WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate on Thursday cast sufficient votes to block a Democratic bill that would have ended a 34-day partial government shutdown by providing an array of agencies the funds they need to operate through Feb. 8.

Even as voting continued, enough senators had voted against the measure to ensure it would fall short of the 60 votes needed to limit debate and advance in the 100-member chamber.

The measure aimed to buy time for Congress and President Donald Trump to negotiate border security funding while returning hundreds of thousands of federal workers to their jobs.

Earlier on Thursday, the Senate blocked legislation backed by Trump that would have ended the record-long shutdown, while funding the wall he wants to build on the U.S.-Mexico border.