Washington >> Newly in the minority, Democrats voted with Republicans on Thursday to advance legislation that would require federal authorities to detain unauthorized immigrants who have been accused of certain crimes — signaling that they will try and find spots to work with President-elect Donald Trump.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and most other Democrats voted to proceed with the legislation, advancing the bill 84-9. Trump and Republicans have pushed the bill and made it a priority since Georgia nursing student Laken Riley was killed last year by a Venezuelan man who entered the U.S. illegally and was allowed to stay to pursue his immigration case.

Still, Schumer hasn’t promised to vote for the final bill — and he made clear that Democrats want Republicans to work with them on bipartisan amendments. Thursday’s procedural vote will allow that process to begin.

On the Senate floor ahead of the vote, Schumer said that new Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., “has said he wants to make the Senate a place where all members should have a chance to make their voices heard. This bill would be a fine place to start.”

Schumer’s support for the bill comes after Democrats lost the Senate and the presidency in the November elections and are trying to thoughtfully pick their battles against Trump while still trying to block much of his agenda. Republicans will need seven Democratic votes to pass most major policy items in the 53-47 Senate, and Schumer has said repeatedly that Thune will have to work with them to get things done.

The new Democratic strategy is a shift from Trump’s first term, when Democrats openly and aggressively fought Trump on most issues. And it’s evidence of the delicate balance that Schumer is trying to strike after Republicans dominated last year’s elections and as some of the more moderate members of his caucus are trying to show they can work with the new president.

Several Democrats who were up for election last year embraced stricter immigration controls partly to blunt GOP attacks as the Biden administration struggled to manage an influx of migrants at the Southwest border. Some of those Democrats suggested they could support the final bill.

Michigan Sen. Elissa Slotkin, a freshman Democrat who was elected in November, posted on X that “Michiganders have spoken loudly and clearly that they want action to secure our southern border. We must get past petty partisanship that continues to dominate the immigration debate.”

Slotkin said she hopes there will be an amendment process once debate begins next week. Alabama Sen. Katie Britt, a lead Republican on the bill, told reporters afterward that Republicans are open to working with Democrats on amendments but that they would oppose efforts to expand the bill beyond its original scope.