Washington DC - Eight Democratic-aligned senators on Monday broke rank to join Republicans in a 60-40 vote passing a bill to end the longest-ever US government shutdown, sparking widespread backlash and calls for a change in leadership.

The stopgap funding measure built on Sunday's breakthrough and would keep the government open through January, with some programs funded for the full fiscal year, and reverse some of the Trump administration's firings of federal workers.

The bill notably would restore funding for the SNAP food aid program, which helps more than 42 million lower-income Americans pay for groceries.

While Senate Republican leadership agreed to hold an eventual vote on health care, House Speaker Mike Johnson wouldn't even commit to that fig leaf, which at any rate does not ensure the insurance subsidies will be extended.

With tens of millions of Americans set to see their health insurance premiums skyrocket, leaving Democrats with nothing to show for holding the line during a shutdown of record-breaking length, there was an explosion of anger at the party's leadership.

Though he said he could "not in good faith" support a measure "that fails to address the health care crisis," top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer faced widespread calls to step down – in particular after reporting by the American Prospect claimed he had been involved in backroom dealing over the defections.

All seven Democrats, as well as Independent Angus King, who voted in favor of the bill – which was essentially on the table since day one of the 42-day shutdown – will not be up for re-election in 2026.

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, gloated over "opening up our country very quickly," telling reporters in the Oval Office that "the deal is very good."

After the vote, Senate Majority Leader John Thune wrote on X that he was glad to support the "clear path to ending this unnecessary shutdown in a responsible way that quickly pays federal workers and reopens the federal government."

Right-wing Democratic Senator John Fetterman, who voted to support the Republican measure, posted: "Feed everyone. Pay our military, government workers, and Capitol Police. End the chaos in airports. Country over party."

With the stopgap funding bill passed through the Senate, the legislation moves to the House of Representatives for a vote, which like the Senate is controlled by Republicans.

The chamber is expected to reconvene as early as Wednesday, as Tuesday is a national holiday.

"It appears to us this morning that our long national nightmare is finally coming to an end, and we're grateful for that," House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters Monday.

"At least some Democrats now finally appear ready to do what Republicans and President Trump and millions of hardworking American people have been asking them to do for weeks."