Politics Election category, Page 2
Michigan Democrats keep control of state Senate in election win that offers clues about midterms
SAGINAW, Mich. — Democrat Chedrick Greene won a special election in Michigan on Tuesday, securing his party’s control of the state Senate through the remainder of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s term. Greene, a firefighter and Marine veteran, defeated Republican Jason Tunney, a former prosecutor, in the race for Michigan’s 35th Senate...
Shapiro denies asking union to back GOP candidate over fellow Democrat Erin McClelland
HARRISBURG — Gov. Josh Shapiro is facing questions about whether he tried to help elect a Republican candidate over a member of his own party who had publicly criticized him, after an audio recording of a top labor leader leaked this week alleging that the first-term Democratic governor pushed his...
Trump-backed candidates win majority of GOP primary races for Indiana Senate
COLUMBUS, Ind. — A majority of Republican state senators whose opponents were endorsed by President Donald Trump lost on Tuesday, dealing the president wins in a deep red state just four months after lawmakers rejected his redistricting plan. Of the seven challengers endorsed by Trump, at least four won. Twenty-one...
Ohio set for marquee races in the fall. U.S. Senate contest seen as crucial for control of the chamber
COLUMBUS — Tuesday’s primary in Ohio set up what is expected to be one of the most expensive races for U.S. Senate this year as Republicans try to hold on to the chamber during a difficult midterm year, while biotech billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy will face a challenge from the state’s...
Republican Stacy Garrity would veto recreational marijuana bill if elected Pennsylvania governor
State Treasurer Stacy Garrity, a Republican running for Pennsylvania governor, said she would veto any bill favoring the legalization of recreational marijuana if she wins the election in November. “I don’t support legalizing recreational marijuana,” Garrity told NBC10 last week, placing her at odds with incumbent Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro,...
Colorado lawmakers kill ‘No Kings Act’ that would have allowed people to sue federal officials
DENVER — State lawmakers killed legislation dubbed the “No Kings Act” on Monday night, as opposition from local government groups tanked a bill that would have allowed Coloradans to sue federal officials who violated their civil rights. Two Democrats — Sens. Dylan Roberts and Lindsey Daugherty — joined with the...
Report identifies 3 UPMC hospitals at risk of closure from Medicaid cutsVideo
Three UPMC hospitals in Southwestern Pennsylvania are at risk for closure as cuts to Medicaid go into effect, according to a new report from consumer watchdog Public Citizen. UPMC Mercy, UPMC McKeesport and UPMC Greene were among the 446 U.S. hospitals identified as vulnerable because of recent financial losses and...
Justice Department seeks the names of 2020 election workers in Georgia’s Fulton County
ATLANTA — The Department of Justice is seeking the names of every person who worked in the 2020 election in Georgia’s Fulton County, a Democratic stronghold that Donald Trump has long accused of widespread voter fraud he falsely says cost him victory against Joe Biden in the state that year....
Tennessee Republicans will consider redrawing U.S. House district covering majority-Black Memphis
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As civil rights advocates protest, Republican lawmakers in several Southern states are seizing on the opportunity afforded by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling to redraw congressional districts ahead of the November midterm elections. Protesters marched up to Tennessee’s Capitol on Tuesday as a special legislative session began...
Pennsylvania sues startup over unlicensed AI ‘doctors’
The Shapiro administration is suing the maker of popular chatbot service Character.AI for illegal practice of medicine, claiming its artificial intelligence-generated personalities are posing as doctors. The chatbots will go as far as to say they’re licensed doctors in the state and provide fabricated license numbers, according to the lawsuit,...
Sen. John Fetterman says he’s not switching parties, but GOP is courting him anywayVideo
Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman’s frequent criticisms of the Democratic Party have led many pundits to wonder if there’s a chance he could switch parties in the near future. Unsurprisingly, Republicans would like to see that happen. According to Politico, Republicans have been quietly courting Fetterman to either join their party...
Supreme Court restores access to abortion pill mifepristone through telehealth, mail and pharmacies
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday restored broad access to the abortion pill mifepristone, blocking a lower-court ruling that had threatened to upend one of the main ways abortions are provided across the nation. The order signed by Justice Samuel Alito temporarily allows women seeking abortions to obtain the...
