Virginia’s House of Delegates unanimously killed former Gov. Tim Kaine’s $2 billion income tax increase Thursday after Republicans forced a vote on what was widely seen as a dead-on-arrival proposal.

The widely expected decision followed a lengthy round of rancor and political gamesmanship between the two parties. Democrats looked to drop the bill from consideration, while the Republican leadership hoped to box the minority party into an awkward position — choosing between rebuking the Kaine administration or supporting a tax increase in a down economy.