Crooked Bough News Round-up

— New Mexico Gov. Lujan Grisham criticizes Trump for not approving flood cost reimbursement

 

at 10/30/26 4:23pm

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Oct. 29, 2026, criticized President Donald Trump’s administration for failing to approve federal reimbursement for costs local and tribal governments are incurring as they respond to widespread flooding, including in Bloomfield, pictured above. (Photo courtesy Elmer Ignacio)New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Thursday urged President Donald Trump’s administration to authorize additional federal assistance to northern New Mexico communities recovering from widespread flooding. Trump earlier this week declared a presidential disaster following floods that damaged thousands of homes in San Juan County and elsewhere, a declaration that authorized assistance from various federal agencies including debris removal from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers, flood monitoring from the U.S. Geological Survey and drinking water testing from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.  The federal assistance is directed to four counties and four pueblos that have endured widespread flooding since Oct. 22. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE At least 10,000 homes remained “underwater” following flooding along the San Juan and Animas rivers in San Juan County, according to a disaster declaration request state emergency officials sent to Trump on Oct. 24, and dozens of homes in the Laguna, Jicarilla Apache, Zia and San Ildefonso Pueblos also incurred damage.  Water levels were so high along some of the rivers that flood gauges broke, according to the declaration request, and levels broke records last set more than a century ago.  But Trump’s declaration does not include assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency that the governor’s office and members of the state’s congressional declaration specifically requested. Funding from FEMA’s public assistance program, which reimburses local and tribal governments for up to 75% of costs they incur for debris cleanup and emergency protection, is absent from the list of approved assistance.   “The president has recognized what families in San Juan County already know: This is a disaster,” Gov. Lujan Grisham said in a statement. “What hasn’t come yet is the federal commitment to help pay for the response. FEMA should already be on the ground in New Mexico, and we can’t sit and wait for them with more storms on the way. New Mexico is now forced to cover these costs while pressing our case to Washington.” Forecasters with the National Weather Service are predicting more flooding potential, including in some of the affected areas, beginning late Saturday through Monday morning.  In a statement, the governor’s office contends that the public assistance program approval happened automatically in other federally declared disasters in New Mexico. As a result of the lack of FEMA funding, counties and tribal governments are footing the bill for costs that they cannot afford, Lujan Grisham said. FEMA has authorized more than $422 million in public assistance funding to local governments following the 2022 Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire in northern New Mexico, according to a Source NM review, as well as nearly $60 million in that funding following the South Fork and Salt Fires in the Ruidoso area.  FEMA officials have not responded to Source NM’s requests for comment about the state’s request for public assistance funding, including an emailed request for comment Friday. The governor’s office’s statement Thursday said that state officials have received “indications that its request for federal financial assistance and personnel remains under consideration.” The flooding in New Mexico this year could ultimately cost state and local governments at least $200 million, Lujan Grisham has said.  ‘A terrible crisis’: San Juan County officials describe widespread flooding impacts In total, the governor has approved more than $55 million in state funding to address the emergency, including an additional round of $42.75 million she authorized Thursday through emergency executive orders. Lujan Grisham concluded her statement Thursday by thanking first responders, including those who pulled families out of swift-moving water and off rooftops. At least 30 swiftwater rescues occurred in the hours following the flooding.  “Our road crews cleared debris around the clock, and our counties and Tribal nations spent money they don’t have to keep people safe,” she said. “We’re planning now for the next storm, and we’ll keep working with our federal partners until that reimbursement is approved.”

[Category: Environment & Climate Change, 2026 New Mexico flooding, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham]

— Trump loses appeals over California ballots, Homeland Security operations

 

at 10/30/26 3:34pm

Election workers sort ballots at an election operations facility in Martinez, California, on May 27, 2026, ahead of California's statewide primary election. (Photo by Benjamin Fanjoy/Getty Images)A federal appeals court on Friday denied a Trump administration demand that California set aside and not count the ballots of 20,000 suspected noncitizen voters, setting the stage for a possible appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. A three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a U.S. Department of Justice request for an emergency order that would have required state and local election officials to not tabulate the ballots of voters on a list developed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security unless they could prove their citizenship. A separate 9th Circuit panel on Friday also denied a Justice Department request to allow Homeland Security to restart election-related field operations that could sweep up U.S. citizens. Civil rights groups had warned the operations put naturalized citizens at risk of disenfranchisement. The rulings marked the third and fourth courtroom losses in less than a week for President Donald Trump’s administration in its 11th-hour legal campaign to assert authority over elections, which under the U.S. Constitution are administered by states. “Exercising the power endowed to it by the Constitution, California comprehensively administers its elections, including by regulating voter eligibility,” the panel wrote in an unsigned majority opinion over California’s ballot counting. The Justice Department in October provided California election officials with a list of approximately 20,000 individuals that it said were likely noncitizens registered to vote in the state. The DOJ cited a federal misdemeanor crime against noncitizen voting in demanding their ballots be set aside. The DOJ says Homeland Security compiled the list after obtaining a public copy of California’s voter roll and checking it against government records and information from the LexisNexis research service. Officials in California and Los Angeles County have questioned the list’s accuracy and warned against relying on it to prevent the tabulation of ballots. The Trump administration has gone to extraordinary lengths to pressure California election officials to set aside the ballots.  It sued just 48 hours after giving election officials the list of 20,000 voters and since then, DOJ lawyers have raised the possibility that state and local officials could face criminal prosecution if they count the ballots of noncitizens. Grand jury subpoenas have been sent to election officials in Los Angeles County. Risks ‘uncertain,’ panel says The appeals court’s decision in the California ballots case upheld a ruling from Judge David Carter, an appointee of President Bill Clinton in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, against the Justice Department. In a blistering decision, Carter wrote that the Trump administration was attempting to coerce California that evidence existed of federal interference. Carter also echoed concerns raised by election officials over the origin of the list. The 9th Circuit panel voiced similar worries in its Friday decision and said the Justice Department request risks disenfranchising voters. “There is a public interest in maintaining the integrity of elections,” the opinion says. “But as discussed, the district court found that the risks that noncitizens are voting are, at best, uncertain, and also tempered by California’s established voter-eligibility procedures.” The 9th Circuit also previously rejected a preemptive appeal filed by the Justice Department. Appellate Judge Patrick Bumatay, a Trump appointee, wrote in a dissent that he would have granted the Justice Department’s request. He wrote that the DOJ was seeking “limited relief” and that the federal government and the states can work together. “California decided long ago that aliens can’t vote in its elections. Today, the federal government merely seeks to safeguard that decision. We should have let them try,” Bumatay wrote. The Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment and a question about whether it would appeal. “Every day, more ballots are processed by election officials. This ongoing emergency disenfranchises American citizens through dilution,” Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, said in an earlier statement. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, said in a social media post that the Trump administration’s three court losses over the past week make clear it has “zero authority to interfere in California’s elections.” DHS election-related operations blocked Another 9th Circuit panel on Friday affirmed a district court judge’s decision prohibiting DHS from conducting operations that could sweep up U.S. citizens. The prohibition applies in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin until polls close on Election Day. A Homeland Security Investigations internal memo dated Aug. 31 describes a “surge initiative” beginning Sept. 1 that includes conducting field interviews. The memo, which was filed in court, identifies those states as targets of the surge during September. Additional locations are redacted in the document. In an unsigned opinion, the panel questioned the Trump administration’s timing in pursuing a surge in voter fraud enforcement just before Election Day. The federal law enforcement activity is ostensibly focused on past voter fraud, the judges wrote, meaning that DHS had more than a year to pursue investigations before the pre-election period. “The Federal Defendants have not indicated why restrictions on the Surge now prevent them from conducting these operations,” the panel wrote. “Nor have they explained why an injunction enjoining specific aspects of the Surge through Election Day causes irreparable harm when implementation of the Initiative can resume on November 4, 2026” — the day after Election Day. The original lawsuit was filed by San Francisco, Santa Clara, the California Nurses Association, National Nurses United and the Voto Latino Foundation. They alleged voters, especially naturalized citizens, are at risk of intimidation and fear they could be wrongly targeted, the groups warned. Last week, the district court held that DHSs frantic, last-minute voter investigations are unlawful voter intimidation. Today, the governments attempt to restart that campaign failed,” Beau Tremitiere, a lawyer at Protect Democracy, said in a statement. “This was one more desperate attempt by the Trump administration to interfere in the midterm elections, and the courts have again said no.” Supreme Court next? How the Supreme Court would rule if the Justice Department appeals either of these cases is unknown.  Conservatives hold six of its nine seats. The majority upended the electoral landscape earlier this year when it sharply weakened federal protections against racial gerrymandering, paving the way for Southern states to quickly redraw their congressional maps to favor Republicans. But the Supreme Court has generally held that federal courts shouldn’t order dramatic changes just ahead of elections. For example, in September the justices repeatedly rejected requests to overturn a Missouri Supreme Court decision blocking a GOP gerrymander. In the California ballots case, the 9th Circuit panel majority — which included Judge Mark Bennett, a Trump appointee, and Judge Gabriel Sanchez, an appointee of President Joe Biden — invoked that principle in denying the Trump administration’s request. “Major concerns remain that granting the United States’s requested relief might … harm the public interest by risking the disenfranchisement of eligible voters and putting the entire tabulation process in jeopardy,” they wrote.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Rising costs, protecting democracy: Santa Fe early voters discuss their reasons for casting ballots

 

