WASHINGTON — Election Day, America's celebration of civic participation, will also bring a dark milestone this year for the nation's government.

Barring a surprise breakthrough, the U.S. government shutdown will tie the longest federal closure ever on Tuesday, 35 days. One tick after midnight, it becomes the longest ever.

Nonpartisan American historians and political experts say the extended closure casts brutal light on the frailty of basic legislative processes in Washington, exacerbated in the era of President Donald Trump.

"America used to be the world's best advertisement for democracy," says H.W. Brands, a professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin and author of over 30 books on U.S. history. "The government shutdown, amid the other Trump-related troubles, must frig

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