Government shutdown: The five longest standoffs in US history

There appears to be no end in sight to the current government shutdown, with Democrats and Republicans still far from reaching an agreement on federal spending nearly a month into the 2026 fiscal year.

Hundreds of thousands of federal workers have been furloughed and thousands have been laid off. Some federal services have also been paused due to lack of funding.

This is not the first time that such an impasse has suspended all or part of government operations. Below is a list of the five longest government shutdowns in U.S. history and how they were resolved.

BATTLEFIELD REPUBLICANS HOLD THE LINE AS JOHNSON PRESSES DEMS FOR STOP

Presidents Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter respectively presided over the four longest government shutdowns in history. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images; Luke Frazza/AFP via Getty Images; Bettman Archives via Getty Images)

December 2018–January 2019: 35 days

The longest government shutdown in history occurred during the first Trump administration and lasted five weeks.

Funding for President Donald Trump’s border wall was at the heart of that dispute. Trump had refused to sign a federal spending deal that included no money for the project, and a standalone $5.7 billion bill was blocked by a filibuster led by Senate Democrats.

Trump ultimately supported a short-term federal funding measure to reopen the government on January 25, 2019, and weeks later, Congress approved $1.375 billion for 55 miles of border fencing between the United States and Mexico.

It was a partial shutdown, meaning lawmakers managed to reach agreement on five of the 12 appropriations bills before time ran out.

October 1, 2025–current: 26 days or more

The current government shutdown is now the second longest in history and the longest total shutdown ever.

This means that Congress was unable to reach a federal funding agreement on the appropriations bills before the end of the 2025 fiscal year on September 30.

Republicans, who control the House and Senate, had proposed a seven-week extension of fiscal 2025 spending levels to give lawmakers more time to hammer out next fiscal year’s numbers.

It passed the House on September 19, with the support of a Democrat, but stalled in the Senate 12 times.

Screaming match breaks out between HAKEEM JEFFRIES and MIKE LAWLER AS GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN CHAOS CONTINUES

Democrats are demanding that any federal funding plan also include an extension of the COVID-19 pandemic-era boosted Obamacare subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of this year without congressional action.

By the most recent count, at least five more Democratic senators are needed to overcome a filibuster and pass the measure in the Senate.

Republican leaders, however, have shown no signs of backing down, accusing Democrats of trying to introduce an unrelated issue into the annual funding process.

The government is paralyzed after Congress fails to reach an agreement on federal funding. (Getty Images)

December 1995–January 1996: 21 days

The second of two government shutdowns under former President Bill Clinton lasted three weeks, breaking the record at the time for the longest shutdown in U.S. history.

Republicans had won control of the House and Senate in the 1994 midterm elections, putting Clinton on a collision course with then-House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga.

Gingrich pursued significant cuts to the federal budget after being emboldened by the 1994 red wave in the House following his “Contract with America.”

Clinton, who also advocated for a balanced budget, disagreed with the spending cuts requested by Republicans in Congress.

It was also a partial shutdown, with the energy, defense and agriculture ministries among those funded before the standoff began.

Republicans decided to end the shutdown amid growing negative public polling for the GOP, NPR reported.

September 30, 1978–October 18, 1978: 18 days

The longest paralysis of former President Jimmy Carter’s four-year term in the White House lasted 18 days, at a time when Democrats controlled every lever of power in Washington.

Carter had vetoed Congressional bills on defense spending and public works that he said wasted federal money, according to the Washington Post. This included funding for a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier which Carter opposed.

There was also a dispute over abortion in the funding bill for the now-defunct Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

Congress eventually removed funding that Carter opposed from the defense and public works bills, while a compromise was reached on the latter issue.

Former President Barack Obama presided over the second longest full shutdown in history, and the fifth overall. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

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October 1, 2013–October 17, 2013: 16 days

Much like the current standoff, the 2013 government shutdown also focused on Obamacare – also known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

This is the second longest complete shutdown in history, behind today’s. At the time, Republicans controlled the House while Democrats held the Senate.

The Republican Party had insisted on spending bills that rolled back significant parts of Obamacare, which had only been in effect for about three years.

Senate Democrats, however, rejected such measures passed by the Republican-controlled House.

Congress ultimately agreed to a short-term spending package to end the shutdown, and Republicans backed away from pushing funding bills with cuts to Obamacare.