COLUMBUS (WCMH) – As Democrats in the U.S. Senate spoke for hours in opposition to President Trump’s pick for Secretary of Education, two dozen protesters gathered outside Senator Rob Portman’s office in downtown Columbus.

Betsy DeVos will be up for a confirmation vote in the Senate Tuesday, and protesters said they believe she is unqualified.

“No Trump, no Betsy DeVos. Schools are not for profit or loss,” protesters chanted.

“We’ve written, called, emailed, voted,” Lindsay Jessup of Dresden, Ohio said. “I feel like they’re selling out. They’re taking money from these different people and then they’re disregarding all of our concerns.”

Protesters like Jessup and Tiffany Blaz, also of Dresden, said they were concerned about contributions from Betsy DeVos and her family to Portman’s Senate campaigns.

“I don’t buy my way into my job,” Blaz said. “Should she be able to buy her way into hers?”

According to campaign finance reports from the Federal Election Commission, the DeVos family has contributed $51,000 to Portman. Approximately $43,000 of that was donated in March 2015, during his most recent campaign.

While the protesters spoke out against DeVos, one Trump supporter walked by, saying he was heading into Portman’s office to meet with a staffer. Gary Dupler said he thought the protesters were just a vocal minority.

“I think Senator Portman and anybody else who’s voting on [DeVos] should look at her background, and not what the people are protesting and trying to push their ways onto other people,” Dupler, who also said he would support more expansive restrictions on immigration, said.

Still, the protesters hoped Portman would hear what they had to say.READ MORE: Senate in round-the-clock session to confirm President Trump’s cabinet

“I know that he is listening, that he hears, which is why I keep coming, cause we just want him to know that we’re still gonna be here, and we’re gonna remember what decision he makes,” said Tatiana Laing, a New Jersey public school graduate who now lives in Columbus.

Lindsey Shriver of Groveport brought her two daughters, Lusy and Scarlett, to the protest. Shriver carried Lusy’s sign, which said, “I have to go to public school someday. Don’t ruin it before I get there.”

Lusy, who is two and a half years old, chanted along with her mother at the protest.

“We’re going to take action, we’re going to keep calling, we’re going to keep showing up,” Shriver said.

Tom Cartwright of Gahanna said he thinks DeVos is “diametrically opposed” to the idea of public education and that for-profit schools aren’t held to the same standards as public schools.

“Public education is so important in the United States that we should have the best qualified person, and it’s hard to think that anybody could look anyone in the eye and say this is the best person to be Secretary of Education,” Cartwright said.

In a statement, Emily Benavides from Portman’s office said:

Rob appreciates the fact that Ohioans regularly reach out to his office to voice their opinions on a variety of issues. We value and welcome their input. We have received a higher than normal amount of calls but that’s to be expected when the Senate is considering a new administration’s Cabinet nominees.”

Benavides also said Portman continues to support DeVos.