Redistricting war accelerates winner-take-all political combat that’s straining American democracy
Willie Simon stood outside the Memphis motel where Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in 1968, now a museum dedicated to the Civil Rights Movement. Days after the U.S. Supreme Court gutted a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, Simon feared what the decision would mean not just...
Control of U.S. House hinges on historically low number of seats
A shrinking number of seats will determine control of the U.S. House after both Republicans and Democrats spent much of the past year redrawing congressional maps to erase swing districts. Even before Florida’s legislature approved a new Republican-leaning map last week, just 16 seats were listed as “tossups” by the...
Trump flexes executive power with unprecedented flouting of lower court rulings
When a federal judge shot down a Trump administration policy of holding immigrants without bond last December, it seemed like a serious blow to the president’s mass deportation effort. Instead, a top Justice Department official insisted the ruling wasn’t binding, and the administration continued denying detainees around the country a...
Political handicappers give Western Pa. incumbents the upper hand in midterms
Only one congressional incumbent from Southwestern Pennsylvania is considered vulnerable in this year’s pivotal midterm elections, and that congressman, U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel, faces a minimal threat, a new analysis shows. Deluzio is unopposed in the May 19 primary but will face a Republican challenger in November. Beaver...
Amtrak may make it easier to bring guns on its trains despite the alleged attempt on Trump’s life
Amtrak is considering allowing people to store guns in lockboxes on most of its trains, which critics say would weaken security measures that instead should be strengthened in light of the shooting at last weekend’s White House Correspondents’ Association dinner. The company has been considering the policy change since at...
After major enforcement operations, the Trump administration recalibrates its immigration crackdown
WASHINGTON — When Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin was questioned by senators during his confirmation hearing about his vision for implementing President Donald Trump’s mass deportation agenda, he said his goal was to keep his department off the front pages of the news. To some degree, he has. Gone are...
Taiwan expresses concern after China calls the island biggest risk in U.S.-China relations
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan’s government expressed concern on Friday hours after a call between China and the United States’ top diplomats in which Beijing stressed that self-ruled Taiwan was the biggest risk in relations. “Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is concerned about the press release issued by China … which...
Congress approves short-term extension of divisive surveillance program hours before expiration
WASHINGTON — Congress has approved a short-term extension of a critical surveillance program used by U.S. spy agencies, staving off a Friday expiration as disputes over a longer reauthorization remain unresolved. The House sent the extension to President Donald Trump’s desk Thursday after the Senate cleared it earlier in the...
John Fetterman’s stock purchase draws scrutiny over timing and Senate committee role
A recent stock purchase by Sen. John Fetterman is raising eyebrows for its timing and because the company has reportedly received billions in federal funding that his committee oversees. Benzinga, a stock trading and news site, cited a post by an online stock tracker in reporting that Fetterman bought an...
What is Section 2, the provision of the Voting Rights Act at the heart of Louisiana redistricting case?
It remains to be seen how the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on a congressional redistricting case in Louisiana will impact the political landscape. Critics say the court’s ruling Wednesday that the creation of a Black-majority congressional district in Louisiana represented “unconstitutional racial gerrymander” could open the door for more challenges...
Trump order aims to help more people get retirement savings plans in time for new federal match
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday calling for a new government website where people in the United States can find and compare private-sector retirement savings accounts, aiming to help millions of workers whose employers do not offer such plans. The order is intended to help...
Trump pulls Casey Means’ stalled surgeon general nomination and says he’ll put forth Nicole Saphier
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Thursday he’s nominating former Fox News Channel contributor and radiologist Dr. Nicole Saphier for surgeon general after Dr. Casey Means’ path forward stalled in the Senate over questions about her experience and her stance on vaccines. In a social media post, Trump said he...
Trump signs bill funding the Department of Homeland Security, ending record shutdown
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump swiftly signed bipartisan legislation Thursday funding much of the Department of Homeland Security, but not its immigration enforcement operations, after it won final approval in the House, ending the longest agency shutdown in history. The White House had warned that temporary funding Trump had tapped...
