The Hill News

The number of Republicans on Tuesday who opposed the party's stopgap spending bill increased ninefold from a previous short-term funding measure.

In total, 54 Republicans opposed the three-week spending bill designed to avert a government shutdown. But it was not enough to stop the bill: it passed 271-158. Only 186 Republicans voted for the measure, forcing GOP leaders to rely on the votes of at least 31 Democrats. Eighty-five Democrats voted with the GOP. 

{mosads}The vote count was much different from the first short-term continuing resolution (CR) that passed the House in early March. Then, only six Republicans voted against the bill, which passed 335-91. The measure eventually passed the Senate 91-9. 

Observers had been expecting a greater number of Republican defections. Before the vote, over a dozen House members â€" including influential Republican Study Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (Ohio) â€" said they would oppose the three-week bill.

The Senate must pass the latest CR and send it to President Obama by Friday to avoid a shutdown; Senate leaders have predicted the upper chamber will approve the legislation.

Tuesday's vote underscored the growing number of Republicans pressuring leaders to pass a long-term spending measure with deep cuts. The two latest continuing resolutions have cut approximately $10 billion total this fiscal year, but GOP back-benchers and leaders alike have said they want more. 

After the vote, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) said this would likely be the last short-term measure.

“We cannot continue to fund the government with a series of stopgap measures and I am hopeful that this is the last short-term CR we will have to deal with," he said in a statement. 

But both sides remain at a stalemate over a long-term plan. Democrats have said they have come more than halfway on spending and accused Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) of being bossed around by freshmen members demanding more cuts. Republicans have responded that Senate Democrats, who hold the majority in the upper chamber, have not put forth a legitimate spending plan.

A full roll call of the vote can be found here.