An afternoon vote was expected to clear the way for a Republican-written bill to keep government funding flowing past midnight after the top Senate Democrat said he would not block it.

The U.S. Senate on Friday passed a stopgap spending bill, averting a partial government shutdown, after Democrats backed down in a standoff driven by anger over President Donald Trump's campaign to slash the federal workforce.

The legislation would apparently shield the D.C. government from a billion-dollar cut, but it would still need to be approved by the House.