The upper house of the U.S. Congress rejected bills funding several government agencies during a procedural vote, APA reports.
Without their approval, a partial federal government shutdown will begin in the United States at midnight on the night of January 31.
Forty-five senators voted in favor of the bills, while 55 voted against them. In addition to all representatives of the opposing Democratic Party, eight Republicans voted to reject the bills.
The legislation included funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the military, finance, and transportation departments. This came amid controversy over the Trump administration's campaign to combat undocumented immigrants, as well as events in Minnesota and protests that erupted in the state capital, Minneapolis, after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed a man in the city.
The Democratic Party is demanding that funding for the Department of Homeland Security be allocated in a separate bill, as Democrats plan to introduce a number of new amendments to it to limit the agency's work.
