hard as they can, it looks like legislation granting the District a voting seat in the House of Representatives may not come to the floor of the U.S. Senate before its month-long August recess kicks off at the end of next week.

According to a press release from D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, discussions with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) have yielded no concrete scheduled time for a floor debate and vote before the recess. Regardless, Norton remains optimistic that the legislation will pass regardless of when it is voted on. From the release:

Norton said that although she was disappointed that the D.C.-Utah bill was not on the list of bills scheduled before the August recess, she remains very encouraged and optimistic following discussions with Leader Reid’s office this morning. She said that the delay will not harm the bill because of the unprecedented momentum S. 1257 has garnered here and around the country, and because of Leader Reid’s strong commitment.

It also noted that the legislation has a “healthy majority” for passage, but does not verify whether or not enough votes exist to head off a filibuster.

Of course, holes in the Senate schedule could allow the legislation to come to the floor next week. We’re hoping it will, but given the state of everything else in the country and in the world, we wouldn’t blame the Senate for waiting a month.