WASHINGTON — New York and California, routinely overlooked in presidential elections, are shaping up as potentially pivotal battlegrounds in a nail-biter struggle for control of the U.S. House.

The outcome will determine whether the next president has a legislative-branch ally or antagonist in the fight ahead over Donald Trump’s expiring ...Read more

WASHINGTON — A slew of celebrities and politicians are set to raise cash for Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign in the monthlong stretch before Election Day.

Notable names such as cellist Yo-Yo Ma, musician Jon Bon Jovi, DJ and record producer D-Nice, chef and restaurateur Alice Waters, lawyer and political activist George Conway and ...Read more

WASHINGTON — In a late Friday night missive to congressional leaders, President Joe Biden wrote that the Small Business Administration’s disaster loan program is expected to run out of funding before Congress reconvenes after the November elections.

The SBA needs $1.6 billion to keep up with thousands of new applications coming in each day ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Democrats are expressing increasing optimism that regaining control of the House is within the party’s grasp.

“We have opportunities everywhere,” said Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Democrat from Washington state and chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “We’re making sure we pick up seats in presidential ...Read more

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — Former President Donald Trump, in his first trip to North Carolina since it was hit by Hurricane Helene, said the federal government’s response to the devastating storm had been “terrible.”

During a town hall with supporters in Fayetteville on Friday night, Trump also praised billionaire Elon Musk, a major supporter...Read more

Venture capitalist Ben Horowitz and his wife plan to make a “significant” donation to the presidential campaign of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, just three months after supporting Harris’ rival, former President Donald Trump.

In a memo to staff at his business Andreessen Horowitz, viewed by Bloomberg News, Horowitz emphasized the ...Read more

NEW YORK — Republican Rep. Mike Lawler says he’s sorry for wearing blackface as part of a Michael Jackson costume when he was in college nearly two decades ago.

The first-term New York lawmaker, who’s locked in a tight reelection fight, admits it was a mistake to don the offensive dark makeup at a 2006 Halloween party while he was a ...Read more

A year of conflict has ushered in a new era of mass displacement in the Middle East.

Since Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent sustained Israeli bombardment of Gaza, Israel has expanded its operations on multiple fronts to include the West Bank, Yemen, Syria and Lebanon.

With fighting continuing ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden appeared in the White House briefing room for a victory lap celebrating a rosy jobs report and resolution to the strike that had temporarily paralyzed ports along the Eastern seaboard, underscoring the economic tailwinds that have coalesced behind Kamala Harris in her election against Donald Trump.

It was ...Read more

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As polls show an effectively tied race in North Carolina, former President Donald Trump is returning for his third time in two weeks to the critical battleground state.

Trump’s visit to Fayetteville for a town hall with supporters Friday evening comes as rescue and recovery efforts continue around the clock in Western ...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Former President Donald Trump has said that the first line he'll deliver when he returns to the stage in Butler will be "... as I was saying."

What follows will be the most highly anticipated speech of his campaign since he first talked about the shooting on stage at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee.

Returning ...Read more

PITTSBURGH — Butler could be the big one.

Expected crowd estimates at the Trump rally on Saturday are all over the map, ranging from a low of 15,000 to as high as 100,000. The Secret Service is expecting as many as 60,000 people; Trump supporters and some independent observers say 100,000 is possible.

Trump himself is rather famously ...Read more

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court announced on Friday it will decide disputes about the scope of Nuclear Regulatory Commission power, e-cigarette marketing approvals and a $10 billion fight between the Mexican government and gunmakers and more.

The justices announced more than a dozen additional cases to their work this term, which starts Monday...Read more

LOS ANGELES — Like many Democrats seeking support from progressive voters, Franky Carrillo — who is running for a Los Angeles seat in the state Assembly — pledged not to accept campaign donations from oil and tobacco companies when he was interviewed by local Democratic clubs early in his campaign.

What Carrillo didn't tell them: At the ...Read more

There has been a lot of research on the types of people who believe conspiracy theories, and their reasons for doing so. But there’s a wrinkle: My colleagues and I have found that there are a number of people sharing conspiracies online who don’t believe their own content.

They are opportunists. These people share conspiracy ...Read more

The rapid pace of unfolding events between Israel and the Palestinians, and more broadly in the Middle East, can make people think change is inevitable.

Political scientists like me sometimes see significant and disruptive events, such as the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and their aftermath as drivers of heightened ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The two candidates vying to be Sacramento’s next mayor agree — the number one issue voters care about this election cycle is homelessness. They disagree about what to do about it.

Mayor Darrell Steinberg’s successor takes office Dec. 10 and will inherit a city with roughly 1,300 shelter beds — virtually all of ...Read more

Legalizing marijuana isn’t as hot-button an issue in this election as abortion or immigration, but both presidential candidates former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have weighed in, and for once, they’re in agreement.

Both, however, are missing a big point.

Last month, Trump posted on the Truth Social platform: �...Read more

WASHINGTON — There’s an old proverb that fits Derek Kilmer: If you love something, sometimes you have to let it go.

The Washington Democrat led the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress — better known on the Hill as “ModCom” or the “Fix Congress Committee” — where he oversaw the drafting of more than 200 ...Read more