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Which U.S. Senators voted for the spending measures tied to the 2025 shutdown?
Executive Summary
Two competing accounts in the provided analyses describe who voted for the spending measures tied to the 2025 shutdown: one set of reports identifies three senators — Democrats Catherine Cortez Masto and John Fetterman plus Independent Angus King — as breaking with Democrats to back a GOP stopgap, while other summaries attribute support to a larger cohort of roughly ten Democrats including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and several senior Democrats. The official roll-call tallies and contemporaneous news reports show vote counts ranging from 51–54 yeas in different motions and 55–45 in a September 30 procedural roll call, but the precise list of senators depends on which specific motion (motion to proceed, cloture, or final passage) is referenced in each account [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6].
1. What the competing claims say and why they conflict — a tight narrative of the dispute
Analyses supplied a narrow version that names three cross‑over senators supporting a GOP package and a broader version that lists as many as ten Democrats plus an independent who either advanced or ultimately supported a stopgap funding bill. The narrow account emphasizes a September‑30 procedural roll call (H.R. 5371) reported as 55 yeas and 45 nays and notes Cortez Masto and Fetterman among Democrats who voted yea [2] [3]. By contrast, the broader accounts place the key votes in March and mid‑October, reporting a group that included Schumer, Durbin, Schatz, Peters, Hassan, Gillibrand, Shaheen and others joining Republicans to advance or pass measures [4] [5]. The discrepancy arises because multiple Senate actions—motions to proceed, cloture votes and final passage attempts—occurred on different dates, producing different yea lists and totals [1] [6].
2. The most consistent, verifiable elements across reports — what we can state firmly
Across all supplied analyses the consistent facts are: Republicans led the stopgap effort, at least one GOP senator (Rand Paul) opposed some Republican measures, and a small number of Democrats and at least one Independent crossed party lines on one or more votes to prevent or attempt to end a shutdown. Multiple sources cite a 55–45 roll call on H.R. 5371 (Sept. 30) and mention Cortez Masto and Fetterman as Democratic yeas; other sources describe a later or separate 54–46 or 51–44 outcome in votes to advance or pass related stopgap measures [2] [3] [7]. The partisan breakdown varied by motion: some procedural votes cleared with fewer Democrats supporting, while final passage or cloture thresholds required 60 votes and failed despite crossover support [1] [5].
3. Timing matters: which votes the analyses reference and how that changes the list
The narrow lists correspond to late‑September and early‑October roll calls tied to H.R. 5371 and immediate continuing appropriations efforts; the broader lists cite a March action and several mid‑October attempts to pass six‑month or shorter stopgaps. A March 14 account claims ten Democrats plus Angus King voted for a Trump‑backed GOP bill, framing it as an effort to avert shutdown [4] [5]. A September 30 roll call specifically shows a 55‑45 tally with Cortez Masto and Fetterman among yeas [2]. These temporal differences explain why some names appear in one list but not another: senators sometimes supported procedural moves while opposing final language or vice versa [6] [7].
4. Motives and intra‑party dynamics revealed by the sources — both practical and political drivers
Sources attribute Democratic crossover votes to constituent pressure and a desire to avoid operational harms from a shutdown, while dissenters argued that supporting the GOP bills would concede policy concessions or empower executive action. Reports note Sen. Rand Paul opposing GOP bills on fiscal grounds and internal Democratic criticism when leaders like Schumer were reported to back emergency measures [1] [4] [5]. The analyses highlight tactical tensions: some Democrats prioritized keeping government open, others prioritized protecting Medicaid funding and ACA subsidies, which they said were threatened by the bills’ provisions or omissions [7] [3].
5. What remains unresolved and where to verify the exact roll‑call names today
The supplied documents leave unresolved which specific senators voted “for the spending measures tied to the 2025 shutdown” because multiple distinct votes exist with different yea lists. The most reliable path to definitive names is the official Senate roll‑call records for each contested motion (the H.R. 5371 votes and subsequent cloture/passage votes) because they list senator names and positions by date; these roll calls are referenced in the supplied material and provide the primary legal record for each motion [6] [8]. For readers seeking a single definitive roster, consult the roll‑call entries for the specific date and motion of interest; the differing contemporary news narratives reflect different votes and political framings, not necessarily factual contradiction.