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Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Star Tribune/TNS

Minnesota colleges brace for an enrollment 'cliff.' But will it really happen?

Current News / News & Features /

The idea that there will be a sharp, menacing dropoff in high school graduates that will have dramatic effects on college and university enrollment has often been repeated in higher education circles in recent years.

But will there be an actual “demographic cliff” over the next 15 years, and should leaders make big changes to prepare for it...Read more

Dreamstime/Dreamstime/TNS

Blue wave: North Carolina Democrats flip state House after 16 years of Republican control

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RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s state House Democrats have flipped the chamber after 16 years of Republican control, according to unofficial election results Tuesday night.

Democrats quickly claimed victory.

“There are counts to be had, but I’ve got one thing to guarantee for you tonight, North Carolina. In January 2027, the North ...Read more

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Health insurers leave millions unpaid for mental health crisis care in California

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SAN JOSE, Calif. — As mobile crisis response teams in Northern California de-escalate and stabilize thousands of people with mental health conditions every year, they’re meeting a financial roadblock: health insurance companies.

Records obtained by Bay Area News Group show insurers rejected $4.1 million in payments to 11 counties for these ...Read more

Jaime Green/The Wichita Eagle/TNS

Kansas governor's race still too close to call. Masterson and Holscher wait for a victor

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The race for Kansas governor remained neck and neck late Tuesday, with no clear winner declared.

Voters appeared almost evenly split on the two candidates, who could set the state on two drastically different paths over the next four years, shaping how taxes are levied, education is funded and abortion is regulated.

As of 11:50 p.m., the ...Read more

Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times/TNS

Xavier Becerra makes history as California's first elected Latino governor

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SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Xavier Becerra, who grew up in a 685-square-foot house with his parents and three sisters in working-class Sacramento before ascending to Stanford University, Congress and the White House Cabinet, will become California’s first directly elected Latino governor.

The historic victory thrusts the unassuming Democrat into ...Read more

Sarah A. Miller/Idaho Statesman/TNS

Idaho Gov. Brad Little pursues third term; who's leading races for statewide offices?

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BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Republican Gov. Brad Little was leading in his race for reelection in early returns Tuesday night, with 47.3% as of 9:35 p.m.

Democrat Terri Pickens was second at 42.1%.

Much of the early return was from Ada County.

The race wasn’t expected to be competitive. The Cook Political Report rated the Idaho governor’s race...Read more

Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune/TNS

Amy Klobuchar elected Minnesota governor, Democrats win other statewide offices

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ST.PAUL, Minn. — Democratic U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar won the election for Minnesota governor on Tuesday, defeating Republican state House Speaker Lisa Demuth. Klobuchar will be the first woman to hold the office in Minnesota’s history.

Unofficial results as of 11 p.m. Thursday showed Klobuchar held a decisive lead, with 56% of the vote to ...Read more

From left, Wren Peterson, Travis Peterson and Tristen Peterson vote at the Hope Retreat Center on Election Day, Nov. 3, 2026, in Hope, Alaska.  AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson

Midterms proceeded without chaos, despite unprecedented Justice Department interference in recent days

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From Washington, D.C. to Anchorage, Alaska, federal courts have been busy with cases related to the Trump administration’s attempts to assert control over state elections. In almost every case, rulings have gone against the administration. But despite the fears of many Democrats, there was no mayhem launched by the Trump administration on ...Read more

Under Democratic control, the House is likely to exercise its oversight powers. AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

Democrats in House poised to investigate the Trump Administration, taking up a long-standing power GOP-led Congress ignored for the past two years

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Oversight is coming for the Trump administration.

That’s been the message of congressional Democrats throughout the closing days of the 2026 midterm campaign. Now that the party’s candidates have reportedly won control of the House of Representatives, that campaign promise is likely to be carried out. Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin ...Read more

Eleanor Dearman/Star-Telegram/TNS

Democrat Gina Hinojosa unseats Texas Gov. Greg Abbott

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Democratic challenger Gina Hinojosa has pulled off an upset in the Texas governor’s race, unseating three-term Republican incumbent Greg Abbott.

Abbott conceded defeat just after 10 p.m.

