National News

A voter completes her ballot at Alexandria City Hall, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, in Alexandria, Va. (AP...

The Latest: US voters head to the polls in first general election since Trump’s return to power

Voters on Tuesday will be casting ballots in U.S. state and local elections with an injection of presidential-level politics, including a pair of competitive races for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, the mayoral race in the nation’s largest city and a ballot measure in California that Democrats are counting on for next year’s elections […]
11 months ago
Poll workers help people get set up to vote at a polling site in Garfield, N.J., Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2...

Several New Jersey polling places receive threats similar to ones that disrupted voting last year

Law enforcement and election officials in New Jersey acted swiftly Tuesday to secure polling places following a series of bomb threats later determined to be unfounded. Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way, who also serves as the state’s top election official, said the threats had been emailed to seven counties, including Passaic, a key swing county where […]
11 months ago
A message from the National Women's Law Center concerning the announcement by the Trump administrat...

The Latest: Trump administration says SNAP will be partially funded in November

President Donald Trump’s administration said Monday that it will partially fund SNAP for November, after two judges issued rulings requiring the government to keep the nation’s largest food aid program running. The government says an emergency fund it will use has $4.65 billion — enough to cover about half the normal benefits — and exhausting […]
11 months ago
dick cheney vice president...
CALVIN WOODWARD, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Dick Cheney, one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in US history, dies at 84

Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84.
11 months ago
FILE - Candles are lit on a memorial wall during an anniversary service at the Holy Trinity Cathedr...

Boeing may face its first civil trial over payouts to families of victims in Ethiopia crash

More than six years after a Boeing 737 Max jetliner crashed in Ethiopia, the first civil trial stemming from the disaster that killed all 157 people on board the plane appears poised to move forward. Boeing has settled most of the dozens of wrongful death lawsuits that families of the victims filed against the aircraft […]
11 months ago

Dick Cheney, one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents of US history, dies at 84

WASHINGTON (AP) — Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84. The quietly forceful Cheney served father and son presidents, leading the armed forces as defense chief during the Persian […]
11 months ago
California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a campaign event in support of Proposition 50 in San Fra...

California voters take up Democrats’ push for new congressional maps that could shape House control

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The national battle to control the U.S. House shifts to California on Tuesday as voters consider a Democratic proposal that could erase as many as five Republican districts and blunt President Donald Trump’s moves to safeguard his party’s lock on Washington power. The outcome will reverberate into next year’s midterm elections […]
11 months ago
Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, center, speaks during a mayoral debate with independent candidat...

Mamdani and Cuomo face off as New York City chooses new mayor, while Sliwa hopes for an upset

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City’s voters are deciding the outcome of a generational and ideological divide that will resonate across the country Tuesday as they choose the next mayor to run the nation’s largest city. Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary earlier this year, faces former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running […]
11 months ago
This combination photo shows candidates for governor of New Jersey Republican Jack Ciattarelli, lef...

Trump’s policies and inflation drive governor’s race in New Jersey, where GOP has been making gains

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey voters are electing their next governor Tuesday in a race that will reveal whether Democrats maintain their grip on a state that has been reliably blue but has shown signs of shifting toward Republicans in recent years. Jack Ciattarelli, a former state legislator endorsed by President Donald Trump, is […]
11 months ago
Minneapolis mayoral candidates, from left, DeWayne Davis, Omar Fateh, Jacob Frey, Jazz Hampton and ...

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey seeks to fend off democratic socialist’s challenge in a crowded race

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minneapolis Democratic Mayor Jacob Frey faces a steep challenge in Tuesday’s election from a democratic socialist, a race that highlights different visions of how to govern in a liberal city confronting persistent problems with policing, crime and homelessness. Frey, who is seeking a third term, is under fire from the left from […]
11 months ago
Signs supporting and opposing a voter identification referendum in the state are shown Thursday, Oc...

Maine and Texas consider Republican-backed election proposals on voter ID, noncitizen voting

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine and Texas are the latest states to become involved in a nationwide Republican push to enact strict voter ID laws and highlight the rare problem of noncitizen voting, with voters set to decide ballot measures on those issues Tuesday. Supporters say the initiatives would help safeguard elections, while opponents claim […]
11 months ago
This combo image shows Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Winsome Earle-Sears, left, and D...

Virginia governor’s race will test Trump and Democrats nationally — and make history

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Virginia voters are deciding a history-making race for governor Tuesday that will serve as a barometer of attitudes toward President Donald Trump and Democrats’ attempts to regain their footing on the national stage. Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, a staunch conservative who serves as Virginia’s lieutenant governor, and Democrat Abigail Spanberger, a center-left […]
11 months ago
FILE — Rain soaked memorials for those who died in a mass shooting sit along the roadside by Sche...

