Zohran Mamdani wins NYC mayor's race, capping a stunning ascent
NEW YORK (AP) — Zohran Mamdani has been elected mayor of New York City, capping the Democrat’s stunning ascent from little-known state lawmaker just a year ago to one of the most talked-about politicians in the country. Mamdani, a 34-year-old assembly member, defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa in Tuesday’s election. With the victory, the democratic socialist will etch his place in history as the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage and the first born in Africa. He will also become the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.
Democrat Mikie Sherrill elected governor of New Jersey, defeating opponent who aligned with Trump
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — Democratic U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill has been elected governor of New Jersey. Her victory over Republican Jack Ciattarelli shores up Democratic control of a state that has been reliably blue in presidential and Senate contests but had shown signs of shifting rightward in recent years. The four-term member of Congress centered her campaign on her biography as a Navy helicopter pilot and former prosecutor who would stand up to President Donald Trump. She will be New Jersey’s second female governor. Ciattarelli lost his second straight governor’s election after coming within a few points of defeating Gov. Phil Murphy four years ago.
Abigail Spanberger elected Virginia governor in a historic first that boosts Democrats ahead of 2026
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger has won Virginia’s election for governor. Her win gives Democrats a boost heading into the 2026 midterm elections and compels Republicans to consider how President Donald Trump and his allies might fare in battleground states and districts. Spanberger defeated Marine veteran and Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears in a campaign heavily centered on economic issues. Spanberger is a former CIA case officer and she served six years in Congress. Her victory flips Virginia’s executive mansion from GOP control. Also Tuesday, Democrat Ghazala F. Hashmi won the lieutenant governor’s race and will succeed Earle-Sears.
California voters approve new US House map to boost Democrats in 2026
LOS ANGELES (AP) — California voters have approved a plan to overhaul the state’s congressional district boundaries, giving Democrats a boost in their bid to win the U.S. House majority next year. The approval of Proposition 50 could allow Democrats to gain up to five additional seats in the 2026 midterms, when they hope to gain the power to block President Donald Trump’s agenda in Congress. The measure was pushed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in response to a Republican-led redistricting effort in Texas. The California measure replaces maps drawn by an independent commission with new districts created by the Democratically controlled Legislature.
Democrats dominate as economic woes take a toll on Trump's GOP. Takeaways from Election Day 2025
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats are dominating the first major Election Day since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. A debate about the future of the Democratic Party may have only just begun, but there are signs that the economy — specifically, Trump’s inability to deliver the economic turnaround he promised last fall — may hurt the Republican Party for the foreseeable future. Democrats won governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey, the only states electing new chief executives this year. Trump was largely absent from the campaign trail, but the GOP candidates closely aligned themselves with the president. They bet that his big win last year could provide a path to victory this time.
At least 7 dead, 11 injured in UPS plane crash and explosion at Kentucky airport
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — At least seven people are dead and 11 injured after UPS plane crashed in Kentucky. The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane crashed about 5:15 p.m. as it was departing for Honolulu from Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport. Video showed flames on the plane’s left wing and a trail of smoke. The plane then lifted slightly off the ground before crashing and exploding in a huge fireball. Video also revealed portions of a building’s shredded roof next to the end of the runway.
Typhoon Kalmaegi leaves 66 dead, mainly in Philippine province still recovering from deadly quake
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Typhoon Kalmaegi has left at least 66 people dead with 26 others missing in the central Philippines, many in widespread flooding that trapped people on their roofs and swept away scores of cars in a hard-hit province still recovering from a recent deadly earthquake. Among the dead were six people who were killed when a Philippine air force helicopter crashed in the southern province of Agusan del Sur on Tuesday while en route to help provide humanitarian help to provinces battered by Kalmaegi, the military said without providing other details, including what could have caused the crash. Kalmaegi was forecast to blow away into the South China Sea on Wednesday.
Trump administration announces 16th deadly strike on an alleged drug boat
WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has announced yet another deadly strike on a boat accused of ferrying drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean. The strike Tuesday comes the same day an aircraft carrier began heading to the region in a new expansion of military firepower. The latest attack killed two people aboard the vessel, bringing the death toll from the Trump administration’s campaign in South American waters up to at least 66 people in 16 strikes. The USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier has left the Mediterranean Sea on its way to the Caribbean after Hegseth ordered it to the region more than a week ago.
Talks to end the government shutdown intensify as federal closure nears longest ever
WASHINGTON (AP) — Signs of a potential end to the government shutdown are intensifying with behind-the-scenes talks. They come as the federal closure, now in its 35th day, is on track to become the longest ever, disrupting the lives of millions of Americans. Senators from both parties are quietly trying to negotiate the contours of an emerging deal to reopen the government and resolve the stalemate over health care funds for insurance subsidies. President Donald Trump has largely been absent. He threatened Tuesday to cut off more SNAP food aid, but his spokeswoman said the administration is releasing the funds in line with court orders. He also invited GOP senators to breakfast Wednesday.
Dick Cheney, one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in US history, dies at 84
WASHINGTON (AP) — In Dick Cheney’s hands, the vice presidency became a nexus of influence and manipulation — no longer the timid office where its occupants had tended their boss’s ambitions. For George W. Bush’s vice president, bunkering in secure undisclosed locations after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks was less an inconvenience than a metaphor for a life of power that he exercised to maximum effect from the shadows. Cheney died Monday at age 84. Cheney defended until his death the extraordinary tools of surveillance, detention and inquisition employed after the 9/11 attacks. The Republican also became a fierce critic of President Donald Trump, branding him a “coward” who tried to steal the 2020 election.