at 10/30/26 3:00pm

New Mexicans line up to vote early at the Greer Garson Theater in Santa Fe on Oct. 30, 2026, one of the early voting locations in Santa Fe County. (Photo by Matt Mondschein/Source NM)Some voters in Santa Fe County cited rising costs and protecting democracy as top issues after casting their ballots during New Mexico’s early voting period. The county’s top election official said that with early voting ending Saturday, the county is on pace to surpass final turnout from the 2022 General Election. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE This general election, New Mexicans will elect a new governor for the first time in eight years, as well as vote in contested races for the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. Voters will also weigh in on several races for the state Legislature, along with constitutional amendments and ballot initiatives.  As of Friday morning, nearly 42,000 absentee and early vote ballots had been cast in Santa Fe County, according to the New Mexico Secretary of State’s office, pushing voter turnout more than halfway toward surpassing its final turnout percentage in the previous general election, the Santa Fe County Clerk’s office said in a news release.  Outside the Greer Garson Theater, one of the early voting locations in Santa Fe the clerk’s office said had been particularly busy, Liliana Diaz, 20, and her brother Anthony, 19, said rising costs and concern over the Project Jupiter data center under construction in Doña Ana County brought them to cast their ballots. Liliana, now a student at the University of New Mexico, previously graduated from the New Mexico School of Arts high school in Santa Fe and told Source NM it would be “against her morals” to support Project Jupiter since A.I. is “against the artisticness of Santa Fe.”  Anthony Diaz told Source NM that the Trump administration made “false promises” after launching the Iran War in February. With gas and grocery prices rising, Diaz, also a student at UNM and a math tutor, told Source NM he has to find ways just to get by. “I end up donating plasma just so I can have a little money for rent and for groceries,” he told Source NM. Liliana added that her brother “almost passed out” a few days ago after donating plasma when the pair were set to go to a pumpkin patch.  The siblings said they were most excited to vote in the gubernatorial race between Democrat Deb Haaland and Republican Gregg Hull. Both said they voted for Haaland, citing the candidate’s identity as a Native American woman, which “would be really beneficial to New Mexico,” Liliana Diaz said. Anthony Diaz, left, next to his sister Liliana Diaz, right, voted early at the Greer Garson Theater in Santa Fe on Oct. 30, 2026. (Photo by Matt Mondschein/Source NM)Chloe Brennan brought her daughter to vote early at the Greer Garson Theater in Santa Fe on Oct. 30, 2026. (Photo by Matt Mondschein/Source NM)Danielle Scott Taylor voted early at the Greer Garson Theater in Santa Fe on Oct. 30, 2026. (Photo by Matt Mondschein/Source NM) Chloe Brennan and Danielle Scott Taylor, both early voters, also said they were most excited to vote in the gubernatorial race and both also voted for Haaland. For Brennan, who brought her baby daughter in a chest carrier to vote early, the most important issue was “voting rights and maintaining democracy as we know it.”  Scott Taylor told Source NM that “keeping the momentum” for Democratic leadership in the state was her most important issue. She added that she also voted for U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.) and U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) in both their races.  “I voted every election,” Scott Taylor said, but the Trump administration made her “certainly more motivated to keep the leadership that we have and show support.” One man at Greer Garson Theater said he voted for Republican gubernatorial candidate Gregg Hull, but declined to provide his name. Registered Democrats make up 58.1% of registered voters in Santa Fe County, followed by 25% independent or Decline to State voters and 15.4% registered Republicans, according to the most recent Secretary of State registration data. Ahead of the end of early voting before Tuesday Election Day, Santa Fe County Clerk’s Office encouraged voters in a Thursday news release to use the county’s nine early voting locations, all open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. that day.  “Make this final Saturday of early voting part of your Halloween plans,” Santa Fe County Clerk Katharine Clark said in a statement. “Check your polling location before you go and remember: earlier is easier.

[Category: Economy, Election 2026, 2026 General Election, Deb Haaland, Gregg Hull, Project Jupiter, Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández, Santa Fe County, U.S. Sen. Ben Ray Luján]

— New Mexico Civil Rights Act hasn’t sparked more lawsuits, police resignations, early study finds

 

at 10/30/26 2:30pm

University of California, Los Angeles School of Law Professor Joanna Schwartz, left, and New Mexico Association of Counties Risk Management Director Grace Philips, right, speak to the interim Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee on Oct. 29, 2026, about the impacts of the New Mexico Civil Rights Act. (Photo by Joshua Bowling/Source NM)In the years since New Mexico adopted its own Civil Rights Act, the state has not seen a significant uptick in lawsuit settlement payments or police officer resignations, according to a new study presented to state lawmakers Thursday. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed the New Mexico Civil Rights Act, which lets residents allege that their civil rights under the state Constitution have been violated, into law in 2021. It also made New Mexico just the second state in the nation, behind Colorado, to eliminate qualified immunity — which completely shields public officials such as police officers from lawsuits — as a defense. In the years since the law’s enactment, advocates for local government bodies and law enforcement agencies have argued it would lead to costly settlement payouts and difficulties in recruiting and retaining police officers. The new study presented at Thursday’s interim Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee, however, found that hasn’t been the case in the law’s first years. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE The study, titled “Watching the Sky Not Fall: A Quantitative Study of the Impact of the NMCRA,” used public records requests to analyze law enforcement agency data from 2017 to 2023 in the two states that abolished qualified immunity — New Mexico and Colorado — and in two states that didn’t — Washington and Utah. Joanna Schwartz, a University of California, Los Angeles School of Law professor who co-authored the study and presented it to state lawmakers, provided a disclaimer with her presentation: Some of New Mexico’s law enforcement agencies didn’t fulfill her records request, limiting her research team’s ability to fully analyze the law’s impact. “The evolution of litigation under the Civil Rights Act will take years and will develop as lawyers write and defend cases and judges issue rulings,” Schwartz said, adding that researchers need more data before they can make “definitive conclusions” about the full impact of the law. The data she did obtain, though, showed that New Mexico and Colorado did not see a significant increase in the number of lawsuits filed against law enforcement agencies. It also showed no marked increase in lawsuit payouts or in police officer resignations and retirements. Resignations and retirements peaked in all four surveyed states in 2021, which Schwartz said was likely due to the national protests and sentiment regarding law enforcement agencies in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder. Across all four surveyed states, the cost of insurance rates increased from 2017 to 2023 — with no indication that increases in New Mexico and Colorado were related to the civil rights laws. Despite the preliminary findings, officials with the New Mexico Association of Counties speaking alongside Schwartz told lawmakers they want to see the civil rights law amended in the upcoming legislative session, which begins in January. Grace Philips, the New Mexico Association of Counties’ risk management director, told lawmakers she thinks the law needs three amendments to cap how much money can be awarded in these cases; eliminate the practice of plaintiffs’ attorneys recovering money under both the New Mexico Civil Rights Act and other laws in the same case; and require that plaintiffs give government bodies advance notice when they intend to file a lawsuit under the law. Philips said that limiting the amount of money that can be awarded in these cases will help insurance pools that government entities rely on to stay solvent. The New Mexico Civil Rights Act initially capped claims at $2 million, but a provision in the law says that the cap will increase annually based on cost-of-living metrics. “Frankly, we’re terrified about the solvency piece,” Philips said, asking lawmakers to go back to the $2 million limit. State Rep. Marianna Anaya (D-Albuquerque) asked Philips how many settlements under the state civil rights law have hit the maximum payout. Philips said she didn’t have the figure readily available. Anaya told Philips that civil rights cases brought in federal court under the U.S. Constitution do not have a cap on damages. “I believe it would be an incentive for us to just keep going with what we have, which seems like a good thing, comparatively,” she said.

[Category: Criminal Justice, Gov & Politics, Civil Rights Act, Courts Corrections and Justice Committee, New Mexico Association of Counties, qualified immunity, Rep. Marianna Anaya]

— Commentary: Epstein’s money left a record. New Mexico is right to demand it

 

at 10/30/26 2:23pm

Maps of the Zorro Ranch from a New Mexico State Land Trust file and photos of the Santa Fe County residence once owned by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. (Graphics courtesy of State Land Office/U.S. Department of Justice)Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes took more than one man. Someone had to manage the properties, handle the paperwork, move the money and keep quiet. New Mexico’s attorney general says those people were Epstein’s lawyer and his accountant, and he is asking a federal court to stop the estate from paying them tens of millions more. The lawsuit against Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn, the first law enforcement action brought against either man, alleges they helped finance and conceal a trafficking operation that included the abuse of girls and young women at Zorro Ranch in Santa Fe County. The state says Indyke received more than $16 million and Kahn more than $10 million from Epstein and his entities between 2011 and 2019. Through their attorney, both men deny any knowledge of or participation in the trafficking. The allegations have not been proven in court. What strikes me is how ordinary the alleged mechanics are. According to the complaint, the two men held or managed at least 140 bank accounts tied to Epstein and his businesses by 2005. The state alleges some of those accounts moved money between entities, while others paid girls and young women who were abused or recruited. Epstein or people acting for him withdrew more than $6 million in cash between 2002 and 2013, the complaint says. It also alleges Indyke structured withdrawals to avoid federal reporting requirements, taking out more than $200,000 a year from Epstein’s Deutsche Bank accounts between 2013 and 2017. The state argues that these activities went beyond ordinary legal and accounting services. I spent years as New Mexico state auditor tracing how money moves and who benefits when it moves the wrong way. I am also a Certified Fraud Examiner. That experience taught me to look beyond individual transactions and examine how they fit together. Bank accounts, corporate filings and property transfers can show how money moved between people and businesses, and whether those arrangements served a legitimate purpose or helped conceal wrongdoing. In this case, the records may help establish what Indyke and Kahn knew and what they did with that knowledge. Zorro Ranch itself shows why those questions matter in New Mexico. According to the complaint, Indyke handled the 2011 transfer of Zorro Ranch’s title to Cypress Inc., an Epstein-controlled company where Kahn served as treasurer and a director. Another company, Zorro Development Corp., ran the property’s operations, and Indyke was its secretary and an authorized signatory on its bank account from 2016 to 2019. The state alleges that corporate structure helped conceal transactions tied to the trafficking. When the estate sold the ranch in 2023, Kahn oversaw the sale. The questions for the court are what these men knew, what they should have known and what they did with that knowledge while they were being paid. That is why the request to freeze payments matters. Indyke and Kahn are co-executors of the estate and administrators of the trust, and the complaint says they are eligible for bequests of $50 million and $25 million, subject to available funds. The estate was valued at roughly $577.7 million after Epstein’s death in August 2019. As of June 30, 2026, probate records cited in the complaint put it above $107 million. The state named the trust as a defendant for a practical reason: It holds assets that could satisfy a judgment. Survivors have also objected publicly to an arrangement in which the men help oversee payments to survivors while standing to receive millions themselves. This is a civil case, not a criminal prosecution, and the state’s separate criminal investigation continues. New Mexico seeks damages, restitution and the return of any profits tied to the alleged trafficking, along with limits on the men’s authority over estate distributions. The case also raises a question about professional responsibility. Lawyers and accountants often have access to financial information that can reveal how a client operates. Professional status should not shield anyone from scrutiny when evidence suggests their work may have helped conceal exploitation. If the allegations are proven, the people who helped make the operation possible should be held accountable for their own conduct. As Attorney General Raúl Torrez put it, “Jeffrey Epstein did not operate alone, and his death does not end the pursuit of accountability for the people who helped make his crimes possible.” Survivors have called for answers under oath. New Mexico should pursue the evidence to establish what happened at Zorro Ranch and whether the financial and corporate arrangements surrounding the property helped conceal the alleged abuse. The records may show who was involved and what role they played. The state is right to demand that accounting.

