Politics

Democratic Rep. Jimmy Gomez — who faces a U.S. House investigation over alleged sexual assault and harassment but denies wrongdoing — is running for reelection against Angela Gonzales-Torres, who is backed by Democratic Socialists of America.

For the first time, the Treasury calculates how much the UK could have raised by investing North Sea proceeds.

Democratic groups sued the Trump administration Tuesday, accusing it of using unfounded voter fraud claims to muscle its way into how states run elections. Why it matters: The groups say the administration is issuing a stream of threats to intimidate and bully both voters and election officials. They're asking a judge to declare the administration's actions unlawful and block further interference. Driving the news: The lawsuit condemns the administration for targeting state voter rolls by insisting that local officials review federally compiled lists of alleged noncitizens on their voter rolls. The suit also alleges that the administration is improperly demanding that states deny ballots to registered voters based on those federal lists. The Democrat-aligned groups also claim the administration has attempted to intimidate state and local officials by threatening them with jail time or prosecution. Case in point: The lawsuit cites a Department of Homeland Security claim that Nevada had nearly 16,000 noncitizens on its voter rolls. The department later claimed that it had confirmed 185 of those people were noncitizens. State records later indicated that all 185 were citizens. The DOJ also demanded that California deny ballots to more than 20,000 people based on a federal list that flagged them as suspected ineligible voters, the lawsuit says. A preliminary investigation by Los Angeles County investigators found that more than 25% of those flagged listed a U.S. birthplace, and others already had their voter registrations canceled. What they're saying: "Department of Justice and DHS officials have sought to bolster their interference efforts through a persistent stream of threats and intimidation directed towards state and local election officials across the country," the groups' attorneys wrote. "Defendants' coercive threats of legal retaliation against state officials, including even potential imprisonment, for simply following state law and aiding registered voters i

House Democrats' campaign arm is instructing allied super PACs to promote minor candidates in several key House races, Axios has learned. Why it matters: This allows Democrats to steer outside groups toward siphoning votes from Republicans without violating laws against direct coordination. An Axios review of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's "redboxes" — publicly available webpages laying out what PACs should say in ads and which voters to target — found references to minor candidates in five races. The DCCC included language on four of those pages promoting a third-party or independent candidate with language touting their conservative, pro-gun or anti-government bona fides. "Registered Republicans under the age of 55 need to see ads," the redbox for Colorado's 5th District says, "showing that ... Christopher Mitchell, a libertarian, is the true conservative running for Congress." The page for Virginia's 2nd District says white, college-educated men should see that independent J. Matt Baker is "a staunch supporter of the 2nd amendment" who will "defend our constitution." In Virginia's 5th District , the DCCC wants the same group of voters to know that independent Cooke Harvey "will fight for Virginia's farmers against big government." Republican women in Nevada's 2nd District should be informed that American Independent Party candidate Lynn Chapman "has spent decades fighting for conservative values," the DCCC says. Zoom in: In several cases, the redboxes urge super PACs to steer Democratic and left-leaning voters away from minor candidates who could siphon votes from the DCCC's recruit. The redbox for Alaska's at-large district — where Democrats are backing independent Bill Hill — says voters need to know Eric Hafner is a "fake Democrat" despite being listed on the ballot as one, noting he is an inmate in New York with no clear ties to Alaska . The page for Virginia's 2nd District urges PACs to ding the progressive credentials of another independe

The White House counsel's office warned Politico in a Monday letter that it had 48 hours to retract or correct recent stories about alleged staff drama, or it would suffer unspecified consequences. That deadline expires Thursday. Why it matters: The White House demand threatens to escalate already tense relations with Politico specifically and, more generally, the press corps that covers President Trump in Washington. Politico, CNN, and MS NOW are already banned from covering Trump in the Oval Office and on Air Force One because the president does not like their coverage. Trump blocked all three outlets from the White House grounds as well, but a judge on Oct. 13 restored their access. CNN threatened legal action Wednesday to regain access to Air Force One and the "pool" of television networks that accompany the president. Zoom in: In his letter to Politico, White House Counsel Will Scharf singled out three stories concerning White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles despite "on-the-record refutations" or contrary evidence supplied by senior staff and even the president. Oct. 15: In a story headlined " Trump's ice maiden is under fire ," Politico Playbook reported that Trump was considering a replacement for Wiles. Trump called it "fake news." Oct. 16: Politico Playbook wrote that the prior day's story had caused a "freakout" and that the president "blew up" over it. A White House spokesman called it "unbelievably stupid and false." Oct. 16: In a story headlined " Susie Wiles helped set up Fox interview ahead of press secretary's exit ," Politico insinuated the chief of staff set up Katie Zacharia to fail in a Sean Hannity interview on Fox the night before. The White House and Fox News denied the reporting. And White House officials provided text messages to Politico before publication showing Zacharia — not Wiles — set up the interview, which the New York Post reported the following day. "Politico has not corrected or retracted its false reporting. Instead, a Politico

