For all the latest developments in Congress, follow WTOP Capitol Hill correspondent Mitchell Miller at Today on the Hill.
This is a day that history is being made — and not in a good way. The government shutdown is now in its 35th day, and on Tuesday, it will officially tie the longest shutdown in the nation’s history. 
Congressional Republicans and Democrats blame each other for what has transpired, but both sides agree that the shutdown has caused financial pain for hundreds of thousands of unpaid federal workers and the millions of Americans who rely on various government services.
But for five weeks, they have been unable to end the impasse and reopen the government.
The U.S. House of Representatives is also setting a record for not being in session. House Speaker Mike Johnson has declined to bring lawmakers back since a Republican short-term spending bill was passed on Sept. 19.
Other than summer breaks or those scheduled during election years, it is the longest break ever for the lower chamber.
Johnson has repeatedly defended his decision not to call the House into session, saying that won’t happen until Democrats in the U.S. Senate help to approve the GOP continuing resolution.
“Thirteen times the Democrats have voted to close the government,” Johnson said on Monday. “Republicans voted yes every time to open it.”
Democrats charge that Republicans are responsible for the shutdown, since they control both chambers of Congress and the White House.
They charged that President Donald Trump and GOP leaders have effectively ignored their call for negotiations on extending subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, which expire at the end of the year, and will send up health insurance premiums for millions of Americans.
“The House of Representatives is now on, I think, its longest paid vacation in modern American history, which is not a good sign when we should all be at the table negotiating to get the government open,” said U.S. Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, a Democrat who has been involved in many bipartisan negotiations over the years.
Could Tuesday’s elections help end the impasse?
As the shutdown has dragged on, lawmakers have continually pointed to possible “pressure points” that could help lead to an end to the shutdown.
One of the latest is the Tuesday elections, which include races for governor in Virginia and New Jersey.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Monday predicted “big victories” for Democrats on Tuesday, arguing that many voters are fed up with the Trump administration’s handling of the shutdown.
Republicans clearly hope for different results, but Johnson acknowledged that once the election is over with, it may be easier to make progress toward ending the shutdown.
“I hope the election tomorrow is a change, a sea change, in all this,” Johnson said Monday.
Johnson and other Republicans have said they believe Democrats have continued voting against the Republican stopgap spending bill because they want to show their base that they are fighting and don’t want to diminish voter turnout.
How does this shutdown compare to others?
The longest shutdown prior to the current one occurred during Trump’s first term, between 2018 and 2019, when he held out for more funding for the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico.
It lasted for 34 full days, spilling into a 35th day.
This shutdown will surpass that on Tuesday night.
Most shutdowns have been much shorter, though a shutdown in 1995-96, which pitted former President Bill Clinton against House Speaker Newt Gingrich, lasted 21 days.
In 2013, when President Barack Obama was in office, Republicans pressed to get rid of the Affordable Care Act in a dispute that lasted 16 days.
Ironically, more than a decade later, the current shutdown also involves the ACA, though this time it’s Democrats pressing to extend its tax credits.
Up to this point, the president and Republicans have said they would be willing to discuss health care matters with Democrats, but only once the government is reopened.
Even if a compromise is ultimately reached, it will likely take several days to iron it out and votes will need to be scheduled.
So it is clear that this shutdown will be the longest in history — it’s just a matter of how much longer the new record will be.
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