US midterm elections see 23 million early votes cast, with surging turnout in key states as voters weigh the economy and congressional control.

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US Midterm Elections Draw 23 Million Early Votes

The US midterm elections have already drawn more than 23 million early votes nationwide as Americans head to the polls ahead of the November 3 election.

The total marks a sharp increase compared with the same point in the 2022 midterm cycle, when about 15 million ballots had been accepted.

The surge in early voting is concentrated in states with competitive races that could determine control of the House of Representatives and the Senate.

Analysts say the rise reflects growing concern among working-class voters over the high cost of living, housing, healthcare and economic insecurity.

In North Carolina, more than 1.2 million early votes had been accepted, an increase of 37 percent compared with the same period four years ago.

Early voting among registered Democrats rose by 47 percent, while participation among unaffiliated voters increased by 60 percent.

By contrast, early voting among registered Republicans increased by only 2.6 percent.

The figures do not reveal how individual voters cast their ballots, but they show a significant shift in the pace and composition of turnout.

The increase is particularly notable because North Carolina is one of the key battlegrounds in the fight for the Senate.

US Midterm Elections See Turnout Surge in Key States

US Election Assistance Commission | National Association of Secretaries of State

The rise in early voting is not limited to North Carolina. Similar trends have been reported in several states with decisive contests.

In Kansas, early voting increased by approximately 69 percent.

In Maine, turnout rose by 41 percent, while Iowa recorded a 24 percent increase.

In Texas, election officials reported record participation in the metropolitan areas of Dallas and Houston since voting centers opened.

Texas is a key state in this year’s elections because its Latino community represents at least 30 percent of the electorate.

Polling and organizing efforts suggest a shift in Latino voter mobilization, driven by economic pressures and rejection of anti-immigrant rhetoric from conservative sectors.

The midterm elections will renew all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the 100 seats in the Senate.

Voters will also elect governors in 36 states and three territories.

Republicans currently hold a narrow 218-seat majority in the House, the smallest possible majority, leaving dozens of districts in play.

Democrats need to gain four Senate seats to take control of the upper chamber, a difficult but not impossible task.

Key Senate races are taking place in Alaska, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio, Iowa, Texas, Michigan and New Hampshire.

The outcome will determine whether Democrats can block or advance legislation on taxation, healthcare, immigration, energy policy and judicial appointments.

Public dissatisfaction with the economy has become a central issue in the campaign.

Polling cited in the article places approval of the government’s cost-of-living policy at just 21 percent, reflecting widespread concern over inflation, wages and living conditions.

The high level of early participation suggests that voters are treating the midterms as a major political test rather than a routine election.

US Midterm Elections Face Alaska Certification Battle

US Department of Justice | Alaska Division of Elections

The US midterm elections have also been marked by an unprecedented legal dispute in Alaska.

The US Department of Justice filed a lawsuit on October 22 seeking to block Alaska from certifying its Senate election results if Republican Senator Dan Sullivan loses to Democrat Mary Peltola.

The case centers on the presence of a second candidate, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., a retired teacher whose name closely resembles that of the incumbent senator.

The Justice Department argues that the similar names could confuse voters and affect the outcome of the race.

The lawsuit asks a federal judge to prevent certification of any result that may have been affected by voter confusion.

It also seeks an investigation into whether votes cast for Daniel J. Sullivan were intended for Senator Dan S. Sullivan.

President Donald Trump publicly confirmed that he ordered the Justice Department to file the lawsuit.

The legal action came 11 days before the election, after early voting had already begun in Alaska.

The case has been strongly criticized by voting-rights groups, Democratic organizations and legal experts.

They argue that the federal government lacks authority to intervene in state-run elections and that the lawsuit represents an attempt to override the will of Alaska voters.

The campaign of Mary Peltola, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and groups including the League of Women Voters of Alaska and Common Cause have sought to intervene in the case.

They are asking the court to dismiss the lawsuit and protect the integrity of the state’s electoral process.

Alaska’s courts had previously rejected efforts to remove Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. from the ballot.

