Politics Election category, Page 208
Butler County township backtracks on political sign ordinance after 1st Amendment complaint
Residents of Butler County’s Connoquenessing Township can display political signs on their property without restrictions or without having to obtain a permit, thanks to a resident lodging a complaint with the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania. Connoquenessing, like several municipalities in Butler County, has a political sign ordinance that...
4 leading GOP governor candidates look for ways to differentiate themselves in latest debate
The four leading Republican primary candidates for governor agreed on the questions they faced in an hourlong debate Wednesday night inside the WHTM/abc27 studio in Harrisburg, so much of the time was spent trying to separate themselves from their opponents. State Sen. Doug Mastriano took frequent jabs at Tom Wolf...
Democratic lawmaker: Biden suggests he’ll ease student loan burden
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden has signaled he might forgive some student loan debt and further extend the federal moratorium on repayments, a lawmaker who discussed the issue with him said Wednesday. The White House was notably more measured about Biden’s stance, but such moves would be a boon to...
Trump administration’s $700 million loan to trucking company under fire in Congress
WASHINGTON — Federal officials Wednesday were asked to investigate whether an Overland Park, Kan., trucking company broke federal law when securing a $700 million loan through a federal pandemic aid program — a sum that accounted for 95% of the money allocated to the program. South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn...
Top GOP candidate for Pa. governor campaigned at an event promoting QAnon and conspiracy theories about 9/11
When candidates for public office indulge in conspiracy theories like QAnon, it’s often with a wink and a nod. But just weeks before Pennsylvania’s primary election, such ideas are being promoted in plain sight. And high-profile Republican candidates for statewide office are treating talk of a “global satanic blood cult”...
Josh Shapiro’s vast donor base has positioned him to enter general election campaign flush with cash
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Democratic gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro has raised nearly $18 million in campaign contributions over the past 15 months —...
McCarthy defends Jan. 6 audio, House GOP backs ‘next speaker’
WASHINGTON — House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy assured colleagues Wednesday he never asked then-President Donald Trump to resign over the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, defending private conversations that have spilled into the open and jeopardized his leadership. It was McCarthy’s first face-to-face meeting with House Republicans amid...
House Jan. 6 committee wants to hear from Kevin McCarthy after new audioVideo
WASHINGTON — The House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol is redoubling its efforts to have GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy appear for an interview amid new revelations concerning his private conversations about the deadly attack, the chairman said Tuesday. Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said the panel...
Disney tells investors Florida can’t dissolve special district without paying debt
MIAMI — As Florida legislators were rushing through passage of a bill to repeal the special district that governs Walt Disney World last week, they failed to notice an obscure provision in state law that says the state could not do what legislators were doing — unless the district’s bond...
Video: Pa. Republican candidates for U.S. Senate debateVideo
A debate between Republican candidates vying for Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate seat was held Tuesday night and featured Kathy Barnette, Jeff Bartos, Carla Sands, George Bochoetto and Sean Gale. Spotlight PA organized the debate with its media partners The Philadelphia Inquirer, PennLIVE/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and WITF Public Media. The event,...
Wisconsin’s GOP-ordered election investigation will continue
MADISON, Wis. — The Republican-ordered investigation into the 2020 election in Wisconsin that was supposed to wrap up this week will continue just as Donald Trump urged, but with no more taxpayer money to pay for it, the state’s top Republican said Tuesday. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos’ announcement that the...
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signs bill creating election police unit
TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Monday to create a police force dedicated to pursuing voter fraud and other election crimes, embracing a top priority of Republicans after former President Donald Trump’s false claims that his reelection was stolen. The new law comes after the Republican governor...
Trump endorsement hovers over prime-time GOP Senate debate
HARRISBURG — Candidates for the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat charged into Monday night’s live-televised prime-time debate with extra incentive to attack Mehmet Oz after the celebrity heart surgeon received former President Donald Trump’s endorsement. And attack they did, almost solidly throughout the one-hour debate at the...