[Category: Commentary, Uncategorized, Jeffrey Epstein, Zorro Ranch]

— Trump continues rally spree in attempt to blunt Dem momentum in midterms lead-up

 

at 10/30/26 2:18pm

President Donald Trump waved to supporters gathered at the Sioux Gateway Airport in Sioux City Oct. 22, 2026, for a rally supporting Iowa Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is rounding out his midterm travel blitz in the final sprint leading up to Election Day on Nov. 3.  With just four days to go, the Republican Party is aiming to keep its narrow majority in the U.S. House and control of the Senate.  But elections forecasters see a bleak outlook for the GOP, saying Democrats remain heavily favored to win the U.S. House, while Senate races continue to move in Democrats’ direction.  Heading into Election Day, Trump faces anemic approval ratings amid the war in Iran and its impact on gas and diesel prices.  The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter on Friday shifted a dozen House races in Democrats’ favor. The elections forecaster has identified 18 toss-up races in congressional districts in California, Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Montana, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia.   Republicans are defending all but four of those seats.  The forecaster on Friday also moved Senate races in Florida and Nebraska away from Republicans and in the direction of Florida Democrat Angie Nixon and Nebraska independent Dan Osborn.   The Cook Political Report has declared seven toss-up Senate races in Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Ohio and Texas. Pope among record early voters As early voting continues across the country, total figures have eclipsed early voting totals in the 2022 midterms, according to data from the University of Florida Election Lab. As of Friday afternoon, more than 48.5 million people had cast a vote — whether in person at the polls or by mailing in their ballot — per the UF Election Lab.  In the 2022 midterm elections, 45.9 million Americans voted early, the UF Election Lab found.  Standing among American voters is Pope Leo XIV, who cast his ballot in the midterm elections, the Vatican announced Friday. This makes Leo the first pope to vote in a U.S. election.  Leo — a U.S. citizen who grew up in Illinois — submitted his mail-in ballot in Chicago, according to the Vatican.     Home-state rallies As Trump’s midterm travel that began in early October hits its final stops, the president was slated to rally in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Friday.  The Sunshine State, where the president is a registered voter, features a Senate race between incumbent GOP Sen. Ashley Moody and progressive Nixon, a Florida state legislator.   The Cook Political Report moved the race from “solid Republican” to “likely Republican” on Friday. Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to rally in Swanton, Ohio, on Monday. The Buckeye State features a toss-up Senate race, according to the Cook Political Report, between Ohio GOP Sen. Jon Husted, who was appointed to fill Vance’s seat when he became vice president, and Democratic former Sen. Sherrod Brown. Kansas, Iowa on schedule Trump’s two previously canceled Midwestern rallies this weekend are back on.  The president will hold back-to-back rallies Sunday in Dubuque, Iowa, and  Salina, Kansas, while also holding nearly 20 telerallies in the last few days before the election.  Iowa and Kansas are home to two Senate races the Cook Political Report has identified as toss-ups.  Kansas GOP U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall is in a tight race against Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton. That race is now the most expensive election in Kansas history, according to Kansas Reflector.  In Iowa, Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson is vying with Democratic state legislator Josh Turek to fill an open Senate seat.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Federal subpoenas to election officials mark escalating Trump DOJ pressure campaign

 

at 10/30/26 2:04pm

People vote in the Halifax Volunteer Fire Department in Allen County, Kentucky, on Election. Day, Nov. 5, 2024. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Austin Anthony)As the Trump administration waged a public legal fight with California over the ballots of suspected noncitizen voters in mid-October, behind the scenes a federal grand jury in Santa Ana issued a series of subpoenas to election officials in Los Angeles County at federal prosecutors’ urging. The subpoenas demanded a host of information, from how officials responded to warnings that the Trump administration had identified 20,000 suspected noncitizen voters to how they screen for unlawful voting. Among the demands: any records suggesting “someone has aided and/or abetted an alien voting in a federal election.” As President Donald Trump’s administration loses round after round in federal court in his quest for authority over state-run elections, the U.S. Department of Justice is turning to criminal investigations as a way to dig deep into documents and records held by election officials.  Democrats, election officials and legal experts warn the subpoenas are intended to intimidate in the absence of favorable court decisions for the president. “The mask is off now. There’s clearly no legitimate law enforcement purpose here with regards to the service of these subpoenas, the ongoing litigation,” David Becker, executive director of the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation & Research and a former DOJ Voting Section attorney, said during a press call Friday. “This is all a political effort at this point, and it’s an effort by what appears to be a desperate administration to interfere with the election.” The Justice Department sued California on Oct. 15, two days after informing state and local officials that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security had identified 20,000 suspected noncitizens on the state’s voter roll. The DOJ demanded California set aside the ballots of the 20,000 voters and not count their votes unless they can prove their citizenship. A federal grand jury issued two subpoenas to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office on Oct. 21. A third subpoena was issued on Oct. 24. An Oct. 24 Justice Department letter accompanying at least one of the subpoenas says they were “issued in connection with an official criminal investigation” conducted by Homeland Security Investigations, a sub-agency of DHS. Los Angeles County officials must provide the information by Nov. 4, the day after Election Day, according to the subpoenas. States Newsroom obtained the subpoenas through a records request. The New York Times first reported on their existence. Focus on election officials A grand jury subpoena represents an intermediate investigative step by the Justice Department. They aren’t as aggressive as a search warrant, but unlike a voluntary request for an interview or documents, they require mandatory compliance, though recipients can challenge them in court. It isn’t clear whether Los Angeles County intends to challenge the subpoenas. Subpoenas to election officials are not in and of themselves unheard of. State and federal prosecutors sometimes use them to obtain information on voters who may be under investigation for unlawfully casting a ballot or registering to vote. For instance, lawyers for California Secretary of State Shirley Weber, a Democrat, wrote in a mid-October court filing that her office has received federal grand jury subpoenas for voter records on about 300 people since August. A Reuters investigation published Wednesday found that the Trump administration has issued more than 100 subpoenas for records on thousands of voters across 13 states. Most were issued within the past three months, and 49 were issued under the authority of grand juries. They arrived after Homeland Security arrested dozens of people across the country on allegations of noncitizen voting. But recent subpoenas in Alaska and California appear more focused on how election officials are doing their jobs than on data about specific voters. In Alaska, The Associated Press reported Thursday that grand jury subpoenas were issued in a Justice Department criminal investigation into the state’s U.S. Senate race. Trump has erupted in anger after The New York Times reported Democrats helped recruit Dan J. Sullivan — who shares a name with Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan — to run for Senate. Sen. Sullivan appears locked in a tight race with Democrat Mary Peltola. In California, subpoenas issued to Los Angeles County officials don’t specify the target of the investigation but the information requested suggests prosecutors are interested in internal discussions over the handling of the list of suspected noncitizens. They direct officials to turn over records related to efforts to prevent noncitizen voting and any evidence that noncitizens have voted. They also include a demand for evidence of aiding and abetting noncitizen voting — the same language that Bill Essayli, first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, used during a court hearing Tuesday.  Threats of prosecution Essayli warned election officials face “criminal liability” if they aid and abet noncitizen voting by counting their ballots. In turn, U.S. District Court Judge David Carter, an appointee of President Bill Clinton, urged the Justice Department to drop threats against election officials. “Judge Carter’s admonishment about threats directed at election officials on Tuesday was well placed and appreciated. At every step, the U.S. Department of Justice has taken a confrontational, adversarial approach,” Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Dean Logan said in a statement. Election officials are following state and federal law, Logan said, adding that rulings at the district and appeals court levels have confirmed they are acting legally. He said his office will take whatever steps are necessary to ensure employee safety and to remain focused on serving voters. “Threats and intimidation have no place in elections,” Logan said. In a statement, the Justice Department declined to comment on “leaks about alleged grand jury subpoenas.”  But the DOJ noted a ruling by Carter that emphasized the federal government’s power to prosecute noncitizen voting, as well as court filings by California that say prosecutors have authority to bring criminal cases over noncitizen voting.  “Thus, while DOJ maintains that a civil remedy is still available, all agree that noncitizen voting is properly addressed through criminal law,” the DOJ said in a statement. Carter also denied the DOJ’s request for an emergency order and wrote that the Trump administration was engaging in election interference. Several unions and civil rights groups sued the administration late Thursday over the prosecution threats. In a lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, the organizations asked a judge to order federal officials to stop “threatening election officials and workers” with prosecution for refusing to segregate ballots of suspected noncitizens. The lawsuit says the Trump administration has “initiated a criminal investigation into county officials including issuing grand jury subpoenas.” On Friday night, Judge Trina Thompson, an appointee of President Joe Biden in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, issued a temporary restarting order prohibiting the Trump administration from threatening election officials or demanding they segregate ballots. “Free exercise of the right to vote is a core tenet of our democracy,” Thompson wrote. California has also questioned the reliability of the data the Trump administration used to develop the list of 20,000 voters. The DOJ says Homeland Security analyzed a public copy of the state’s voter roll and compared voter records to government immigration records and included the use of the LexisNexis research service. Federal courts ruled against the Justice Department three times in late October. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a preemptive appeal on Oct. 26, and Carter denied the DOJ’s request for an emergency order on Oct. 28. The 9th Circuit on Oct. 30 denied a fresh appeal. Red states enter fray Eleven Republican-led states have urged federal courts to grant the Justice Department’s demand that California segregate the ballots. In an amicus brief, the states say they have a direct interest in preventing the dilution of the votes of U.S. citizens in other states. “The Constitution permits substantial differences among state election laws and procedures. But Congress’s prohibition on noncitizen voting in federal elections supplies a common rule that every State must respect,” the states, led by Republican Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, wrote in their brief. The other states include Alabama, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas and West Virginia. In Washington state, election officials received a Justice Department demand Monday to segregate the ballots of about 400 suspected noncitizen voters. Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs, a Democrat, said in a statement that a preliminary investigation found the list includes U.S. citizens. As of Friday morning, the Justice Department hadn’t sued Washington. However, a DOJ letter sent to Hobbs warned the Trump administration would seek “emergency relief” if election officials didn’t comply. “We are bound by state law,” Thurston County, Washington, Auditor Mary Hall, a Democrat who runs elections for the Olympia area, told reporters on Wednesday. “And state law really does not give us the authority to do what the federal government is asking us to do.”

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— New Mexico Dem governor nominee Haaland adds $1.5M to historic fundraising haul in final push

 

at 10/30/26 1:05pm

New Mexico Democratic gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland received approximately $1.5 million in recent weeks, according to New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office filings. (Photo by Danielle Prokop/Source NM)New Mexico Democratic gubernatorial nominee Deb Haaland ended a historic campaign fundraising haul with an additional $1.5 million in recent weeks, according to the latest campaign finance filings with the New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office. Haaland has national name recognition as the nation’s first-ever Indigenous female U.S. Interior Department secretary and has received more than $20 million over course of the 2026 primary and general elections. Between Oct. 6 and Oct. 27, Haaland received a little more than $1.5 million across nearly 30,000 donations. Her Republican opponent Gregg Hull, a former Rio Rancho mayor, received a little over $350,000 from approximately 1,200 donations in the same time period. Hull has received approximately $2.8 million this election season.  A campaign haul of $20 million dwarfs recent gubernatorial campaigns, including that of incumbent Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan who is finishing her second and final term in office. She received approximately $13.8 million for her 2022 re-election campaign, according to Secretary of State’s Office records.  Contributions to Haaland’s campaign alone make up more than more than 80% of more than 36,000 donations in the latest filing period to all candidates running for election or re-election this cycle.  Like in previous campaign finance reports, Haaland received small-dollar donations from every state and territory in the country, as well as from military members serving overseas. The largest percentage of her donations came from California, followed closely by New Mexico.  During the primary campaign against Bernalillo County District Attorney Sam Bregman, Haaland’s haul of donations contained in filings numbering in the thousands of pages temporarily broke the Secretary of State’s website.  Also like previous campaign filings, Hull’s donations came almost entirely from New Mexico donors, with all but 11 of his 1,186 donations being listed as in-state.  Hull has previously pointed to his in-state support as proof that his campaign is geared toward New Mexicans. Haaland has cited the sheer number of small donations from across the country as evidence of her wide, grassroots support. The latest filings, due to the Secretary of State’s Office on Thursday, mark the final glimpse into campaign fundraising activity before the general election concludes Tuesday. 

