Election category, Page 26
Elon Musk town hall event fills McKees Rocks theater in support of Trump campaign
Elon Musk told an Allegheny County audience Sunday that democracy is in peril. Musk brought his super PAC sponsored tour through Pennsylvania to the Roxian Theater in McKees Rocks to enlist support for former President Donald Trump and promote voter registration and mail-in balloting ahead of the November election and...
Former Scottdale Council candidate challenges Davanzo in 58th state House race
After losing a seat on Scottdale Council by a marble last year, Cherri Rogers is challenging four-year incumbent state Rep. Eric Davanzo on Nov. 5. Rogers, 56, of Scottdale, comes to the political arena with more than 30 years of experience as a nurse, including four years as a school...
Music in U.S. presidential campaigns dates all the way back to George WashingtonVideo
Quick! When you hear “Don’t Stop” by Fleetwood Mac, what do you think of? For a large swath of the U.S. population who lived through the 1990s, the answer may very well be Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign. “I became old enough to vote during the Clinton years, and I...
Trump reminisces about Arnold Palmer, boasts steel workers’ praise at Unity Township rally
Former President Donald Trump returned to Westmoreland County on Saturday, meandering through many subjects, including his friendship with local legend Arnold Palmer, lampooning his rival, Vice President Kamala Harris, getting the individual endorsements of some Mon Valley steelworkers and repeating false claims that he won the 2020 election. Trump began...
Some Mon Valley steelworkers break with USW and endorse Trump at Unity rally
Some Mon Valley steelworkers personally endorsed former President Donald Trump during his rally Saturday at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity. Trump called some of them to the stage and took a few minutes in the midst of the rally to chat with them and pose for a group photo....
Poll workers perform civic duty despite ramped up rhetoric
Tonia Clark doesn’t tolerate bad behavior. The Allegheny Township resident pays particular attention to the motto during twice-a-year stints as a municipal election worker. “If anyone comes in and is nasty to us or name-calling, I won’t put up with it,” said Clark, who serves as judge of elections at...
Purple Tour pumps up music, Pitt students, during early voting at Soldiers & Sailors
Music was bumping outside Pittsburgh’s Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall & Museum on Fifth Avenue Wednesday as part of a dance party encouraging people to vote early in the presidential election. Dubbed Party to the Polls, the event was part of a 40-stop nonpartisan Purple Tour across the country encouraging...
Questions arise over whether Elon Musk town halls violate election law
Billionaire Elon Musk is planning to hold a town hall soon in Pittsburgh — one of several scheduled in swing state Pennsylvania — to boost former President Donald Trump’s chances of returning to the White House. But some, including writers for Slate, Popular Information and the New Republic, have raised...
Trump calls out Harris for skipping Al Smith charity dinner
NEW YORK — Former President Donald Trump laced into Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats on Thursday in a pointed and at times bitter speech as he headlined the annual Al Smith charity dinner in New York. Trump, in remarks that often felt more like a rally performance than...
Harris and Trump target Michigan as both parties try to shore up ‘blue wall’ votes
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will both be scouring for votes in Michigan on Friday as they try to lock down support in this key political battleground. Harris, the Democratic vice president, is scheduled to begin her day in Grand Rapids before holding events in Lansing...
Right-wing influencers hyped anti-Ukraine videos made by a TV producer also funded by Russian media
WASHINGTON — The Kremlin could not have asked for better publicity at a better time when Ben Swann, a self-described independent journalist who promotes conspiracy theories, released a 12-part video series he promised would reveal dark truths about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Swann’s flashy documentary-style videos were filled with innuendo,...
Voting probe launched in Westmoreland County over 2020 fraud claims pitched by GOP lawmakers
Lauren Elliott suspected the worst when she listened to a voice message left for her last week by a Westmoreland County detective. When she was told the reason for the inquiry, her worry turned to anger. Elliott was among the handful of voters contacted last week as part of an...
Equipment, staffing make Allegheny County faster counting votes than Philadelphia area
This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s collaboration with Votebeat, a nonpartisan news organization covering local election administration and voting. Sign up for Votebeat’s free newsletters here. A few relatively minor changes would allow Philadelphia to process mail ballots much faster and finish counting them much sooner after polls...