Video: Pa. Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate debateVideo
A debate between Democratic candidates vying for Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate seat was held Monday night with candidates John Fetterman, Malcolm Kenyatta, Alexandria Khalil and Conor Lamb. Spotlight PA is organized the debate with its media partners The Philadelphia Inquirer, PennLIVE/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and WITF Public Media. The debate was...
Judge finds Trump in contempt in legal fight with NY AG
A New York judge found former President Donald Trump in contempt of court Monday for failing to adequately respond to a subpoena issued by the state’s attorney general as part of a civil investigation into his business dealings. Judge Arthur Engoron ordered Trump to pay a fine of $10,000 per...
Georgia’s Brain Kemp, David Perdue clash over elections in debate
ATLANTA — The top two Republicans running for governor in Georgia launched the first of three debates Sunday by bickering over who was responsible for 2020 and 2021 Republican election losses, with former U.S. Sen. David Perdue pressing his attack that incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp is to blame for Democratic...
Elizabeth Warren calls Kevin McCarthy a ‘liar’ and ‘traitor’ over Jan. 6 tapeVideo
WASHINGTON — Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren is slamming Rep. Kevin McCarthy as a “liar and a traitor” over recordings that show the House Republican leader — despite his denials — placing responsibility on then-President Donald Trump for the Capitol riot and suggesting Trump should resign. It’s unusually strong language to...
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tests limits of his combative style in Disney feud
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ’ deepening feud with Walt Disney World is testing the limits of his combative leadership style while sending an unmistakable message to his rivals that virtually nothing is off limits as he plots his political future. The 43-year-old Republican has repeatedly demonstrated an...
Activist won’t face 2nd trial for illegal voting sign-up
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Prosecutors will no longer pursue illegal voter registration charges against a Tennessee woman who was granted a new trial after she challenged her jury conviction, a district attorney said Friday. Charges against Black Lives Matter activist Pamela Moses, 44, were being dismissed and she will no longer...
Officials: Mark Meadows was registered to vote in 3 states
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Mark Meadows — a former chief of staff to President Donald Trump who was removed from North Carolina voter rolls earlier this month — is still a registered voter in two other states, according to officials and a published report. Chris Whitmire, a spokesperson for the South...
Marjorie Taylor Greene’s candidacy challenged at hearing
U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene was engaged in “legitimate political speech” when she called for a response to Joe Biden’s presidential victory prior to last year’s insurrection, her lawyer argued Friday during a hearing over her right to run for reelection. Voters in the Georgia congresswoman’s district have said Greene...
Iowa GOP open to non-Trump prospects as 2024 gets underway
Former President Donald Trump’s persistent flirtation with another White House run is doing little to discourage other potential Republican candidates from stepping up their activity in Iowa, the state that will formally launch the 2024 nomination process. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo quietly finished his fifth trip to Iowa...
Live TV debate exposes Democrats’ differences in Senate race
HARRISBURG — The first live-televised prime-time debate between leading candidates for the Democratic nomination for Pennsylvania’s open U.S. Senate seat exposed differences between the rivals Thursday, as they seized opportunities to attack each other. John Fetterman, the state’s lieutenant governor who has led polls and fundraising, took the brunt of...
Disney self-government in peril after Florida House voteVideo
TALLAHASSEE — The Florida House of Representatives on Thursday gave final passage to a bill that would dissolve Walt Disney World’s private government, handing Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis a victory in his feud with the entertainment giant over its opposition to a measure that critics have dubbed the ” Don’t...
Florida passes congressional map over Black lawmaker protest
Florida’s Legislature approved a congressional map Thursday pushed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis over the strong objections of Black and Democratic lawmakers who say it will diminish the state’s Black representation in the U.S. House and benefit Republicans. Democratic lawmakers chanted and shouted as the final vote tally was taken...