[Category: Uncategorized]

— Advocates ask lawmakers to close gaps in New Mexico state law regarding domestic violence

 

at 10/30/26 10:32am

Advocates urged lawmakers on Oct. 29, 2026, to amend the state’s family violence law to close domestic violence and animal abuse gaps, such as those governing weapons. (Photo by Amanda Watford/Stateline)Advocates pitched proposals to New Mexico lawmakers this week to close what they describe as gaps in state law regarding domestic violence and animal abuse. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE New Mexico’s Family Violence Protection Act allows victims of domestic violence to secure an order of protection — which prohibits a person from hurting, threatening or harassing another person — against their abuser. Under the current statute, a judge must make a finding of a “credible threat” in order to have the abuser relinquish firearms to authorities within 48 hours of the order being issued. This creates issues with sometimes deadly consequences, Miranda Viscoli, co-president of New Mexicans to Prevent Gun Violence, told lawmakers on the interim Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee during their Wednesday meeting.  “The last thing you want is somebody who is a domestic violence abuser to have 48 hours to get rid of their firearm,” Viscoli said. “You want that immediately taken.” Viscoli highlighted the 2023 murder of Aeriel Gallegos after she received a 20-year order of protection against her abuser, Manuel Weahkee. But just two months later, Weahkee shot and killed Gallegos in Farmington before taking his own life. Even though Gallegos received the order of protection, Viscoli said, the box for the judge to indicate that Weahkee was a credible threat — and therefore must give up his firearms — was unchecked.  State Rep. Joy Garratt (D-Albuquerque) sat beside Viscoli to repropose House Bill 67, which died in the Legislature last session, and would force the domestic abuser identified in a protection order to surrender their firearms immediately, not within 48 hours, and eliminate the requirement that a judge deem a “credible threat” before authorities could seize firearms.  The bill “is closing a gap in domestic violence protection orders,” Garratt said.  Committee Chair Rep. Christine Chandler (D-Los Alamos) expressed support for the proposal, adding that “the intent is to mirror” some of the changes found in House Bill 12, passed in the 2025 legislative session, which eliminated the 48-hour period a person flagged by the state’s “red flag” law had to turn over firearms. The “red flag” law allows law enforcement or a district attorney to file a petition to seize a firearm from a person deemed a threat. As for Garratt’s effort to amend the state’s law on a victim of abuse’s petition, Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez (D-Albuquerque) expressed concern that eliminating the credible threat requirement might create “Second Amendment scrutiny.” Garratt pointed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling in United States v. Rahimi, in which the court ruled that federal law can temporarily ban people under domestic violence restraining orders from having guns.  Lawmakers also heard from animal advocates who said the Family Violence Protection Act does not include animals in its definition of abuse or provide any provision allowing animals in protection orders.  “Acts of violence or threats to harm an animal are forms of psychological abuse that abusers will use to control survivors,” Grace Montaño Irwin, government affairs director of Animal Protection Voters, told lawmakers. Between 18% and 48% of domestic violence victims either delayed leaving an abusive situation or returned to their abuser “out of fear” for their pets’ welfare, according to an American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals study.  As a solution, Montaño Irwin recommended that lawmakers add “harm or threats to harm an animal” to the statutory definition of abuse and require courts to include animals in orders of protection. She noted that New Mexico is one of eight states nationwide lacking these legislative protections. “For many individuals experiencing abuse, animals are more than companions,” Montaño Irwin said. “They offer comfort, support and security.” Sedillo Lopez said she plans to introduce a bill incorporating the animal advocates recommendations in next year’s legislative session that starts in January, saying, “This bill, I think, is going to be the most popular and probably draw bipartisan support. Data and experience show that if somebody is abusing animals, they’re likely abusing humans as well.”

[Category: Criminal Justice, Gov & Politics, animal abuse, domestic violence, Family Violence Protection Act, House Bill 12, House Bill 67, Rep. Christine Chandler, Rep. Joy Garratt]

— Election officials brace for federal interference but expect to persevere

 

at 10/30/26 8:53am

Voters mark their ballots during the first day of early voting in Bismarck, North Dakota, on Oct. 22, 2026. Experts and voting rights advocates are bracing for the potential of federal influence over the results of next week’s midterm elections. (Photo by Jack Dura/North Dakota Monitor)As concerns rise about the potential for federal influence over the results of next week’s midterm elections, many voting experts and advocates remain confident that the nation’s highly localized systems of administering and counting votes will persevere. Facing sinking approval ratings over high prices, the White House has amped up attacks on state-administered elections: In recent weeks, the federal government sued Alaska and California to intervene in their elections and demanded election officials in Washington state pull aside ballots of 400 alleged noncitizens — laying the groundwork for a high-stakes showdown at the U.S. Supreme Court.  For months, state officials have been planning for federally induced electoral chaos in the form of federal law enforcement or immigration agents at polls, election investigations or attempts to overturn unfavorable results.  But the nation’s vast network of state and local election offices is resilient by design, said Mai Ratakonda, program director of election protection at States United Democracy Center, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to fair elections. Election officials are prepared for close races, recounts and potential interference, she said. And she noted courts have largely blocked President Donald Trump’s efforts to intervene.  “Theres no one person or agency or office that controls our elections as a whole,” she said. “Instead, its thousands of nonpartisan election officials across the country that are administering these elections … Even if there are attempts by certain individuals to try to interfere with the election process, there are a lot of safeguards in place, and this isnt the first time that state and local officials will have to deal with those kinds of issues, unfortunately.” At stake is not only whether Republicans will maintain their grip on Congress, but also control of state governments across the country, which could provide a new check on Trump’s power. Trump, who still has refused to acknowledge his 2020 election defeat, has sought to cast doubt and seize control of elections for years. His administration has aimed to nationalize elections, purge voter rolls, restrict mail-in voting and raise alarms without evidence about an epidemic of noncitizen voting. Since the chaos and insurrection that followed the 2020 presidential election, experts and advocates have worked to boost confidence in state and local election administrators, who operate a patchwork of highly decentralized — and scrutinized — voting systems. In recent weeks, Republicans and Democrats have pledged to operate fair and free elections regardless of how national politicians react. “We all took an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution and laws of the state we live in, and we take that oath very seriously,” Mary Hall, the auditor of Thurston County, Washington, told reporters during a briefing with other election administrators Wednesday. “And I would not break that oath for anyone.” Hall, a Democrat, noted her Olympia-area district is home to a portion of one closely contested congressional district that could determine control of Congress. The Republican Party has invested deeply in that race as it looks to hold onto power in D.C. “I dont feel any pressure from them,” Hall said, “and if they want to try and insert pressure, I really dont think I would respond to it in any way because we have a job to do.” ‘We can handle the pressure’ New Hampshire Secretary of State David Scanlan, a Republican, said the federal government’s actions have proven to be more of a distraction than an outright obstacle. He’s not expecting any major problems and said he’s ready to resist any outside pressure as the state is home to tightly contested races for both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House.  “I am confident that the results that are going to come out of New Hampshire are going to be accurate,” he said. “And those are the results Im going to stand by.” Scanlan noted the Granite State is accustomed to heightened electoral attention because of its first-in-the-nation presidential primaries.  “So, we can handle scrutiny, we can handle the pressure,” he said, “And I think New Hampshire is going to do what it does best, and just have a good, solid election that the voters here can have confidence in.” Concerns are so serious that a group of U.S. national security officials has been discreetly advising state governments and congressional lawmakers how to prepare for potential interference from Trump, The Washington Post reported. That group includes about 10 current and former officials with experience in the Defense Department.  But voters shouldn’t be dissuaded by the federal government’s rhetoric, said former Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar. A Democrat who now consults on election security and administration issues, she said every state has laws designed to ensure safe and secure elections. Boockvar expects that the federal government will attempt to sway unfavorable election results. But she doesnt think those efforts will work.  “Election officials at every level are all about the rule of law,” she said. “They know the law in their jurisdictions. They know the processes in their jurisdictions, and they have to follow them.” She said election administrators come to work every day with a singular purpose: to ensure every eligible voter can cast their ballot. Even if certain officials wanted to change results, she said systems are designed with strict protections that don’t have “a lot of wiggle room.” And the courts would likely block any baseless efforts — as they did repeatedly during Trump’s 2020 election denial campaign.  “I think the institutions will hold,” she said.  In 2020, Georgia Republican Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger resisted pressure from Trump to alter the outcome of the presidential election there.  This week, Raffensperger pledged that Georgia’s election process would prove open and transparent. The U.S. Department of Justice plans to send election monitors to six Georgia counties, all of which are considered Democratic strongholds. But Raffensperger said poll watchers from both parties and the nonpartisan Carter Center will be monitoring elections alongside federal officials.  “It’s a transparent process, and we’re not concerned at all,” he told reporters on Monday. Deep preparation Like many local government workers, employees at Arizona’s Pinal County participated in tabletop exercises this year to see how they would react to all manner of Election Day chaos. Called “Ballotship,” the gamified exercise considered everything from power outages to disruptive protestors.  This year’s preparations included the potential for federal involvement, said Dana Lewis, the Republican county recorder.  “We know that there comes a certain amount of chaos, confusion, but thats probably why were all heavily caffeinated, and were good at it,” she said, “because weve gone through several of them, and we work through it.” Since 2020, Lewis said, election skepticism has increased in her central Arizona community. And the office has seen big turnover among election administrators and poll workers. But she’s worked to open up the voting process, showing how elections operate and underscoring the fundamental commitment to getting the results right — no matter the outcome or outside pressure. Quotation In no which way, shape or form will that kind of tomfoolery happen here. – Dana Lewis, Republican county recorder of Arizona's Pinal County “Its an interesting time that were in, but no matter what, there is something to be said about putting your hands on a Bible and taking an oath to uphold the Constitution that I very much take seriously,” she said. “And my job in this role is to follow the law, and I will continue to do that and I will do it transparently. My staff also understands that, and in no which way, shape or form will that kind of tomfoolery happen here.” The deep preparation for all manner of election complications in jurisdictions such as Pinal County have helped build more resilient systems that are able to respond quickly to a slew of Election Day hiccups, said Alex Gulotta, Arizona state director for All Voting is Local, a nonpartisan organization working to protect voting access at the local level. But like other states, Arizona is home to politicians and election officials who still refuse to accept the results of the 2020 presidential election. Among the most prominent is Justin Heap, the Republican recorder of Maricopa County, the state’s most populous county and home to Phoenix. All Voting is Local put Heap on its list of the nation’s “Top 10 Most Dangerous Election Deniers” because of his insistence that “inconsistencies and illegalities” occurred in previous Arizona elections. Heap’s office did not respond to a Stateline request for comment.  But Gulotta said even a powerful and controversial figure such as Heap does not have the ability to alter election outcomes because of Arizona’s bifurcated system. Arizona law divides election duties between county boards and recorders. “Not everyone understands all the mechanics of how this system works and the level of checks and balances that are built into it,” he said.  He does worry that close congressional races could lead the federal government to pressure certain counties not to certify election results. “To me thats the biggest risk,” he said, “and the biggest antidote to that is overwhelming turnout that reduces the likelihood that we have races that are that close.” Stateline reporter Kevin Hardy can be reached at khardy@stateline.org.  This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Source New Mexico, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

[Category: Election 2026]

