WASHINGTON, March 24 (Reuters) - Three Democratic

senators on Monday urged the White House to seek authority from

Congress to extend a deadline for China's ByteDance to sell

TikTok to safeguard the popular video sharing app from a

potential ban.

President Donald Trump in January unilaterally extended the

sale deadline from January 19 to April 5 by postponing

enforcement of a law passed last year that requires ByteDance to

sell a majority stake to U.S. owners or face a ban on the app in

the United States.

Trump said last month that he could further

extend that deadline

to give himself time to shepherd a deal.

"This non-enforcement of the TikTok ban was not only

unlawful but also raised serious questions about TikTok's

future," wrote Senators Ed Markey, Chris Van Hollen and Cory

Booker, urging the president to back legislation extending the

deadline to October.

"The path to saving TikTok should run through Capitol Hill."

The White House and TikTok did not immediately respond to

requests for comment.

Reuters reported last week that White House-led TikTok talks

are coalescing around a plan for the biggest non-Chinese

investors in ByteDance to up their stakes and acquire the app's

U.S. operations, according to two sources familiar with the

discussions.

The plan entails spinning off a U.S. entity for TikTok

and diluting Chinese ownership to avert a

U.S. ban

, the sources said.

The fate of the app, used by 170 million Americans, has

remained uncertain for months.

"We urge you to stand up for TikTok's users and use your

immense influence over congressional Republicans to demand a

long-term solution to the TikTok ban," the senators wrote.

The law, passed last year with broad bipartisan support,

reflects concern in Washington that Beijing could use the app to

conduct influence operations against the United States.

The app went dark briefly, then came back online shortly

after Trump's inauguration.

Reuters and others reported in January that the Trump

administration was working on a plan that would involve tapping

software giant Oracle and some existing ByteDance

investors to take control of the app's operations.

The Democratic senators said they want Trump to say whether

he plans to extend the deadline and, if so, on what legal basis.

They also want to know if news reports are accurate that

say the White House "is considering a potential deal with Oracle

under which Oracle would take a stake in TikTok" and provide

security for TikTok's user data.

Trump said earlier this month his administration was in

touch with four unidentified groups about a prospective TikTok

deal.