WASHINGTON – The Senate on Wednesday failed to pass a $500 billion COVID-19 stimulus package as relief negotiations drag on less than two weeks before Election Day.

The bill would have given a federal boost to weekly unemployment benefits, sent $100 billion to schools, and allocated funding for testing and vaccine development. It failed in a 51-44 vote, unable to reach the 60 votes required to allow the legislation to move forward as nearly all Democrats opposed it over concerns that more money was needed to combat the virus and help Americans.

The bill’s $500 billion price tag was far less than the roughly $1.8 trillion package the White House has offered and the $2.2 trillion package Democrats have backed. The two parties have spent months attempting to find a bipartisan agreement for one last batch of coronavirus stimulus relief before the election.

The back-and-forth talks have been dizzying, with negotiations at times appearing dead only to be met with optimism and more talks between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has repeatedly blamed Democrats for standing in the way of a compromise, told fellow Republicans on Tuesday he urged the White House not to strike a deal with Democrats on a COVID-19 relief package, according to a Senate source who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss closed-door discussions.

The Kentucky Republican explained he was concerned there would not be enough GOP votes to back a larger package and cited worries that voting on such legislation could negatively affect the timing on Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation vote to the Supreme Court, which is set for Monday, the source said.

Senate Republicans have stressed their concerns about a large bill due to the rising national debt and because of items Democrats have mandated, such as funds for local and state governments.

Instead, they have gotten behind the $500 billion bill. While it is not expected to pass on Wednesday, the legislation will largely serve as a tool for Republicans to outline their priorities. It may also offer a lifeline to struggling GOP incumbent senators who are facing tough reelection campaigns.

“The legislation before us is neither Republicans’ nor Democrats’ idea of a perfect bill. I think we’re all clear on that,” McConnell said on the Senate floor Wednesday before the vote. “But it would move us past Speaker Pelosi’s all-or-nothing obstruction and deliver huge support, right now, for the most pressing needs of our nation.”

He criticized Democrats, who he said were advocating for “silly stuff” like more funds for state and local governments, allocations he characterized as “wheelbarrows of cash” for governments that “Democrats have mismanaged for decades.”

“The country needs an outcome,” McConnell said. “Let’s put aside our differences, agree where we can, and move forward. Why not get the country in a better place while Washington continues to argue over the rest?”

Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., called Wednesday’s vote just the latest “stunt” by Republicans on proposals “that are in reality designed to fail” and said the GOP was playing “games” with important relief for Americans by holding a “fake vote.”

“While the country is hurting, while millions of Americans are sick and dying, while workers lose their jobs, businesses close their doors, Republican Senators are playing political stunts with vitally needed economic relief,” he said.

He criticized the lack of funds for coronavirus testing and tracing and said the legislation is filled with “poison pills” that Democrats would never back.

The Senate voted on a small bill Tuesday to reauthorize the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for small businesses. The bill would have allowed another round of small-business loans but was blocked by Democrats, who argued for a broader package.

Congress last passed a comprehensive package in March, and many of the package’s provisions have since lapsed. A federal boost to weekly unemployment benefits ran out in July, airline assistance expired in October, and Americans weathering an economic recession eagerly await another round of stimulus checks.

Despite McConnell’s concerns about brokering a deal before the election, Pelosi and Mnuchin have continued daily conversations attempting to find a compromise.

Pelosi, appearing on MSNBC on Wednesday, said she’s “optimistic” about a bill but the timing was still unclear. “It’s a question of is it time to pay the November rent, which is my goal, or is it going to be shortly thereafter and retroactive,” the California Democrat said.

She and Mnuchin talked again Wednesday afternoon and the discussions brought them “closer to being able to put pen to paper to write legislation,” said Drew Hammill, Pelosi’s deputy chief of staff. He added that differences remain on some issues, including on a national testing strategy and funding for schools.

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows told Fox Business on Wednesday that he hoped to have a deal in the next two days and the talks had “entered a new phase, which is more on the technical side of trying to get the language right if we can agree upon the numbers.”

He added that while both sides were “still apart,” things had progressed over the last day or so.

“I am optimistic,” Meadows added. “We do share one goal, and that is hopefully to get some kind of deal in the next 48 hours or so.”

McConnell said Tuesday a “presidentially supported bill” would come to the Senate floor if it passed the House, though lawmakers have grown pessimistic that bipartisan legislation would come forward.

But as the negotiations continue to press against Election Day, many lawmakers said the chances of getting something done appeared slim.

Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, cast doubt on the possibility of a large aid package, calling the $1.8 trillion offered by the White House a “high number.”

“The clock keeps ticking away, and I’m not optimistic about us doing anything,” he said.

Others looked ahead at the potential pathway forward during a lame-duck session, the period between the election and January when newly elected leaders take power and stressed the hardships of passing major legislation during that time.

“I think the lame duck is a really hard time to get much done in any lame duck, and I don’t see why this one would be different,” said Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. “If we’re gonna do it this year, I think it’s now or never.”