— Early voting sets midterms record, breaking 2022 mark

 

at 10/30/26 8:52am

Voters line up to vote early Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026, at the MAC Center in Edmond, Oklahoma. (Photo by Barbara Hoberock/Oklahoma Voice)WASHINGTON — As of early Friday, more than 46 million Americans had cast ballots ahead of Election Day, eclipsing the early voting turnout of the 2022 midterms, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab. In the 2022 midterm elections, 45.9 million Americans voted early, according to the UF Election Lab.  It’s still unclear if this year’s midterm elections will break the overall record voter turnout of 2018. The 53% turnout that year was the highest rate in a midterm since 1914. UF political science Professor Michael McDonald, who leads the election lab, said in an interview this week that based on the incoming early voting data, overall turnout is shaping up to match 2018 participation.  Of the early voting participants up to Friday, 43.9% are registered Democrats, 31.3% are registered Republicans and 24.8% have no party affiliation, according to the UF Election Lab. Republicans are vying to maintain their majority in both chambers amid anemic presidential approval ratings that stem from an unpopular war in Iran and an aggressive immigration crackdown.  Democrats are favored to win back the majority in the House, which presidents often lose in midterm elections, and potentially the Senate, according to elections forecasters.  The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter shifted 12 House races in the direction of Democrats on Oct. 30. The elections forecaster lists 18 House races as toss-ups. In the Senate, the Cook Political Report identified seven toss-up races, in Alaska, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Michigan, Ohio and Texas.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Trump will hold in-person rallies in Iowa and Kansas after all as election nears

 

at 10/30/26 8:52am

U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kansas, speaks alongside President Donald Trump during an Oct. 19, 2026, rally at Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, Kansas. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s rallies in Kansas and Iowa this weekend are back on after initial cancellations, States Newsroom confirmed Friday. The Midwest rallies mark the final sprint to Election Day on Nov. 3 — now just four days away — where the GOP is itching to maintain its narrow majority in the U.S. House and control of the Senate.  Trump will return to Kansas and Iowa on Sunday for back-to-back rallies, in addition to holding nearly 20 telerallies in the final days leading up to the midterms, according to an individual speaking on background and familiar with the president’s plans.  The Kansas rally will still be held in Salina, as was previously scheduled, the Kansas Republican Party confirmed to States Newsroom on Friday.  The Iowa rally will take place in Dubuque, as was also scheduled earlier, per a social media post from the Republican Party of Iowa. The individual noted that the rallies had been rearranged for scheduling purposes in order to accommodate the many additional telerallies that had been added to Trump’s schedule recently.  Kansas and Iowa are home to two crucial Senate races that the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter has declared toss-up contests.  In the Sunflower State, incumbent GOP Sen. Roger Marshall is in a competitive race against Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton.  In Iowa, Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson is vying with Democratic state legislator Josh Turek to fill an open U.S. Senate seat.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— ‘Medically frail’ Medicaid enrollees won’t have to prove their inability to work to keep coverage

 

at 10/30/26 8:52am

Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, speaks at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington, D.C., in December. A federal judge on Thursday struck down the Trump administration’s new guidance on who can qualify for a “medically frail” exception to new Medicaid work requirements. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)Medicaid recipients who are disabled or have a chronic illness will not have to prove they are unable to work to be exempted from new work requirements that take effect next year, a federal judge ruled Thursday. The decision by U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns in Boston grants a partial victory to the 25 Democratic-led states that sued the Trump administration in June, arguing that its new “medically frail” designation was too narrow and would make it too difficult for ill and disabled people to remain on Medicaid, the joint federal-state health insurance program for people with low incomes. However, the decision also granted some concessions to the administration, most notably by allowing the new work requirements included in the measure known as the One Big Beautiful Big Act to remain in place. Under that broad 2025 tax and spending law, states that have expanded Medicaid to cover more adults under the Affordable Care Act must require enrollees to work, go to school or volunteer for at least 80 hours a month. In addition to the 40 states (plus the District of Columbia) that have expanded Medicaid under the ACA, the new rules will apply to Georgia, Tennessee and Wisconsin, which have used federal waivers to expand their Medicaid programs. In June, the Trump administration released interim guidelines stating that in order to qualify for a “medically frail” exception to the work rules, a Medicaid recipient had to have a significant condition and be significantly impaired in their ability to work. In a statement unveiling the new guidance, Dr. Mehmet Oz, director of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said it would help Medicaid enrollees “build skills and independence through work, education, job training, or community service, creating new opportunities for themselves and their families.” Stateline reached out to CMS, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and the White House for comment on Thursday’s ruling but did not receive a response in time for publication. Before the new guidance, states had been operating under the assumption that they would use the federal government’s traditional “medically frail” designation, which includes five distinct categories of disabilities and illnesses but does not require Medicaid agencies to determine whether the person can work. Now states will not have to scramble to update their enrollment systems to account for the change. Many state leaders worried that the new guidelines would remove eligible people from the rolls and they didn’t have enough time or money to overhaul their eligibility systems to protect them. “The States have met their burden of showing irreparable harm for which monetary damages would provide inadequate compensation,” Stearns wrote in his 16-page ruling. “Because enforcement of an unlawful definition of “medically frail” may lead to the disenrollment of otherwise eligible vulnerable individuals relying on Medicaid coverage for continuity of care, the States (and public) face potential for great hardship in the absence of an injunction.” But Stearns declined to strike down two new federal standards the states opposed. The first requires states to reject proof of medical frailty that is more than a year old. Stearns also upheld a rule that states accept no more than one self-attestation — or a patients’ own formal declaration of meeting an exemption — per enrollment period. “The court finds the States’ objections to the twelve-month lookback period and the limitation on the use of self-attestations unconvincing,” Stearns wrote. “The Government provided a non-frivolous rationale for adopting each provision.” Dr. Willie Underwood, president of the American Medical Association, said in a statement that the ruling “is a victory for patients.” “Patients should not have to clear unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles to keep their health coverage, especially hurdles that go beyond what Congress intended. The AMA will continue fighting to protect access to medically necessary care and ensure bureaucratic red tape doesn’t stand in patients’ way.” Stateline reporter Shalina Chatlani can be reached at schatlani@stateline.org.   This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Source New Mexico, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

[Category: Health]

— In a blizzard of lawsuits, Trump’s DOJ battles across the US over midterm elections

 

at 10/29/26 4:28pm

The “ballot drop” box at the Polk County Election Office in Des Moines, Iowa, on the first day of early voting, Oct. 14, 2026. (Photo by Robin Opsahl/Iowa Capital Dispatch)The Trump administration’s sweeping efforts to combat noncitizen voting and assert authority over elections came under intense scrutiny in courtrooms across the country on Thursday, as Democrats and voting rights groups alleged federal election interference. A federal judge in Washington, D.C., ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to either reveal by midday Friday all states where it has demanded election officials pull aside or not count ballots — or else promise it won’t direct election officials to refuse ballots from some voters. On the West Coast, an appeals court appeared skeptical of a Trump administration request to allow the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to resume election-related field operations that could sweep up U.S. citizens. In California, the Justice Department vowed to keep fighting to require election officials there to set aside the ballots of some 20,000 voters the Trump administration alleges are suspected noncitizens and not count their votes unless they can prove their citizenship. On Thursday, Los Angeles County disclosed it had received federal grand jury subpoenas last week for election-related records.   And in Alaska, the DOJ kept up pressure on election officials over its U.S. Senate race. The bevy of lawsuits and hearings underscore the high stakes of the midterm elections to determine control of Congress. Amid sagging approval ratings, President Donald Trump faces investigations and a thwarted legislative agenda during his final two years in office if Democrats retake the House or Senate. Final days before midterm elections For the past year, Trump has sought power over elections. The Justice Department unsuccessfully sued dozens of states in an attempt to force them to turn over sensitive voter data, including driver’s license and Social Security numbers. The president also tried to use the U.S. Postal Service to impose restrictions on mail ballots, but was blocked by the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, in the final days before Election Day, the Trump administration and its allies have launched a new effort to influence elections that pits it against state and local officials who say the federal government is overstepping its authority. A growing number of federal judges agree, and have handed Trump a series of court losses over the past two weeks. At the heart of several of these cases is what power, if any, the Trump administration has over federal elections. The elections clause of the U.S. Constitution gives states the authority to run their own elections, though Congress can override state rules and regulations. “The DOJ’s actions are indicative of a broad, ongoing pattern of attempted election interference by federal officials,” U.S. District Judge David Carter, an appointee of President Bill Clinton in the Central District of California, wrote in an order released late Wednesday that blasted the Trump administration’s efforts in California. But the legal challenges continue to multiply. The Republican National Committee on Thursday sued an election official in Black Hawk County, Iowa — home to Cedar Falls and Waterloo — alleging public records had been withheld related to the security of ballot tabulators. A day earlier, the Potter County, Texas, Republican Party sued to force a hand count of ballots in the state. “We gotta be careful with the cheating vote counters,” Trump said during a rally in Michigan on Sunday, adding that “bad things happen with the vote counters, so we gotta be careful.” In DC: Judge wants DOJ to identify targeted states During a Thursday hearing, U.S. District Judge James Boasberg directed the Justice Department to provide more information on its efforts to require states to set aside the ballots of suspected noncitizen voters. California and Washington state have so far publicly disclosed that they have received letters demanding that they segregate ballots. The Justice Department provided California officials a list of 20,000 voters and about 400 voters in Washington.  While the DOJ has sued California in an effort to force officials to comply, as of Thursday afternoon Washington hadn’t been sued. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who’s in line to become speaker if his party retakes the House, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with other Democratic groups and a California voter, alleged in a lawsuit this month that the Trump administration has engaged in a pattern of intimidation intended to frighten officials into complying with unlawful demands to thwart voting. The Democrats asked for a temporary restraining order, citing the Trump administration’s expanding campaign to pressure state and local election officials.  Boasberg, an appointee of President Barack Obama in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, ordered the Justice Department by noon Eastern on Friday to identify all states where the Trump administration has demanded ballots be set aside since July 1. But the judge also offered the Trump administration a way out. “Defendants may moot this process at any time by filing a notice indicating that they will not engage in the conduct sought to be enjoined in connection with the upcoming election,” Boasberg wrote in a brief order. At the 9th Circuit: Homeland Security limits weighed At the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, a three-judge panel appeared unpersuaded by Trump administration arguments that Homeland Security needs limits lifted on election-related field operations less than a week before Election Day. “What do you need in the next four days? What are you prevented from doing in the next four days?” Appellate Judge Sidney Thomas, a Clinton appointee, asked a DOJ lawyer during oral arguments on Thursday. Earlier this month, a federal judge in California prohibited DHS from conducting operations that could sweep up U.S. citizens. The prohibition applies in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin until polls close on Election Day. A Homeland Security Investigations internal memo dated Aug. 31 describes a “surge initiative” beginning Sept. 1 that includes conducting field interviews. The memo, which was filed in court, identifies those states as targets of the surge during September. Additional locations are redacted in the document. Justice Department lawyer Gabriel Schonfeld said he couldn’t speak to the specifics of any particular investigation. He called the injunction entered by the lower court judge vague, making it difficult for federal officials to know exactly what is and isn’t allowed. “The government is being chilled,” Schonfeld said. The original lawsuit was filed by San Francisco, Santa Clara, the California Nurses Association, National Nurses United and the Voto Latino Foundation. They alleged voters, especially naturalized citizens, are at risk of intimidation and fear they could be wrongly targeted. “Those folks have a civic duty they want to perform and they shouldn’t have to do it under this cloud of fear,” Hayden Johnson, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, told the appeals court. California and Alaska: What’s next? The Justice Department immediately filed a notice that it would appeal a ruling by Carter denying its request that California election officials be forced to segregate the ballots of 20,000 voters. The 9th Circuit already denied a previous, preemptive appeal brought by the Justice Department — a signal the appeals court would likely once again rule against the Trump administration. But the case is set to continue past Election Day. While Carter has denied the Justice Department’s request for a temporary restraining order, the underlying lawsuit remains. On Thursday, Carter appointed a special master to aid him and scheduled a hearing for Nov. 13 where witnesses may be called to testify about the list of suspected noncitizens. In California, county election officials must certify results by Dec. 3. The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s office on Thursday disclosed federal grand jury subpoenas it received for a range of election and voting-related documents and information. The disclosure came after Carter warned Justice Department officials to drop threats of prosecution against election officials. The subpoenas don’t make clear the target of the grand jury investigation. In Alaska, the DOJ sued Alaska election officials last week in a preemptive attempt to stop the state from certifying the results of its Senate election if, under the state’s ranked-choice voting method, the Republican incumbent loses by a smaller margin than the votes earned by another candidate of the same name.  Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan and his supporters have cast Dan J. Sullivan, another candidate, as a spoiler in a competitive race against Democrat Mary Peltola. State officials initially kept Dan J. Sullivan off the August primary ballot but the Alaska Supreme Court overturned the decision. The case drew fresh attention after The New York Times reported that the Peltola campaign helped recruit Dan J. Sullivan. Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, has ordered an investigation, while Trump has called for Peltola and Dan J. Sullivan to be kicked out of the race. The Justice Department on Thursday amended its lawsuit to highlight the Times reporting. The Trump administration “brings this lawsuit to protect the integrity of the 2026 Senate election in Alaska,” the complaint says.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— New Mexico US Rep. Leger Fernández’s bill would require mining companies to pay royalties