Maine to vote on proposed red flag gun law inspired by mass shooting that killed 18

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Two years after the deadliest mass shooting in state history, Maine residents are voting on whether to make it easier for family members to petition a court to restrict a potentially dangerous person’s access to guns. A statewide ballot question Tuesday asks residents if they want to build on the state’s […]
11 months ago
Democratic National Committee chairman Ken Martin speaks at a Lancaster County Democratic Party eve...

Pennsylvania could keep its Democratic high court majority or get partisan deadlock on the bench

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Pennsylvania voters on Tuesday will decide whether to keep a Democratic majority on the state’s highest court — the center of pivotal fights over voting rights, redistricting and elections — or potentially plunge the court into a partisan deadlock in a premier presidential battleground. The outcome will affect how the state […]
11 months ago

Trump’s strength, Democrats’ message and the shutdown effect. What to watch on Election Day 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — Tuesday marks the nation’s first major Election Day since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, and his leadership and policies dominated the debate in almost every race — even though the Republican was absent from the campaign trail. The biggest contests are in Virginia and New Jersey, the only states […]
11 months ago
A demonstrator holds a sign reading "STOP BEATING PEOPLE" near a line of law enforcement as protest...

Judge to hear arguments as advocates sue feds over conditions at Chicago-area ICE facility

CHICAGO (AP) — A federal judge is expected to hear arguments Tuesday after Illinois groups sued federal authorities last week for what they described as “inhumane” conditions at a Chicago-area immigration facility. U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman called for a Tuesday morning hearing, acknowledging that the timeline was “rushed.” But at a Friday emergency hearing, […]
11 months ago
FILE - BALCO founder Victor Conte holds up an autographed photo addressed to Conte of track star Ma...

Victor Conte, who sold undetectable steroids to elite athletes in baseball and track, has died at 75

Victor Conte, the architect of a scheme to provide undetectable performance-enhancing drugs to professional athletes including baseball stars Barry Bonds, Jason Giambi and Olympic track champion Marion Jones decades ago, has died. He was 75. Conte died Monday, SNAC System, a sports nutrition company he founded, said in a social media post. It did not […]
11 months ago
President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, right, shake hands after their U.S....

G2 or not G2: Trump’s new favorite term for US-China relations carries a lot of history’s baggage

WASHINGTON (AP) — In diplomacy, even short words matter. And with a brief Truth Social post, President Donald Trump may have revealed his approach to the U.S.-China relationship — to the delight of reputation-conscious Beijing but to the worries of U.S. allies concerned with China’s ascending global power. “The G2 WILL BE CONVENING SHORTLY!” Trump […]
11 months ago
Jake Haro cries in court after pleading guilty to all charges, including second-degree murder of hi...

California father who killed his 7-month-old son sentenced to more than 30 years in prison

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California father who pleaded guilty to killing his missing 7-month-old son was sentenced Monday to more than 30 years in prison. Jake Haro, 32, was sentenced after he pleaded guilty last month to the second-degree murder of his son, Emmanuel, the Riverside County District Attorney’s office said in a […]
11 months ago

Denny’s to be acquired and taken private in a deal valued at $620 million

Denny’s said Monday that it’s being acquired by a group on investors in a deal that will take the breakfast chain private. Denny’s board unanimously approved the deal, which values Denny’s at $620 million including debt. Denny’s will be purchased by private equity investment company TriArtisan Capital Advisors, investment firm Treville Capital and Yadav Enterprises, […]
11 months ago
New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks at the Islamic Cultural Center of ...

New York’s Jewish community divided, anxious as city faces potential first Muslim mayor

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City’s Jewish community — the largest in the United States — abounds with anxiety and friction a day ahead of an election that could give the city its first Muslim mayor. That candidate, Zohran Mamdani, has won over many progressive Jewish voters with vows to make the city more […]
11 months ago
FILE - This Oct. 24, 2016 file photo shows dollar bills in New York. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)...

Why Index Funds and ETFs Are Good for Retirees

Older adults likely began their investing careers before exchange-traded funds existed and have stuck with traditional mutual funds. But as retirement approaches, many investors look at their portfolios with a fresh set of eyes and make adjustments. And the more I work with in-retirement portfolios, the more I like ETFs and traditional index funds for […]
11 months ago
FILE - Former FBI director James Comey speaks during a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing on Cap...

Justice Department defends Trump’s post as it urges judge to reject Comey’s effort to dismiss case

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department urged a federal judge Monday to reject James Comey’s claim that his prosecution amounts to political retribution, arguing the former FBI director has failed to show that he’s being targeted as punishment for his criticism of the Republican president. Prosecutors defended President Donald Trump’s September social media post demanding […]
11 months ago

Man accused in a series of 1980s rapes in Florida is convicted in another attack

MIAMI (AP) — A man suspected of being the “pillowcase rapist” in a string of South Florida rapes back in the 1980s was convicted Monday in another one of the attacks. Miami-Dade County jurors found Robert Koehler, 66, guilty of sexual battery, kidnapping and burglary after deliberating for less than two hours. His sentencing is […]
11 months ago