A federal judge and the Alaska Supreme Court ruled that his candidacy was constitutionally valid.

The dispute has drawn attention because Alaska’s Senate seat could be decisive for control of the upper chamber.

Alaska is also strategically important because of its vast oil, gas and mineral reserves.

The outcome of the race could affect future decisions on energy leases, mining permits and federal policy in the Arctic region.

Geopolitical Context

The US midterm elections will have consequences beyond domestic politics because Congress plays a central role in shaping US foreign, economic and security policy.

Control of the House and Senate will determine whether the administration can advance its legislative agenda or face greater opposition.

The elections will influence decisions on government spending, taxation, immigration, climate policy and military funding.

They will also affect the confirmation of federal judges and senior government officials.

The Alaska Senate race is particularly significant because of the state’s strategic location in the Arctic and its vast energy resources.

The United States has increased its focus on Arctic security amid competition with Russia and China over shipping routes, military presence and access to natural resources.

The outcome of the election could influence future policy on oil drilling, mining and infrastructure development in Alaska.

The surge in early voting also reflects a broader debate over democratic participation in the United States.

Voting-rights groups have warned that legal challenges to election certification can undermine public confidence in democratic institutions.

The Alaska case has raised concerns that federal power could be used to influence state-run elections.

The dispute comes as political polarization continues to deepen across the country.

The high turnout suggests that many voters see the midterms as a referendum on economic conditions, democratic norms and the direction of the country.

The results will shape the final two years of the current presidential term and could redefine the balance of power in Washington.

In the 1940s and '50s, Route 66 was one of America's most popular highways, driving business to small towns from Chicago to Santa Monica. But today, the road and its people have been largely forgotten. Ghost towns, empty motels, and abandoned gas stations line its path. Chief correspondent Abby Narishkin grew up along the road. In celebration of its 100th anniversary, she drove down the old route herself to visit the people and businesses still keeping this Americana legacy alive.

Is there an exception to the 5th Amendment's promise that government cannot take private property without "just compensation"? The Supreme Court declined to address that question this past Monday when it rejected a trio of petitions asking the justices to consider whether people should be compensated when law enforcement seizes or destroys their property.

Two of the cases concerned individuals who were not accused of a crime but whose property nevertheless became collateral damage as police pursued a suspect. In June 2022, police fired 30 tear gas canisters into Amy Hadley's home in South Bend, Indiana. Officers smashed windows, tore down security cameras, ransacked furniture, ripped down a panel and a fan, and punched holes in the walls as they searched for a fugitive named John Parnell Thomas, who had never been there. The police had erroneously concluded that Thomas accessed the internet via the IP address at Hadley's home. According to Hadley, the police caused at least $16,000 in damages, which insurance only partially covered.

About two months later, a SWAT team in Los Angeles arrived at Carlos Pena's North Hollywood printing business and destroyed it, along with his equipment inside, crippling his livelihood after a fugitive broke in and barricaded himself in the shop. (The suspect ultimately escaped.) Pena alleged approximately $60,000 in damages in his suit against the city, which declined to compensate him for his losses. His insurance also refused to step in—as is common in such cases, as policies often exclude damage caused by the government.

The third petition concerned Chicago drivers whose vehicles were seized by the city over modest unpaid parking tickets. Ryan O'Donnell's vehicle was impounded and sold for scrap because of about $524 in debt. Michael Goree's was seized and relinquished to the lienholder over a debt that did not belong to him; the $560 in unpaid tickets were for a different vehicle owned by his co-signer.

In all of these cases the lower courts' reasoning came from a similar place. Hadley, O'Donnell, and Goree's petitions were heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit, which has adopted a categorical rule: Property destroyed in the exercise of "police power" is immune to claims under the Takings Clause, the U.S. Constitution's pledge that government cannot usurp private property without fairly compensating the owner. Pena's case went to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, where the judges have declined to issue such a sweeping exception but have instead ruled that governments are exempt from paying out claims when the police actions in question were "necessary."

