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A Democratic governor, a Republican legislature: How Josh Stein navigates North Carolina politics

FLETCHER, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein has taken an unusual approach with Republican political opponents in his first eight months leading a highly competitive state where divided government has become the norm. He’s trying to get along with them. Stein, who succeeded fellow Democrat Roy Cooper in January, has made an effort to work with the GOP-controlled General Assembly on things like storm recovery — still a top priority nearly a year since Hurricane Helene’s historic flooding — and on other issues broadly popular with North Carolinians. He’s kept ...

Texas governor signs new voting maps to gain five GOP seats in Congress in 2026

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday signed into law a new congressional voting map designed to help Republicans gain more seats in the 2026 midterm elections, delivering a win for President Donald Trump and his desire to hold on to a slim GOP majority in the U.S. House. The Texas map drafted in rare mid-decade redistricting prompted fierce protests from Democrats and sparked a gerrymandering tug-of-war for voters in states across the country. “Texas is now more red in the United States Congress,” Abbott said in a video he posted on X of him signing the ...

City council member in Connecticut faces additional charges in absentee ballot investigation

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — A city councilor in Connecticut was arrested Friday on 10 additional counts in connection with an investigation into absentee ballot tampering in the state’s largest city, officials said. Bridgeport City Council member Alfredo Castillo was among five Democratic politicians and operatives charged earlier this year with tampering with absentee ballots in the 2023 Democratic primary election. Claims of misuse of the ballots spurred a court-ordered rerun of a mayoral primary and general election and helped fuel skepticism about the security of U.S. ...

Iowa Dems consider bringing back lead off caucuses, going ‘rogue’ in 2028

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Just days before national Democrats gather for their annual summer meeting, Iowa’s state party officials on Thursday said it was a mistake for the party to have abandoned Iowa in the 2024 early nominating calendar and opened up the possibility of going rogue the next time around. In 2022, President Joe Biden ordered a shake-up of the 2024 election calendar, moving South Carolina’s primary ahead of contests in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. The move forced Iowa Democrats to ditch the five-decade, first-in-the-nation caucus where community members publicly ...

California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s national profile soars with latest Trump fight

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gavin Newsom is having a moment. In the national struggle over U.S. House control, perhaps no politician has more at stake than the California governor, who has emerged as the leading Democratic adversary to President Donald Trump in what many see as a lightly masked trial run for his own future White House bid. The liberal former San Francisco mayor, who is nearing the end of a spotty tenure in Sacramento, is being cheered by Democrats and party activists who see his scrappy, Trump-mocking, profanity-tinged speeches and snarky social media posts as signs of new ...

LINDA MASSEY

Linda Lee Massey, 81, formerly of Neffs, Ohio, passed away on Thursday, August 21, 2025 at the home of her daughter Bonnie Walters in Coal Run, Ohio. She was born on April 26, 1944 in Nutter Fort, WV, daughter of Harold Gellner and Imogene Holmes Protiva. Linda is survived by her children, Ronald Randall (Shelly), Bonnie Walters (Rick), John Randall (Belinda) and Lonnie Randall (Erin); several grandchildren and great grandchildren; her two best friends; her cat, Bella and her long time Yahtzee partner and best friend, Cheryl Stefan of St. Clairsville, Ohio. She was preceded in death by ...