Political
Need information regarding current political news? Here we'll keep you updated on the latest political news, locally and nationally.
4 Republicans pitch different approaches to growth, spending and agriculture in Grant County Commissioner race
MOSES LAKE — With ballots due Aug. 4, voters in Grant County Commissioner District 3 have four Republican candidat…
Same leadership, same issues for SC's budget committee
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina's Republican leaders made no major changes on Wednesday to their main House committees, and the group that handles the budget remains stuck with the same problems, only this tim…
Louisiana's latest special session cost taxpayers $1.1M
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The fall special session held by Louisiana lawmakers to debate COVID-19 rules and hurricane recovery issues carried a taxpayer-financed price tag of more than $1.1 million, according to spen…
Minnesota reports 77 new COVID-19 deaths; 5,192 new cases
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota health authorities reported 77 new COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday — the second-highest one-day total of the pandemic — but this week's figures have been affected by reporting lags due to …
California county pays $10M after shooting paralyzed man
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A Northern California county has paid nearly $10 million to settle a lawsuit by a Silicon Valley software engineer who was having a mental health crisis two years ago when a deputy shot him, pa…
UN agency removes cannabis from strictest drug category
BERLIN (AP) — The U.N. Commission on Narcotic Drugs voted Wednesday to remove cannabis and cannabis resin from a category of the world's most dangerous drugs, which could impact the global medical marijuana industr…
Maine lawmakers convene for historic meeting during pandemic
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — With Gov. Janet Mills in quarantine Wednesday, Maine lawmakers were sworn into office by the state’s chief justice to open a historic session at the Augusta Civic Center that featured the stat…
Alexander preaches consensus in farewell to fractious Senate
WASHINGTON (AP) — Sen. Lamar Alexander, a Tennessee political legend who forged a productive path as a Senate institutionalist after tours as governor and Cabinet secretary, said goodbye to the chamber on Wednesday…
New unemployment head balances paying claims, stopping fraud
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan's acting unemployment director told lawmakers on Wednesday that her office is trying to strike a balance between quickly paying benefits to jobless workers and preventing fraud, sayin…
Wisconsin governor calls Trump lawsuit an 'assault'
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — President Donald Trump's attempt to overturn Wisconsin's election results by tossing ballots only from the state's two most heavily Democratic counties is an “assault on democracy,” attorneys f…
Many New Hampshire Democrats skip opening session over virus
DURHAM, N.H. (AP) — New Hampshire lawmakers bundled up and spread out on an athletic field Wednesday to start their next two-year session. But many House Democrats skipped the gathering over concerns about the coro…
Lawmakers eye curbing governor's powers during health crises
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers who have often been critical of government restrictions to curb COVID-19's spread are suggesting ways to give themselves the power to limit or overturn emergency orders f…
COVID hospitalizations rise in Arizona; over 3,800 new cases
PHOENIX (AP) — COVID-19-related hospitalizations continue to climb in Arizona as the state on Wednesday reported more than 3,800 additional known cases and a statewide organization representing physicians warned th…
Governor vows to keep state informed of her virus exposure
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine's governor said her possible exposure to the coronavirus is more evidence that no one is immune to the disruptions the virus can cause.
GOP leader McDaniel to run for 3rd term with Trump's backing
Ronna McDaniel, the Republican National Committee chairwoman, is launching her bid for a third two-year term heading the GOP's governing organization after the party’s stronger-than-anticipated showing in November’…
EU lawmaker from Hungary targeted with expulsion vote
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The head of the European Parliament delegation representing Hungary’s ruling party is being targeted for expulsion from his political group in the European Union legislature after comparing…