The Senate on Thursday night passed a stopgap spending bill to avert a U.S. government shutdown, sending the measure to President Joe Biden for his signature. The bipartisan 69-28 vote came hours after House passage of the legislation on a largely party-line basis.

The Senate vote followed day-long negotiations between Senate leaders and a group of conservative Republicans who demanded consideration of an amendment that would block Biden's Covid-19 vaccine mandates. In exchange, they agreed to not throw up procedural obstacles for the spending bill, which threatened to trigger a partial closing of the government after midnight Friday.

That amendment failed, 48-50, and the Senate moved quickly to pass the temporary government funding.