 

at 10/29/26 3:49pm

U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) announced Oct. 29, 2026, legislation that would impose royalties on companies seeking to extract hardrock minerals like uranium, which is what a Canadian company is seeking to do in Canjilon, N.M., pictured above. (Photo by Patrick Lohmann/Source NM)U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D-N.M.) on Thursday announced legislation that would require companies extracting hardrock minerals like gold, silver and uranium to pay up to 10% in royalties, as well as crack down on foreign adversaries’ extraction of valuable minerals from the United States. In announcing the Minerals Royalty and Investment Act, Leger Fernández released a video featuring her standing on Carson National Forest land near Canjilon, where a Canadian company recently sought exploratory permits to mine uranium. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE The proposal by Gamma Resources, Ltd., — which remains pending before state and federal regulators — has drawn widespread outrage from communities around the site since Source NM first reported on it in March. Leger Fernandez and other members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation have a separate bill pending that would ban uranium mining in the Chama Watershed outright.  “It could pollute the water. It could destroy the land,” she said of the proposal in the video released Thursday. “And foreign mining corporations arent required to pay a single dime in royalties. I have a bill to change that.” Leger Fernández noted that the General Mining Act of 1872 has allowed firms to mine hardrock minerals on public lands for more than a century without paying royalties, unlike companies that extract oil, natural gas and coal.  The bill would impose fees of between 5% and 10% on gross income that companies receive from mineral extraction and allocate those funds to states and tribes. Funds also could go toward remediating abandoned mines that continue polluting public lands across the West, as well as to a newly established financial assistance program aimed at building domestic critical mineral processing facilities. The bill text notes that no revenues from the newly imposed royalties can benefit coal or uranium processing facilities.  Separate from the royalties, the bill would prohibit “foreign entities of concern”  — which Leger Fernández named Thursday as adversaries like China and Russia — or their subsidiaries from hardrock mining activities in the United States.  Canadian uranium firm says lack of outreach in northern New Mexico a ‘mistake, vows future candor  “We should not let foreign mining corporations take our precious resources and not pay a dime. Lets invest it,” Leger Fernández said in the video. “Lets invest it in things that our public lands need.” The congresswoman noted that U.S. Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.), the ranking member of the House Natural Resources Committee, co-sponsored the bill, as did five other House Democrats. National environmentalist groups like the Wilderness Society and New Mexico Wild also endorsed it.  “New Mexicans and American taxpayers continue to be on the hook for legacy hardrock mining cleanup across the state, and new claims keep coming,” Mark Allison, executive director of New Mexico Wild, said in a statement. “Adding insult to injury, under existing law, mining companies — including foreign based ones — pay the public no royalty for what they take from the public estate. The American Minerals Royalty and Investment Act provides a long overdue remedy.”

[Category: Environment & Climate Change, abandoned mines, Canjilon, hardrock mining, U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández]

— New Mexico lawmakers revisit proposals to curb high levels of firearm crimes, trafficking

 

at 10/29/26 3:12pm

The U.S. Department of Justice said guns, pictured here, were seized in Albuquerque, New Mexico in the country's largest ever fentanyl bust in April, 2025. (Photo courtesy U.S. District Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico)New Mexico state lawmakers on Thursday revisited legislative proposals to curb the state’s high rates of shootings and gun trafficking. A bill in this year’s legislative session would have required firearm dealers to train their employees to recognize signs of gun trafficking, would have raised the minimum age of employment at gun stores to 21 and would require gun stores to keep detailed records of each sale. It died, though, after some lawmakers criticized a provision that would have banned the sale of certain types of firearms. Leaders from the advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety, which was involved in crafting this year’s failed bill, spoke before the interim Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee again on Thursday. While they stopped short of endorsing a specific bill for the upcoming lawmaking session, which begins in January, they stressed the need for the Legislature to address New Mexico’s persistently high levels of gun crimes. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE Retailers need to be trained to recognize the signs of trafficking, such as a customer who routinely buys guns in bulk and “straw purchases,” in which someone buys a gun and then later sells it to someone who is not legally allowed to purchase a firearm. Lawmakers pitched the previous bill after a report from Everytown for Gun Safety found that New Mexico has an outsized problem with gun trafficking. It ranked New Mexico fifth in the nation for the highest rate of firearm homicides. Police find the vast majority of guns used in crimes — 89% — in possession of someone other than the person who originally bought it at a store, Everytown for Gun Safety Senior Industry Advisor Marianna Mitchem said Thursday, adding that such statistics constitute clear signs of trafficking. Trafficking at that scale enables guns to quickly move across city, county and state lines, she said. When people engage in firearm trafficking activity, they dont say, Well, I bought this gun in Rio Rancho, so Im only going to sell to people in Rio Rancho,’” Mitchem, a former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives official, said. Mitchell credited the New Mexico Department of Justice with equipping police departments across the state with technology that can accurately trace guns and spent shell casings found at crime scenes. In August, New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez announced that the initiative identified more than 500 crimes since it launched last year, including one gun that was used in 17 different crimes. Nationally, gunfire is the leading cause of death for children and teenagers. New Mexico’s firearm mortality rate of 26.6 per 100,000 residents is among the highest in the nation, according to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Ryan Burt, the CEO of Calibers, an Albuquerque-based indoor shooting range, presented alongside Mitchell and pushed back that her report was meant to “scare people.” He said that he subjects his employees to rigorous background checks and trains them to spot the signs of straw purchases and trafficking. He said he believes raising the cost to secure a federal firearm dealer license — which is $200 and then $90 to renew every three years — would be a more effective way to weed out bad actors. “Make it $5,000. Youre going to get rid of half, if not more” of gun dealers, he said. Burt also sits on the National Shooting Sports Foundation’s Range and Retail Advisory Council. The foundation joined the Second Amendment Foundation earlier this month in suing New Mexico over its weeklong waiting period for gun sales. A federal judge in August found that the state couldn’t enforce the waiting period on two people who challenged the rule in 2024.  State lawmakers on Thursday were split on the broader issue along party lines. Rep. Stefani Lord (R-Sandia Park) said she believes business owners such as Burt are “very careful” in making sure they don’t sell to traffickers, because they could face stiff penalties if they don’t. Theres millions of us in New Mexico with firearms who are doing nothing wrong,” she said. Democrats, including Rep. Andrea Romero (D-Santa Fe) who co-sponsored the anti-gun trafficking bill in this year’s legislative session, said the state ought to more closely regulate “the most deadly weapons in our society.”

[Category: Criminal Justice, Gov & Politics, firearms sales, gun trafficking, Rep. Andrea Romero, Rep. Stefani Lord]

— Trump administration has slow-walked 380K potential immigrant voters

 

