The United States Senate has taken its first step towards ending the longest government shutdown in the country’s history as lawmakers agreed to move forward with a stopgap funding package.

The Republican-led proposal, which would keep the government running until January 30, comes after weekend negotiations between the Republicans and Democrats to end the shutdown, which on Monday entered its 41st day .

The shutdown, which has surpassed the 35-day record in 2018 during President Donald Trump’s first term, has disrupted flights across the country, deprived millions of Americans of food aid and left more than 1.3 million federal government employees furloughed or working without pay.

What exactly did the Senate vote on?

The Senate passed a procedural vote on Sunday, which means the

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