Senate Republicans are weighing three last-ditch spending moves that would have been unimaginable six months ago: a cash infusion for Mississippi and even more money for South Carolina and Kansas. Why it matters: It's been 94 years since Kansas elected a Democratic senator, 44 years for Mississippi and 28 for South Carolina. But panic is spreading through the Republican Party. "The wall has broken. The enemy is inside the fort," one national Republican political operative told Axios. "We are now fighting hand to hand." The Senate map, which once looked impregnable for Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), is now full of vulnerabilities. Democratic challengers are polling within the margin of error in more than half a dozen deep-red states, according to internal GOP polls. The other side: "We're nervous about Alaska. We're nervous about Michigan. We're still going to hold the Senate at the end," said another operative. Zoom in: Two weeks ago, when Senate Leadership Fund decided to take out a $5 million "insurance policy" in South Carolina, operatives took a hard look at Idaho, South Dakota and Mississippi. At the time, they concluded they didn't need to spend any money in those states, according to a person familiar with the matter. But Senate Republicans are now reviewing the Mississippi race and may need to spend there to protect Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith from a surprisingly competitive bid by Democratic district attorney Scott Colom . Senate Majority PAC, the main super PAC for Senate Democrats, announced a $1.2 million investment in the race on Tuesday. Zoom out: In early June, SLF started to reinforce a Midwestern red wall to protect the GOP majority, reserving $28 million in TV advertising in Ohio and $11 million in Iowa . Those investments have ballooned to $93 million in Ohio and $53 million in Iowa. After an initial $5 million buy in South Carolina, SLF's spending has increased to $8.5 million, according to AdImpact. And a super PAC linked to Sen. John Bar

Trump's push to end the war that has raged since 2022 comes as midterm elections could give Democrats control of Congress, expanding their oversight powers.

Moscow is pushing for a summit with Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, without Kyiv or the EU. What does Russia hope to gain, and why might China be willing to take part?

In the latest "The De Los Podcast" episode, Times columnist Gustavo Arellano talks with hosts Fidel Martinez and Suzy Exposito about how the Latino vote will influence the 2026 midterm elections.

The lawsuit accuses Trump and his administration of using "shoddily compiled lists of supposed noncitizens" and "coercive threats" against state officials to assert federal control over the midterms.

Sofia Liguori stepped down from DeepMind due to current military contracts — not speculative fears of an AI apocalypse. The post Google DeepMind Engineer Resigns in Protest of Pentagon Contract appeared first on The Intercept .

The decision is a rare win for trans rights at the Supreme Court.

How Jackdaw ignites arguments over climate and costs

In his more than 25 years in Washington, Xavier Becerra built important alliances and amassed power on Capitol Hill, but had some stumbles along the way.

Years of delays for the SkyLink people mover at LAX have led to finger-pointing, litigation and a grand jury probe into how a $1.9-billion project has become a $3.3-billion boondoggle.

Elon Musk might be the largest individual spender behind the midterm elections. He also says he’ll give one share of his SpaceX company to every child in the U.S.

Jackdaw and Rosebank are case studies in the slow motion awkwardness the UK has over energy.

UK inflation rose in September, pushed up by higher petrol and diesel prices.

The world is set to breach the critical 1.5-degree temperature limit, with Donald Trump's US withdrawal from climate action worsening the outlook, according to a UN report. But there is a small silver lining.

Donna Tryfman and David Ross are competing for the Superior Court Judge Office 131 seat. Here's what you need to know about the race.