at 10/29/26 1:36pm

New U.S. citizens sing the national anthem during an August 2026 naturalization ceremony in Chicago. Naturalizations began dropping late last year as the USCIS started a new, longer process for applicants, including screening social media accounts for “anti-American activities.” (Photo by Maggie Dougherty/Capitol News Illinois)The Trump administration cut naturalization sharply over the past year, leading to accusations it’s holding back hundreds of thousands of people who might have voted in the midterms. It’s hard to say how those people might have voted had they become U.S. citizens. Naturalized citizens voted Democratic for president by a wide margin in 2020, but in a shift almost half voted for President Donald Trump in 2024, according to a Pew Research Center analysis last year. However, recent elections in immigrant areas in Florida and New Jersey show a return to traditional Democratic voting patterns as anger mounts over mass arrests and deportations of non-criminal immigrants. The most recent quarterly report from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services shows the agency approved about 55,000 requests for citizenship between April and June, compared with more than 230,000 for the same period last year.  Naturalizations began dropping late last year as USCIS started a new, longer process for applicants, including screening social media accounts for “anti-American activities,” and requirements for more English language and civics knowledge, USCIS spokesperson Zach Kahler told Stateline in a statement.  The potential impact: Almost 380,000 immigrants might have become citizens — and therefore voters — over the past year had the approval rate stayed the same. Almost all would have been potential midterm voters since only adults can complete the naturalization process recorded in statistics — children can get naturalized citizenship in other ways based on their parents’ status.  The processing delays come amid broader attacks by the Trump administration related to voting and citizenship, with officials attempting to block some ballots from being counted and threatening election officials with prosecution. This week, a coalition of civil rights groups accused the administration of targeting naturalized citizens, saying legitimate voters might be disenfranchised.  Had USCIS processed naturalization applications this past year at the rate it has in the past, significantly more new U.S. citizens could be voting on Election Day. The potential difference of 380,000 voters is calculated by the lag between about 871,000 new citizens approved between mid-2024 and mid-2025 — including during parts of the Biden and second Trump administrations — and the latest year, with about 481,000 approvals.  (function(){function e(){window.addEventListener(`message`,function(e){if(e.data[`datawrapper-height`]!==void 0){var t=document.querySelectorAll(`iframe`);for(var n in e.data[`datawrapper-height`])for(var r=0,i;i=t[r];r++)if(i.contentWindow===e.source){var a=e.data[`datawrapper-height`][n]+`px`;i.style.height=a}}})}e()})(); Kahler, the USCIS spokesperson, defended the slowdown. “Naturalization is a privilege, not a right,” Kahler wrote in the statement to Stateline. “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is reinforcing robust screening and vetting and has implemented reforms to ensure U.S. citizenship is reserved for those who qualify.”   Changes he mentioned include reestablishment of a civics test, reinforcing English language proficiency requirements, screening applicants’ social media and “ensuring applicants demonstrate good moral character and attachment to the Constitution,” he wrote, adding that “USCIS will not take shortcuts in the naturalization process.”  An immigrant advocacy group, the National Partnership for New Americans, said the result is fewer immigrants gaining voting privileges and other rights with citizenship.   “The administration is deliberately extending wait times across the naturalization process — including significant delays between interview approval and the Oath of Allegiance — in an apparent effort to deny otherwise eligible people their civil and voting rights,” the organization wrote in October.  Nicole Melaku, the partnership’s executive director, told Stateline that “we see a very clear attempt to curb legal pathways, including who gets to the finish line on naturalization. The stark decline (in new approvals) shows that reality.” About 10% of eligible voters, 25 million, are naturalized immigrants as of 2024, according to an Oct. 27 Pew Research Center report, up steadily since 2000, when it was 6.2%.  The share of voters is especially prevalent in California (22%), New Jersey (20%), New York (19%), Florida (17%) and Hawaii (16%), according to the Pew report. In the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates released Oct. 29, there were large shifts in the way respondents reported naturalized status between mid-2024 and mid-2025 in the opening months of the new Trump administration.  About 1.2 million fewer immigrants said they were noncitizens and about 1.3 million more said they were naturalized citizens. The change was especially lopsided in Texas, where 155,000 fewer people said they were noncitizens but an additional 244,000 said they were naturalized citizens.  Judge denies attempt by Trump’s DOJ to exclude 20,000 California ballots from vote count The monthly survey reached about 1.7 million households last year, fewer than the usual 2 million partly because of government shutdown issues, with a questionnaire requesting names of people in the home. It’s hard to read how many people are really new citizens, and how many may have feared telling government surveyors that they are not citizens.  The change in reported naturalized citizens, 1.3 million, outstrips the 870,000 new naturalizations reported by USCIS between mid-2024 and mid-2025, according to Stateline calculations.  Lloyd Potter, Texas state demographer, said it’s likely some people were afraid to report their true status this year.  “We had a change in administration and kind of an uptick in terms of detention and deportation of unauthorized immigrants,” Potter told Stateline. “I think probably that created a situation where people who were noncitizens might say, on a survey, ‘Yeah, Im a citizen.’”  About 11% of Texas voters were naturalized citizens in 2024, according to the Pew Research Center report.  Christopher Dick, a consultant for the University of Florida’s state-funded Bureau of Economic and Business Research, said it’s also possible more noncitizens didn’t respond at all to the survey, which would make it seem like a larger proportion of immigrants were citizens, distorting the survey.   As far as the cutbacks in new citizen numbers before the midterms, Steven Camerota, director of research for the Center for Immigration Studies – a think tank that favors less immigration – said it’s part of a pattern of extreme presidential power seen in recent decades. He maintains that Democratic presidents have also used their powers to influence immigration policy and that a divided Congress has not used its powers to halt the pattern. “We’re in a period here of executive dominance,” Camerota said. “When you have a situation where Congress is willing to surrender all its powers, this is the result.” Stateline reporter Tim Henderson can be reached at thenderson@stateline.org. This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Source New Mexico, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

[Category: Election 2026, Immigration]

— Chrissy Teigen joins Idaho women who needed abortions in final push for ballot initiative

 

at 10/29/26 1:36pm

Chrissy Teigen, a former model and business owner, sits next to Melanie Folwell, lead organizer of the ballot initiative campaign, at Neckar Coffee in Boise, Idaho, as part of a final push to pass the ballot measure on Election Day. (Photo by Chelsea Harada/Idahoans United for Women and Families)It took two years for Chrissy Teigen to realize she’d had an abortion and not a miscarriage, longer to understand what went wrong in her pregnancy, and not until this week to realize she hadn’t fully grappled with it emotionally. Teigen, a former model and business owner, came to Idaho on Wednesday to make a final push leading up to Nov. 3 in favor of Proposition 1, the ballot measure that would restore access to abortion in Idaho. The state has a near-total ban that applies to any stage of pregnancy, with exceptions only for rape and incest in the first trimester and to save a pregnant patient’s life. The initiative, if passed, would also protect access to birth control and fertility assistance treatments such as in vitro fertilization. Opponents to the measure have called the initiative too extreme because it would allow abortions up to fetal viability, which was the law in Idaho prior to the ban, with exceptions after that point when the pregnancy threatens a patient’s health or life.  Prior to a rally in downtown Boise with Prop 1 volunteers and supporters, Teigen — who lived in Idaho Falls in the early 1990s — met privately at a coffee shop with 12 Idaho women who have been telling their stories for the campaign about needing abortion care in Idaho. The women sat in a circle and told brief versions of their stories: miscarriages that led to septic infections because of hesitant medical providers, travel out of state for fatal anomalies and catastrophic health complications, and memorials to the babies they lost.  Nonprofit organization Idahoans United for Women and Families, which has led the campaign for the initiative, coordinated the event, and owners of Neckar Coffee donated the space and coffee.  Kate Campbell spoke of her son, Remy, and the infected placenta that caused her water to break at 20 weeks and begin labor. A fetus generally can’t survive outside of the womb before 22 weeks, and every day that goes by without an abortion procedure increases the risk of a potentially life-threatening infection, which can cause organ damage and lead to fertility loss.  Since Idahos law only allows for intervention to save a patient’s life, doctors decided not to wait until she was close to death and airlifted Campbell to Utah for care. Utah allows abortion until 18 weeks, and after that, the law includes an exception to preserve a patient’s health, not just to prevent death. “The only ‘cure,’ if you will, for an infected placenta is giving birth,” Campbell said through tears. She now has a 14-month-old daughter. Rebecca Crozier and other Idaho women sit side-by-side across from Chrissy Teigen to tell their stories of needing abortion care and being unable to access it in their home state because of the near-total ban. (Photo by Chelsea Harada/Idahoans United for Women and Families) Desi Ballis had a similar story about a virus she contracted early in pregnancy that caused a fatal anomaly that also put her health in danger. A doctor at her 20-week ultrasound told her she needed to get to Utah as quickly as possible, and she and her husband, Morgan, made the five-hour drive and called multiple hospitals and clinics before they found someone who could help.   “It was just horrific,” Ballis said. Others included Rebecca Crozier, who received a fatal fetal diagnosis of anencephaly at 11 weeks and told Stateline her story this week, and Abby Nichols, who traveled to Seattle for an abortion after she received a fetal diagnosis of Trisomy 18, a chromosomal abnormality that is often fatal or life-limiting.  With each story, Teigen grew more emotional, until it was her turn to talk about the baby she lost at 20 weeks in 2020 after a placental abruption, which occurs when the placenta detaches from the uterine wall, causing heavy bleeding and cutting off the oxygen and nutrient supply to the fetus. Quotation I had it so easy compared to you guys, I didn’t even have to think about that extra added layer of having to go somewhere or feeling shame for it. – Chrissy Teigen “I think I’m so emotional because hearing all of your stories makes you face what actually happened, right?” Teigen said. “And I had it so easy compared to you guys, I didn’t even have to think about that extra added layer of having to go somewhere or feeling shame for it.” Teigen received multiple blood transfusions and was trying to make it to 22 weeks, but said her doctor eventually told her she was losing too much blood and they needed to induce delivery. Her doctor didn’t call it an abortion, and when Teigen posted about what happened on Instagram, she wrote only that health providers couldn’t stop the bleeding, and that she and her husband, singer John Legend, were “in the kind of deep pain you only hear about.” She included photos from her hospital bed with Legend, holding the baby they’d been calling Jack. She described some of the backlash she received for posting the photos, accusing her of seeking attention. But two years later, that backlash intensified. “When I said, ‘Hey guys, I didn’t miscarry, I had an abortion,’ and then it was almost like, ‘Oh, we felt bad for you before, now we don’t feel bad for you,’” Teigen said. At 20 weeks’ gestation, an induced labor is a type of abortion.  Campbell told Teigen that she was grateful for how open she’d been with her story, because when she was asked whether she wanted pictures of Remy and casts of handprints and footprints, she remembered Teigen’s story and how she had unapologetically posted the photos. Teigen told Stateline that in the years since the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in 2022 that allowed states to ban abortion, she has been an advocate for abortion rights, including traveling to Arizona when the state passed its abortion ballot initiative in 2024. But there was something different and deeply affecting about sitting with the Idaho women, she said, and no longer being able to block out the emotions around her experience. Whether Proposition 1 passes or fails, she said, the stories about abortion will continue to matter outside of politics. “Going through something like this is so isolating,” she said. “It’s so important to talk about this, and to release it, and to not hold it in like I’ve been doing.” Stateline reporter Kelcie Moseley-Morris can be reached at kmoseley@stateline.org. This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Source New Mexico, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

[Category: Abortion Policy, Election 2026, Health]

— Trump cancels weekend Kansas and Iowa rallies 5 days ahead of election

 

at 10/29/26 1:36pm

President Donald Trump speaks during an Oct. 19, 2026, rally at the Heartland Credit Union Arena in Park City, Kansas. (Photo by Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector)WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s rally in Salina, Kansas, on Saturday is canceled, the Kansas Republican Party confirmed to States Newsroom. An appearance scheduled for Sunday in Dubuque, Iowa, was also canceled, the Republican National Committee said in a late Thursday press release.  In-person rallies packed with ardent supporters have been a trademark of Trump’s political career, but the RNC said he would shift his schedule to telerallies in the closing days of the midterm campaign season. Polls in Iowa and Kansas looked positive for the president’s party, the RNC said, adding  that the telerallies would reach voters in nearly 20 states. “Voters across the country want to hear from President Trump before Election Day, and this 72-hour sprint will be a huge boost in the closing days,” RNC Chairman Joe Gruters said. The cancellations came just five days ahead of Election Day on Nov. 3, when Trump’s GOP is vying to maintain its razor-thin majority in the U.S. House and control of the Senate.  Meanwhile, election forecasters say Democrats remain heavily favored to win the majority in the House, and Senate races have also moved in the direction of Democrats. Trump is up against dismal approval ratings amid the war in Iran and its effect on gas and diesel prices.  Trump “will continue connecting directly with Americans nationwide through more than 20 telerallies before Election Day,” according to a White House official, speaking on background.  The official added that “these events give him the opportunity to highlight his accomplishments and expand his reach across the country.”  Trump was scheduled to rally this weekend in the Sunflower State for incumbent GOP Sen. Roger Marshall, who’s in a competitive race against Democratic candidate Adam Hamilton that the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter has dubbed a toss-up.  In Iowa, Republican U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson is vying with Democratic state legislator Josh Turek to fill an open U.S. Senate seat. The elections forecaster has also declared toss-up Senate races in Alaska, Maine, Michigan, Ohio and Texas. Trump traveled to Kansas earlier this month, making a stop in the Wichita suburb of Park City to rally for Marshall.  The race between Marshall and Hamilton is now the most expensive election in the state’s history, Kansas Reflector reported Thursday.  Trump — whose midterm travel blitz began in early October — rallied Thursday in Rock Hill, South Carolina, for GOP Sen. Darline Graham, who was appointed in July to serve out the remainder of her late brother Lindsey Graham’s term. Graham faces Democratic candidate Dr. Annie Andrews in a Senate race the Cook Political Report has identified as “lean Republican.”   Jacob Fischler contributed to this report. 5:32 pmUpdated to include cancellation of Iowa rally.

