Congress averts a government shutdown ahead of the midterms

The U.S. Capitol is seen from Pennsylvania Avenue, on Aug. 30. The House voted Tuesday to extend government funding past this fall's midterm elections. Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP hide caption

Congress has eliminated the threat of a politically perilous government shutdown this fall.

The House voted Tuesday to extend federal spending at current levels with a few exceptions through Dec. 11, punting the funding fight until after the midterm elections.

Federal funding was set to run out again Sept. 30, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle were eager to avoid a prolonged shutdown as voters head to the polls.

The legislation passed the House 370-48 with bipartisan support.

The Senate already easily passed the measure, known as a continuing resolution, in August. The White House encouraged lawmakers to support the stopgap, and President Trump is expected to sign it.

Congressional leaders turned to a short-term funding patch after bipartisan negotiations in the Senate to appropriate money for the next full fiscal year broke down.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., addresses reporters as Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., look on during a news conference Tuesday ahead of the government funding vote. Finn Gomez/Getty Images hide caption

This Congress has seen two record-long government shutdowns in the last year. Democrats withheld their votes first to pressure Republicans to extend expiring subsidies for health insurance premiums , prompting a 43-day shutdown that ended in November. A 76-day shutdown at the Department of Homeland Security came to a close in April after the party tried to force legislation to reign in the tactics of federal immigration officers .

Lawmakers eventually voted to reopen the government, approving bipartisan appropriations bills covering each federal agency. Though the shutdowns elevated the debates over the cost of health insurance and Trump's immigration crackdown on the national stage, Democrats were unable to extract concrete concessions despite the months-long standoffs.

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