Podcast: Changing dynamics of Black voters in Allegheny County
Last week, Pittsburgh’s Hill District hosted the Freedom Is at Stake GOTV Bus Tour, making a stop at Freedom Corner. The event aimed to mobilize voters and emphasize the critical importance of participating in elections. With the support of organizations like Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the Urban League of Greater...
Panel looking into Trump assassination attempt says Secret Service needs ‘fundamental reform’
WASHINGTON — An independent panel investigating the attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a Pennsylvania campaign rally says the Secret Services needs fundamental reform” and that “another Butler can and will happen again” without major changes in how candidates are protected. The review faulted the Secret Service for poor communications...
Trump is consistently inconsistent on abortion and reproductive rights
CHICAGO — Donald Trump has had a tough time finding a consistent message to questions about abortion and reproductive rights. The former president has constantly shifted his stances or offered vague, contradictory and at times nonsensical answers to questions on an issue that has become a major vulnerability for Republicans...
McConnell called Trump ‘stupid,’ ‘despicable’ in private after 2020 election, according to new book
WASHINGTON — Mitch McConnell said after the 2020 election that then-President Donald Trump was “stupid as well as being ill-tempered,” a “despicable human being” and a “narcissist,” according to excerpts from a new biography of the Senate Republican leader that will be released this month. McConnell made the remarks in...
Harris and Trump say America tanks if they lose. So why the exuberance at their rallies?
Shortly after taking the stage 91 minutes late for his Atlanta rally this week, Donald Trump did what he can’t help doing — go off on a tangent. This was clearly going to be a night at the improv. He marveled at length about how Elon Musk’s SpaceX rocket booster...
Uphill battles that put abortion rights on ballots are unlikely to end even if the measures pass
Voters in nine states are deciding next month whether to add the right to abortion to their constitutions, but the measures are unlikely to dramatically change access — at least not immediately. Instead, voter approval would launch more lawsuits on a subject that’s been in the courts constantly — and...
With time running out, Harris keeps focus on ‘blue wall’ states
MILWAUKEE — With three weeks left in the presidential campaign, Democrat Kamala Harris is spending most of her days trying to shore up support in the “blue wall” states of Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin as she tries to avoid a repeat of Hillary Clinton’s collapse there eight years ago. The...
Vance laments high prices, promotes drilling in Pittsburgh visit
Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance appeared Thursday afternoon in Downtown Pittsburgh, where he praised the city’s industrial history, lamented rising prices for Pennsylvanians and said drilling is the answer. “The most important thing to do to lower prices is to unleash Pennsylvania energy,” Vance told more than 300 cheering...
Rallies, fries and Steelers game? Here are 5 things to know about Trump’s next visit
Former President Donald Trump is coming to Westmoreland County for a rally, and he is reportedly adding a few new twists to his typical campaign schedule. Trump is scheduled to speak at 6 p.m. Saturday at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity. Rallies at airport hangars have been a frequent...
TV Talk: What to know about Kamala Harris’ interview on Fox News
Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris is set to appear on Fox News Channel tonight. While Democrats do appear on Republican-leaning Fox News — especially frequent Democratic surrogate U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg — they’re not in abundance, and a Democratic presidential nominee on Fox airwaves is rarer...
New Kensington Democrat seeks to unseat Murrysville’s Jill Cooper in 55th State House race
In a divisive political atmosphere both locally and nationally, Democrat Davon Magwood is proud to be running a race against incumbent state Rep. Jill Cooper that puts negativity aside. “I love that we’re running campaigns where we’re not attacking one another,” said Magwood, 38, of New Kensington, who has worked...
People with felony records can vote in Nebraska. Ruling could help tip the balance on Nov. 5
OMAHA, Neb. — Nebraska’s top election official had no authority to strip voting rights from people convicted of a felony, the state Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in a decision that could add hundreds of new voters to the rolls and potentially help tip the balance on Nov. 5. The order...