[Category: DC Bureau, Gov & Politics]

— Bernalillo County expecting 10 USDOJ monitors on Election Day

 

at 10/29/26 12:58pm

Bernalillo County Clerk Michelle Kavanaugh, pictured above outside a polling place May 5, 2026, told Source NM on Oct. 29, 2026, that the county is expecting roughly 10 federal monitors on Election Day. (Photo by Danielle Prokop/Source NM)The United States Department of Justice will send approximately 10 monitors to polling sites in New Mexico’s most populous county on Election Day, county officials told Source NM on Thursday, amid the federal government’s recently announced expansion of its nationwide election monitoring effort.  The USDOJ announced this week that it intends to send 1,000 election monitors to polling locations in all 50 states on Nov. 3, marking an expansion of its previous election monitoring efforts. But federal officials declined to say which polling locations they’ll target for the expanded effort. GET THE MORNING HEADLINES. SUBSCRIBE Bernalillo County officials told Source NM on Thursday that the USDOJ informed the county approximately three weeks ago it would be sending monitors, but did not specify why they had selected the county. In an emailed statement, Bernalillo County Clerk Michelle Kavanaugh noted that the USDOJ has previously deployed monitors to the county and said local officials are “prepared for their arrival” this year. “This is not unusual for us, and weve accommodated DOJ monitors in previous elections without incident,” she said.  Trumps DOJ sends 1,000 election monitors to 50 states; locations not yet disclosed The USDOJ’s expanded monitoring effort has sparked fears of federal meddling in elections across the country during a mid-term election that will determine the balance of power in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate.  Other New Mexico locations where  federal monitors may show up remains  unclear. Lindsey Bachman, the secretary of state’s communications, legislative and executive affairs director, told Source NM on Thursday that her office has been made aware only of their presence in Bernalillo County, but the USDOJ has reportedly reached out directly to county clerks in other states.  Doña Ana County Clerk Amanda López Askin told Source NM on Thursday in a text message that she has not heard from the USDOJ about monitors in the state’s second-most-populous county. The county will also likely process the largest percentage of the votes cast in the closely watched 2nd Congressional District race between incumbent U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) and Republican challenger Greg Cunningham.  During the last mid-term election in 2022, former President Joe Biden’s USDOJ sent 289 monitors to 24 states, including Bernalillo County and San Juan County in New Mexico. San Juan County officials did not immediately respond to Source NM’s request for comment Thursday about whether they expect the federal government’s presence at their polling sites again, as much of the county recovers from recent flooding.  Fears of federal interference in the state’s elections prompted state lawmakers this session to pass Senate Bill 264, which aims to prevent intimidation by federal immigration and others in local elections. The Secretary of State and Attorney General’s Office earlier this month issued a voter advisory that underscored voters’ rights to cast ballots with interference. The prospect of federal interference has also prompted third party groups and political parties to step up their presence at polling sites across the country. In New Mexico, the Secretary of State’s Office has credentialed 571 watchers from six different organizations to monitor elections this year. Bachman could not immediately say how that number compares to previous years. But Carmen Lopez, co-lead for Observe New Mexico Elections, which employs the majority of the state’s election watchers, told Source NM that the group has nearly twice as many volunteer observers this cycle than the 2024 general election. Approximately 325 observers affiliated with her group are approved this year, compared with about 170 in 2024, she said. “We had more interest in our observation program this year, partly because more people know about it, and also because people want to participate,” she said. “There are all of these other observation efforts, both inside the polls and outside the polls, that have garnered a lot of interest.” New Mexico poll workers in rural county required IDs to vote during June primary, observers say The other groups that the Secretary of State’s Office has approved for election observation, Bachman said, are Disability Rights New Mexico, League of Women Voters of New Mexico and Southern New Mexico, Taos United Indivisible and Land of Action.  Land of Action is a recently formed, nonpartisan civic association and hub for progressive groups throughout the state. Executive director Heidi Li Feldman told Source NM on Thursday that her group of approximately 80 watchers will fan out primarily to rural counties like San Juan, Grant, Luna, Hidalgo, Otero and Rio Arriba counties.  Feldman said the volunteers are on alert for federal monitors on Election Day, especially since the USDOJ has not said where they will be.  “Since no one really knows, weve trained our watchers to be alert to people who are agents, DOJ monitors,” she said, “and to be extra sensitive to whether they are following New Mexico state law about what law enforcement, federal or otherwise, may and may not do at the polls.”

[Category: Election 2026, Bernalillo County, federal election monitors, New Mexico Secretary of State, Observe New Mexico Elections, United States Department of Justice]

— No Kings shifts strategy from streets to ballot boxes with early voting day of action

 

at 10/17/26 5:51pm

Emmett Doyle, a folk musician and and one of 15 defendants facing federal felony conspiracy charges stemming from protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s crackdown in Minnesota, performs at the Twin Cities No Kings rally, Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer)Organizers launched more than 2,500 No Kings events across all 50 states and the District of Columbia Saturday, this time focusing their efforts on the midterm elections. From roadside rallies to letter-writing campaigns and protest songs, this round of demonstrations aimed to get people to the polls early.   In the bustling and diverse neighborhood of Jackson Heights, Queens, where Bangladeshi street vendors whip up fuska – crispy, potato-filled shells – and Mexican taquerías serve up al pastor and carne asada, volunteers gathered at a popular local restaurant called The Queensboro. The organizers are part of the Jackson Heights chapter of Indivisible, one of the many grassroots organizations that have made No Kings demonstrations happen.  Arianne Mayer, 49, cofounded the chapter about two years ago after President Donald Trump was elected to his second term. On this “No Kings: Vote Early Day of Action”, she hands out pens and paper to volunteers to write letters to voters in battleground states, encouraging them to get out and cast their ballots as early as possible.  “The practice of mobilization of bodies is really helpful, especially in New York City, where you’re trying to mobilize many thousands of people,” Mayer said. “When you see those thousands of marches, you understand people everywhere are not OK with this, but it’s nice to have a different approach for this event. ”  Mayer, like many people here, said she was deeply frustrated and “disgusted” by the presence of federal immigration agents targeting her neighbors. Many people also said the federal government is implementing increasingly authoritarian policies.  Since summer 2025, the No Kings movement has held multiple massive demonstrations across thousands of sites around the country, attracting millions of people to protest against what they consider to be an overreach of government under the Trump Administration. Shona Chakravartty, 60, wrote postcards encouraging early voting at a No Kings event in Jackson Heights, Queens, on Saturday, Oct. 17, 2026. (Photo by Shalina Chatlani/Stateline) This time around organizers shifted their focus, understanding that the midterm elections  will determine which political party controls Congress. If it’s the Democrats, they could put up roadblocks to Trump’s agenda. Organizers are hoping the day of early voting could not only increase the pool of voters, but also ease the burden on poll workers on Nov. 3, Election Day.  Voting is in full swing across dozens of states, with over 5 million ballots cast, according to the University of Florida’s Election Lab. Trump faces a historic low in approval ratings.  In Minnesota folk musician Emmett Doyle took to a stage in downtown Minneapolis to perform Lluís Llach’s “LEstaca,” written in the 1960s in protest of Francisco Franco’s dictatorship in Spain.  Doyle is one of 15 defendants facing federal felony conspiracy charges stemming from protests against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s crackdown in Minnesota. “When I was getting pulled out of my truck by federal agents a couple months ago, one of the first things I asked them was, ‘Hey, is this about the songs?’ And they told me, ‘No, its about resisting ICE,’” Doyle said to the crowd of about 1,000. “I told them, ‘Well, youre going to have to arrest all of Minneapolis if you want to hit me for that.’” Diane Komsky, 67,drove an hour to the No Kings protest in Sioux Falls, South Dakota,because of the “madness in the White House, she said.  I want to give peace a real chance for families in the United States, she said. Mark Lyons of Centennial, Colorado, said he hadn’t been involved in much political activism or organizing before last year. Saturday’s protest was his fourth No Kings event. With the midterms approaching, Lyons is hopeful that Democrats will take control of Congress and “put all kinds of checks and balances” on the Trump administration. “They’ve been stealing the country blind for the last two years,” he said. “There has to be accountability, and it can’t be business as usual.” At an event in the nation’s capital, 25-year-old Octavia Clapp said using her right to vote especially matters as Trump attempts to wield authority over voting. The Trump administration has spent more than a year in court battles with dozens of states and voting rights groups seeking to force states to provide sensitive voter data and curb voting by mail. “I think cracking down on mail-in voting and restricting peoples ability to vote easily is anti-democratic,” said Clapp, of Maryland. “Democracy is really important to me, and freedom is really important to me.” Participants in a No Kings day event march toward the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 17, 2026. The Umbrella Walk 4 Change was one of thousands of No Kings events across the nation encouraging early voting. (Photo by Baya Burgess/States Newsroom) But the No Kings events were also met with pushback, including directly from Trump’s team.  “The fact that the ‘No Kings’ organizers are talking about voting in the upcoming election proves they should change their name,” said Lauren Bis, a White House spokesperson. “This November, Americans have a clear choice between President Trump and Republican’s commonsense policies or the extreme Democrats radical socialist, open-border policies.” In battleground state Virginia, two pro-Trump observers on the outskirts of the crowd in Richmond watched on.  “Ive learned that a lot of a lot of folks here tend to be older, toward the baby boomer side,” Jacob Seivers, 20, said of the protesters, whom he called “more courteous than you might expect” and “willing to talk.”  Seivers, who lives in Bedford County, called the speakers’ rhetoric about Republicans “hilarious” and “nonsense.” He also said he believes Congress will flip blue after November. Trump supporter John Hess of Centralia, Washington, was outnumbered in Olympia but took that in stride. Hess said he comes to the Capitol every week and didnt know of the day’s events until Friday.  “Normally I don’t get this much excitement,” he said  Back in New York, another local Indivisible organizer, Katherine Scannell, 35, said it’s important to encourage people to exercise their right to vote.   Scannell and volunteers set up shop at a neighborhood “open streets” event in Astoria, Queens, where residents could walk within the street blocked off from cars, listen to live music, and pick up fresh and locally grown vegetables.  “Normally it’s a protest, but the No Kings coalition had nationwide calls talking about how we wanted to turn those protests and eyeballs into action,”Scannell said. “Voting early is a great way to protect everyone’s vote, because when you vote early it’s hard to sabotage those numbers.”  Alyssa Chen and Maya Betti of Minnesota Reformer, Makenzie Huber of South Dakota Searchlight, Chase Woodruff of Colorado Newsline, Andrew Kerley for Virginia Mercury and Baya Burgess for States Newsroom’s D.C. bureau, contributed.  This story was originally produced by Stateline, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes Source New Mexico, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

[Category: Election 2026]

As of 11/8/26 2:25am. Last new 10/18/26 2:47pm.