Political
Need information regarding current political news? Here we'll keep you updated on the latest political news, locally and nationally.
Grant County primary turnout slips from 2022 levels as officials look ahead to November election
EPHRATA — Grant County's voter turnout in the 2026 primary election finished at nearly 34%, a figure county electi…
Millions of kids told full return to school in fall unlikely
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Millions more children in the U.S. learned Friday that they're unlikely to return to classrooms full time in the fall because of the coronavirus pandemic as death tolls reached new high…
Governor takes up virus bills, delegation seeks SUD funding
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — Gov. Chris Sununu signed a bill Friday to streamline absentee voting during the coronavirus pandemic but vetoed other measures aimed at helping workers, children and nursing home residents.
Despite COVID-19 spike, Kansas faces push to reopen schools
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas' Republican-controlled state school board is facing pressure from conservatives to scuttle Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly's plan to delay the reopening of K-12 schools, even as a resurgence …
Police warn proposed reforms may harm recruitment, retention
Connecticut lawmakers were warned Friday that a wide-ranging police accountability bill, which would allow officers to be personally sued in certain circumstances for violating someone's civil rights, will have ser…
Arizona AG asks Supreme Court to decide Tucson election date
TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich on Friday asked the state Supreme Court to weigh in on a dispute between Tucson and the state Legislature over the city’s plans to hold elections in 2021 …
Border agency fires 4, suspends 38 for social media posts
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Border Patrol's parent agency said Friday that it fired four employees and suspended 38 without pay for inappropriate social media activity following revelations of a secret Facebook group tha…
Surging Democrats expand Senate targets to GOP states
WASHINGTON (AP) — It's come to this for Republicans straining to defend their Senate majority in November's elections: They're air-dropping millions of dollars into races in Alabama, Kentucky and other red states w…
Panel OKs sending ballot request forms to all Iowa voters
A legislative panel voted unanimously Friday to approve the plan by Iowa's top election official to send absentee ballot request forms to all registered voters before the November election, following a similar acti…
Group seeking redistricting question withdraws petition
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A group that wants a bipartisan commission, instead of state lawmakers, to redraw Oklahoma’s legislative districts announced Friday they are withdrawing their initiative petition, citing legal …
Records: Montana governor feared backlash over mask mandate
HELENA, Mont. (AP) — Gov. Steve Bullock's statewide mask mandate came after hundreds of Montana residents, business owners and health care leaders demanded the move as virus cases mounted in the state, records obta…
Minnesota hospitals ask Walz for statewide mask mandate
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Minnesota hospitals asked Gov. Tim Walz to order people throughout the state to wear masks in public to slow the spread of the coronavirus — a step the governor said he has been considering.
Republicans eye sweeping shield from coronavirus liability
WASHINGTON (AP) — A new plan from Senate Republicans to award businesses, schools, and universities sweeping exemptions from lawsuits arising from inadequate coronavirus safeguards is putting Republicans and Democr…
La. House speaker cautions against revoking virus emergency
BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — House Speaker Clay Schexnayder sought Friday to stall an ongoing effort by his fellow Republicans to revoke Gov. John Bel Edwards'
California classrooms closed for fall as virus cases surge
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Most of California’s 6.7 million schoolkids will be learning from home when the new school year begins in a few weeks as the state struggles with soaring rates of coronavirus cases, hospit…
Judge: Houston can't ban convention; GOP deciding next move
A federal judge ruled Friday that Houston can’t ban the Texas Republican Party from holding its convention in-person, but it was not clear whether the GOP would move for a physical meetup or keep the event virtual …