Washington Democrats split as House votes to end longest-ever government shutdown

WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives voted largely along party lines Wednesday night to end the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, with Northwest Republicans voting to fund most of the federal government through January while all but one Democrat from the region opposed the bill because it did not address expiring health insurance subsidies.

The legislation funds some federal programs through the end of September, while the rest of the government could shut down again if Republicans and Democrats cannot finish a full-year appropriations package by the end of January. The bill passed by a vote of 222-209 and President Donald Trump signed it into law late Wednesday night, ending the shutdown after a record 43 days.

All but six House Democrats opposed the bill, as the party’s base raged against the eight members of the Senate Democratic Caucus who broke ranks to help GOP senators pass the bill on Monday. Republicans did not need any help to pass the legislation in the House, but Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, a Democrat who represents a GOP-leaning district in southwest Washington, voted for it. She also supported a similar short-term funding bill in September, but she arrived late and was recorded as not voting.

Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, called the shutdown “a monumental waste of time that hurt a lot of people” in a statement after the vote.

“I’m relieved that this pointless DC drama is finally over and families across Eastern Washington can breathe a sigh of relief,” he said. “Instead of playing political games that threatened paychecks, benefits for the most needy, and the livelihoods of hardworking Americans, we should have focused on practical solutions from the beginning. I thank the Democrats who were willing to work across the aisle to end this needless shutdown and put country over party.”

In a statement, Glusenkamp Perez called the six-week shutdown “a case study in why most Americans can’t stand Congress.”

“Tonight, I voted to end this partisan car crash of a shutdown,” she said. “Nobody likes paying even more money to insurance companies – and the fight to stop runaway health insurance premiums won’t be won by holding hungry Americans hostage. Americans can’t afford for their Representatives to get so caught up in landing a partisan win that they abandon their obligation to come together to solve the urgent problems that our nation faces.”

Washington’s seven other House Democrats opposed the bill, as did both of the state’s senators, and blamed Republicans for refusing to negotiate. Democratic leaders initially demanded several concessions from Republicans – including the rollback of key provisions in the GOP’s massive tax-and-spending bill passed in July – in exchange for the votes needed to pass a short-term spending bill in the Senate, where a rule requires 60 votes to pass most legislation.

Democrats eventually narrowed their demands to extending health insurance subsidies that are set to expire at the end of the year. Instead, the deal struck by seven Democratic senators and one independent includes only a pledge from GOP leaders to allow a vote on such an extension, which appears likely to fail since Republicans control the House, Senate and White House.

Some Republicans have acknowledged that rising health care costs represent a crisis for the country, but the two parties have very different ideas to address the problem. Premiums are set to increase for all Americans with private health insurance, but those who buy insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces are in for a more dramatic price hike when the subsidies expire.

Rep. Emily Randall, a Democrat who represents Bremerton and the Olympic Peninsula, said families are “terrified” they will lose their health care coverage.

“I wanted to work with my Republican colleagues to come to an agreement to reopen the government,” she said in a statement, “to pay the federal workers and military personnel in my district and across the country, to ensure the President doesn’t keep trying to withhold food assistance – but they refused to talk to us.”

As the shutdown dragged on, the Trump administration made several policy moves seemingly aimed at increasing the shutdown’s impact, including a decision not to tap into an emergency fund to continue the food assistance program known as SNAP. Those benefits would be spared from a potential shutdown in February because the bill passed Wednesday fully funds the Department of Agriculture, which administers SNAP.

Rep. Dan Newhouse, a Republican who represents central Washington and sits on the House Appropriations Committee, turned his attention to passing the nine remaining appropriations bills Congress needs to pass after including three of the bills in the package that passed Wednesday. Those bills fund the Department of Agriculture; the Department of Veterans Affairs along with military construction; and the legislative branch.

“After an unnecessary 43-day shutdown, our government is finally re-opened, and we are making progress on full-year funding bills,” Newhouse said in a statement. “I thank the Senators who worked together to end this record-long shutdown and for showing the country that we can, and should, work together for the sake of those we represent.”

Two House Republicans, Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Greg Steube of Florida, voted against the bill. Massie has consistently opposed the use of short-term spending bills as a substitute for full-year appropriations, while Steube wrote on X that he opposed it because of a provision that lets eight GOP senators sue the government over federal investigators searching their phone records without their knowledge during an investigation into the January 2021 Capitol riot.

Correction: This story was updated on Nov. 26, 2025, to correct how Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez voted on a short-term spending bill on Sept. 19. At the time, she released a statement in support of the bill and intended to vote for it, but she arrived late and was recorded as not voting.