Michigan special election to decide state Senate control and give clues about fall midterms

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WASHINGTON — A special election in a small Michigan swing district on Tuesday could have outsized consequences, determining whether Democrats retain their slim majority in the state Senate for the final months of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s term. Democrat Chedrick Greene and Republican Jason Tunney are vying for the 35th state Senate district seat left vacant … Read more

Fireworks plant explosion in China kills at least 26, injures dozens more, state media say

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Beijing — An explosion at a fireworks plant in a province in central China killed at least 26 people and injured 61 others, authorities reported Tuesday. China’s official news agency Xinhua said the blast occurred at a plant in Changsha city of Hunan province on Monday afternoon. State media China Daily said the plant was … Read more

Ramaswamy looks to put primary behind him and turn to expensive fall campaign for Ohio governor

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COLUMBUS, Ohio — Republican Vivek Ramaswamy has spent his campaign for Ohio governor focused on November’s general election and finally gets the chance Tuesday to put the long primary season behind him, as the Trump-endorsed biotech entrepreneur positions for an expensive run against Dr. Amy Acton, the former state health director. Contests on the ballots … Read more

Abortion pill rulings bring the issue back to the forefront in a midterm election year

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NEW YORK — Back-to-back court rulings on abortion pill access are thrusting a contentious political issue back into the spotlight ahead of this year’s midterm elections that will determine control of Congress for the second half of President Donald Trump’s term. Friday’s ruling from a federal appeals court restricted mail access to mifepristone prescriptions, one … Read more

Tennessee Republicans will consider redrawing US House district covering majority-Black Memphis

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — As civil rights advocates protest, Republican lawmakers in several Southern states are seizing on the opportunity afforded by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling to redraw congressional districts ahead of the November midterm elections. The latest state to jump on the redistricting bandwagon is Tennessee, where a special legislative session is to begin … Read more

Indigenous people honor and raise awareness for relatives who are missing or have been killed

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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Across the country, Indigenous people are gathering this week to honor loved ones who are missing or have been killed and to call for better data collection, law enforcement response and reforms to make their communities safer. From U.S. state capitols and tribal community spaces to the streets of major cities, hundreds … Read more

Education Department opens probe into Smith College for admitting trans women

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The U.S. Department of Education opened an investigation Monday into Smith College, an all-women’s institution in Massachusetts, for admitting transgender women. The probe by the department’s Office of Civil Rights will look at whether the college violated Title IX, a 1972 law forbidding discrimination based on sex in education. The move is the latest by … Read more