In a statement, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justice Neil Gorsuch, outlined the many inconsistencies between the circuits on the topic. "It is still an 'open question' whether these or any other approaches are consistent with this Court's precedents. Few of these decisions likewise explain the source of any such police-power exception to the Takings Clause—whether the common law, the Constitution, or elsewhere," she wrote. "Such questions thus continue to 'benefit from further percolation' in the lower courts before this Court chooses to intervene."

Sotomayor was quoting herself. In 2024, she released similar remarks in response to a petition from Texas woman Vicki Baker, whose house in McKinney had been hollowed by a SWAT team attempting to capture a fugitive. The high court declined to hear Baker's case, although she finally found relief under the Texas state constitution this year.

"It's possible that the Court sincerely doesn't think the lower courts have done enough thinking on this important but novel issue," Patrick Jaicomo, a senior attorney at the Institute for Justice who represented Hadley, tells me. "Still, we've brought them 5 cases from 5 circuits. How much more percolation is needed?…The Court is going to have to address this important issue, and it's not clear what another circuit decision or 6 might do to aid that consideration."

Though Sotomayor's statement ran in parallel to the one two years ago, its slightly sharper warning intimated that we may be inching closer to a resolution. "I again encourage courts considering this issue to take care," she wrote, "that due deference to state police powers does not eclipse constitutional rights."

The post Police Destroyed Their Homes and Businesses. The Supreme Court Won't Say Who Should Pay. appeared first on Reason Magazine.

No, nessun rimborso per la somma già versata per assicurarsi la location, nonostante il suo futuro marito nel frattempo era morto. Questo è quello che si sarebbe sentita rispondere Zoe Vandeloo, che insieme a Diego Hernandez, poi tragicamente scomparso prima delle nozze, aveva deciso di sposarsi nella location per matrimoni e grandi eventi Posey Meadows, nelle vicinanze di Austin, in Texas.

Le nozze per la coppia erano in programma per il prossimo 20 novembre, ma questo giorno di festa non si potrà celebrare, dal momento che alla fine dello scorso aprile Hernandez ha perso la vita all’improvviso. La donna è stata così costretta ad annullare l’evento, ma non si aspettava certamente di dover affrontare una battaglia legale per vedere riconosciuto il diritto a essere risarcita per la cifra versata per la location.

La coppia aveva, infatti, già dato circa 16.000 dollari per il luogo in cui avrebbe voluto sposarsi. Quando allora Vandeloo ha comunicato alla proprietà di Posey Meadows di voler ottenere indietro la somma già versata, la proprietaria Julie Campbell, stando a quanto visionato da KSAT, avrebbe proposto come opzioni l’utilizzo della location in un’altra data o per un altro evento oppure un parziale rimborso nel caso in cui fosse riuscita ad affittare la location per il giorno in cui era stata tenuta occupata per la coppia.

L'articolo “Dove sono finiti i loro valori morali? Dove sono i loro principi morali?”: fidanzato muore prima delle nozze, negato alla compagna il rimborso per la location proviene da Il Fatto Quotidiano.

The U.S. midterm elections come after aggressive efforts by both Democrats and Republicans to redraw district maps in their favor, a practice known as gerrymandering.

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The ad opens with James Talarico, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate from Texas, seated at a desk, apparently rewriting the Book of Genesis from the Old Testament. “In the beginning,” Talarico says, hunched over as he writes, “God was nonbinary. And was not Christian. And God said: ‘Let there be six genders’; and there were.”

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Today's guest is Ted Brown, the Libertarian Party candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas. Brown is facing off against Republican Ken Paxton and Democrat James Talarico in a closely contested race. Brown received more than 267,000 votes in his 2024 Senate campaign and is now challenging both major parties on their commitment to individual liberty. He argues that Republicans have abandoned limited government while Democrats increasingly embrace economic policies that undermine the free market.

Nick Gillespie talks with Brown about Paxton's corruption scandals, Talarico's hostility toward billionaires, and why Texas ranks poorly on personal freedom despite its business-friendly reputation. Brown makes the case for returning to an Ellis Island–style immigration system, cutting federal spending to confront the $40 trillion national debt, and ending America's military involvement in the Middle East. They also discuss abortion rights, government surveillance, online age-verification laws, and how regulations drive up the cost of healthcare. Brown explains what it will take to rebuild the Libertarian Party and why he believes a senator could accomplish more by stopping bad legislation than by passing new laws.

