A controversial citizens’ initiative in Shasta County, California, that would dramatically reshape local elections — by requiring ballots to be hand-counted, in apparent violation of state law, among other changes — was on track to be approved, according to early results from Tuesday night’s election.

Ballots were still being tallied, ...Read more

Sipping freshly desalinated water from the Pacific Ocean, water managers from Nevada, Arizona and California ushered in what could become a game-changing agreement for the drought-stricken American West.

Because San Diego has excess water available in its larger portfolio of supply, Nevada and Arizona officials are exploring how their states �...Read more

NEW YORK — Crime across the Big Apple has hit historic lows, with record reductions in murders, shooting incidents and shooting victims, according to the NYPD.

Major crime across the city declined 10.6% across the five boroughs — and more than 6% in the city’s subways — in May, according to the latest Police Department figures.

Year ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Republican-led House voted to halt the U.S. war with Iran, breaking with President Donald Trump on an unpopular foreign conflict that is taking an escalating economic toll on Americans.

The 215-208 vote Wednesday showed worries over the war spreading in the president’s own party five months before congressional elections. ...Read more

It’s that time of year again — spotted lanternflies have made a comeback across Maryland and most of the eastern U.S.

Spotted lanternflies typically hatch in late April and early May, meaning juveniles of the species are popping up around the state. The Maryland Department of Agriculture predicted in March that Baltimore City and central ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent repeatedly declined to comment on the IRS’ involvement in a controversial settlement agreement to set up an “anti-weaponization” fund during testimony before a Senate committee Tuesday, citing ongoing litigation.

Bessent, who also oversees the IRS through his post at the Treasury Department,...Read more

RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina General Assembly overturned Gov. Josh Stein’s veto on Wednesday, the first successful override of the 2026 legislative session.

The new law passed as a result allows taxpayers to receive a federal tax break for donating to scholarship-granting organizations. That includes scholarships for private schools. ...Read more

WASHINGTON — As one lengthy renovation on the Capitol campus comes to an end, another one is about to begin — and lawmakers are hoping it won’t come with the same blown deadlines and cost overruns.

Members pressed Architect of the Capitol Thomas Austin on how to use lessons from the Cannon House Office Building renewal project to inform ...Read more

RICHMOND, Va. — With the June 1 onset of the Atlantic hurricane season, Gov. Abigail Spanberger is urging Virginians to take precautions.

Wednesday at the Virginia Emergency Operations Center, she said the first step is to be on the lookout for wireless emergency alerts and to have a plan in place for what to do in the event of an evacuation....Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As election officials continued tallying ballots Wednesday, Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra continued to lead in the unsettled race to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom, with billionaire Democrat Tom Steyer hoping for a surge in late-arriving votes to push him into one of the top-two spots to advance...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Residents of Monterey Park voted overwhelmingly to ban data centers on election day, making the San Gabriel Valley city the first in the nation to do so by public vote.

As of Wednesday, 86% of votes were in favor of Measure NDC, the city ban, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk.

Other cities and ...Read more

SEATTLE — Three years before a deadly tank rupture at a Longview pulp and paper mill, a fire lasting several days raised concerns that the owner had scaled back maintenance at the decades-old facility.

Crews battled the flames for three days as the fire burned through wood chips — pulp’s core ingredient — and spread from a conveyor belt...Read more

ORLANDO, Fla. — The iron-clad red front door. A golden chandelier that once hung over the dance floor. A decorated bar top encrusted with small pebbles. They are what remains of Pulse nightclub, the once-lively spot which closed forever following the shooting death of 49 people 10 years ago.

For the first time, the city of Orlando has ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — A Minneapolis City Council committee voted Tuesday against the selection of a violence prevention group to redevelop a former gas station across the street from where George Floyd was killed by Minneapolis police.

Their decision means the process of deciding what to do with the former Speedway gas station, which was destroyed ...Read more

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether to approve a constitutional amendment pushed by Gov. Ron DeSantis that creates property tax relief for homeowners while upending the way local governments pay for services.

The controversial measure, which would require 60% of voters to approve it, creates a lot of questions ...Read more

A convicted Jan. 6 rioter from South Carolina has been hired by the Trump administration to work in a Pentagon office “that manages highly classified military operations,” according to a report in The Washington Post.

The report about convicted Jan. 6 defendant Elias Irizarry now working in the Pentagon was based on four unnamed sources. It...Read more

LANSING, Mich. — An effort to change the way university boards are selected failed in the Michigan House even after Gov. Gretchen Whitmer earlier Wednesday endorsed changes to the way the governing panels are selected at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University and Wayne State University.

The resolution, which needed two-thirds ...Read more