“There are still votes to be counted, but mathematically we’re not going to be able to win this election,” Abbott told supporters at his election ...Read more

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images North America/TNS

Colorado ballot measures on transgender youth sports, surgeries passing with slim majorities

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DENVER — Two Colorado ballot issues related to transgender youth were passing with slim majorities as vote counting continued Tuesday night.

About 52% of voters supported Proposition 134, which would ban transgender people from school sports teams that match their gender identities, as of 9:20 p.m. About 48% opposed the measure.

Similarly, ...Read more

Erik S. Lesser/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes US's first black woman governor with Georgia win

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Keisha Lance Bottoms is projected to win the Georgia governor’s race, becoming the first Black woman to lead a U.S. state and wresting control of the governor’s mansion from Republicans after more than two decades.

Bottoms, the former Atlanta mayor, led Republican billionaire Rick Jackson by 55.3% to 44.7% with 75.3% of the votes counted, ...Read more

Dirk Shadd/Tampa Bay Times/tns

Florida's Amendment 3 passes, bringing property tax change and budget cuts

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TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — In a year where cost of living is front of mind for voters, Floridians approved a constitutional amendment that would significantly cut property taxes for people who own the homes they live in.

Amendment 3, which is expected to save Florida homeowners thousands and cost local governments billions, passed with about 62% of ...Read more

Sue Dorfman/ZUMA Press Wire/TNS

Virginians enshrine abortion rights in state constitution

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NORFOLK, Va. — Virginians voted to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution Tuesday evening.

Virginians voted in favor of a constitutional amendment protecting abortion rights 62%-38% with 127 of 133 localities reporting unofficial results. The Associated Press called the race at 9:01 p.m. EST.

Voters took to the polls Tuesday to ...Read more

Miami Herald/Miami Herald/TNS

Sean 'Diddy' Combs' prison release date moved up following transfer

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Weeks after Sean "Diddy" Combs was hospitalized for a head injury suffered while serving time in federal prison, his release date has moved up.

The disgraced music and alcohol mogul is now set to be released on Feb. 6, 2028, nearly a month sooner than his projected release date last month, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons inmate ...Read more

News briefs

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Democrats hope for major gains as Americans head to polls

WASHINGTON — Control of Congress hangs in the balance as Americans head to the polls Tuesday to vote in a historic set of midterm elections that will determine how power is divided for the rest of President Donald Trump’s time in office.

A robust turnout appeared possible, after ...Read more

Eric Thayer/Los Angeles Times/TNS

In a triad? A foursome? West Hollywood will register your relationship -- and you don't have to live there

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LOS ANGELES — West Hollywood has become the latest city to create a domestic partnership registry for polyamorous relationships, with the city's five-person City Council unanimously approving the legal protections for alternative family structures.

The ordinance, approved Tuesday and introduced by Mayor John Heilman, allows people to register...Read more

City of Huntington Beach/City of Huntington Beach/TNS

Yet another rare sea turtle nest discovered in Southern California, this time in Ventura

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Amid record ocean temperatures, a third olive ridley sea turtle has laid its eggs in Southern California — this time on San Buenaventura State Beach in Ventura.

The rare event occurred on Sunday, according to witnesses and officials, and marks the third naturally-occurring sea turtle nest ever found on the U.S. West Coast.

Ventura resident ...Read more

Max Reinhart/The Detroit News/TNS

Muhith Mahmood set to take Hamtramck mayor's seat after ballot battle

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After more than a year of electoral contention and court challenges, Muhith Mahmood will be sworn in as the mayor of Hamtramck, Michigan, on Nov. 8.

The former council member, who appeared to have lost a tight race in the November 2025 general election only to come out on top after 37 disputed ballots were tabulated late last month, said he ...Read more

Matt Stone/Boston Herald/TNS

Boston mayor's $4.9 billion budget facing potential cost overruns from employee overtime

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BOSTON — Mayor Michelle Wu’s office said overtime spending is putting a strain on Boston’s $4.9 billion budget, which is something the city is keeping an eye on following the $70 million shortfall it had to plug with reserves last year.

Wu’s office on Monday released its first quarterly budget report, representing the first three months...Read more