0:00—Freedom in Texas

4:01—Paxton's corruption

6:21—Talarico's platform

8:53—Texas governance

10:33—Ellis Island–style immigration

13:58—Abolishing the federal income tax

15:29—Entitlement reforms and defense spending

18:19—Abortion

21:21—Transgender healthcare

22:24—Age-verification laws

25:05—Healthcare and property insurance

31:22—Who is Brown appealing to?

33:27—The Libertarian Party

36:08—Brown's pitch to undecided voters

39:06—Threats to individual liberty

The post Could a Libertarian Swing the Texas Senate Race? appeared first on Reason Magazine.

Neil Bush and Wayne Thorburn back Talarico over Ken Paxton less than two weeks before midterm elections.

Two prominent Republican voices in Texas have announced their support in recent days for Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico over Republican Ken Paxton, less than two weeks before the midterm elections, in which Donald Trump’s party risks losing control of Congress.

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Neil Bush, son of former President George H.W. Bush (1989-1993) and brother of former President George W. Bush (2001-2009), and Wayne Thorburn, former executive director of the Texas Republican Party, publicly said Talarico, a Presbyterian seminarian and former teacher, is a figure with the right values to represent Texas in the Senate.

Bush even said he had already cast his early vote for Talarico. Both cited the Democrat’s “character,” and Bush went further, directly attacking Paxton and expressing his “concern” about his conduct and track record.

Paxton, the state’s current attorney general, has a lengthy history of corruption and fraud allegations that even led him to face an impeachment trial in 2023, initiated by his own party in the state Legislature, where he was acquitted. Bush also criticized Paxton’s close ties to Trump, whom he accused of causing “enormous damage” to the Republican Party.

“I am concerned about a political culture in which loyalty to one person takes precedence over loyalty to principles and in which those in power begin to believe they no longer have to be held accountable,” said Bush, an energy industry businessman.

In 2015, a Collin County grand jury formally indicted Paxton on securities fraud charges. The case was closed in 2024 with a pretrial intervention agreement, without Paxton pleading guilty.

In addition, the Justice Department investigated him over allegations of corruption and abuse of power. The investigations did not result in charges and were closed in the final weeks of Joe Biden’s administration (2021-2025).

Trump’s decision to endorse Paxton over Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary drew widespread criticism from lawmakers and party strategists. The race for Texas’ Senate seat, which the state has not awarded to a Democrat since 1988, has become one of the most important contests of this election cycle.

More than US$500 million has been spent on advertising in the race overall, according to data from the firm AdImpact cited by U.S. media outlets.

Polls, which for weeks showed Talarico leading Paxton by a few percentage points, have shown the gap narrowing in recent days and now put the Democrat 1.5 points ahead of the attorney general, according to RealClearPolitics.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE

More than four million Latinos have turned 18 since the last midterm elections in 2022 and will be able to vote for the first time in the midterms on November 3. For years, Latino advocacy groups have pointed to the community’s growing political potential, noting that every 30 seconds, a Latino comes of age in the United States.

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The main investigative unit of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been vigorously promoting on social media an effort it considers crucial in the final weeks before the midterms: pursuing alleged large-scale election fraud by noncitizens — a claim that has obsessed President Donald Trump despite a lack of evidence.

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The mobilization of American voters in the midterm elections is already making an impact with fewer than two weeks to go until Election Day on November 3. Early voting, which has begun in more than 30 states, is setting records in some of them. More than 16 million voters have already cast their ballots, most of them by mail.

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Charisma or cash: to win an election, candidates need at least one of those two factors. With two weeks to go until the U.S. midterm elections, Republicans are throwing everything they have into the closest states to try to climb back in polls that are unfavorable to them. They have the invaluable help of the vast sums Donald Trump raises through his Super PAC, the political action committee that pools donations coming from the ultraconservative MAGA movement.

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