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“I have 56 hard yeses,” Sen. Hoeven told reporters Thursday. “Beyond that I’ve got six or seven maybes. Our challenge is going to be to get to 60 votes.”

If the pro-Keystone XL bill receives the 60 votes required to clear procedural obstacles in the Democrat-controlled Senate, it would likely sail through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. But to avoid being vetoed by President Barack Obama it will need the support of two-thirds of the Senate, meaning 67 votes.

“There is a very slim-chance that this will get through veto-proof, although it is significant that Harry Reid is not blocking this, which suggests strong bipartisan support,” a U.S. oil industry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The White House has repeatedly rejected calls to fast-track the pipeline project and insists the State Department must complete its due diligence on the proposal, which has been under review for more than five years.

Senator Landrieu, who also chairs the senate energy and natural resources committee, needs to boost her chances of winning the mid-term elections in Louisiana and has made a strong effort to distance herself from President Barack Obama on the pipeline issue.

I have 56 hard yeses…Beyond that I’ve got six or seven maybes

Last month, she and 12 other senators called on the President to set a timeline to decide the pipeline permit, but the White House responded by delaying the project, noting the State Department will wait for the outcome of a legal challenge by landowners over the pipeline route in Nebraska, which is expected to be settled by the state Supreme Court.