( CNN ) -- Senators voted late Thursday to approve a defense bill and end an ugly standoff over presidential nominations , averting a third overnight session in two weeks . The Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act 84 to 15 . It then voted 55 to 45 to break a filibuster on the nomination of Alejandro Mayorkas to be the deputy secretary of Homeland Security . On Friday morning , senators will begin a series of votes on the nominations of Mayorkas ; John Koskinen to be commissioner of the IRS ; and Brian Davis to be a federal district judge for Florida . The confirmation vote on Janet Yellen to be chairwoman of the Federal Reserve has been pushed to January 6 . Progress has been difficult because the parties have been feuding over a new rule the majority Democrats forced through limiting filibusters over the objections of minority Republicans . Before the agreement on the voting schedule , Republicans had insisted on all time allowed for floor debate , even if no one was talking . Such a process would have kept senators working all night and through most of Saturday , cutting their holiday break short . CNN 's Jonathan Helman and Ed Payne contributed to this report .
NEW : Congress passed the National Defense Telecommunications Act . NEW : Senate votes to end a filibuster on the nomination of Alejandro Toledo . Janet Reno 's nomination to lead the Federal Reserve Board until January .