Judges punishing Jan. 6 rioters fear more political violence as election nears

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WASHINGTON — Over the past four years, judges at Washington’s federal courthouse have punished hundreds of rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol in an unprecedented assault on the nation’s democracy. On the cusp of the next presidential election, some of those judges fear another burst of political violence could be coming. Before recently sentencing a rioter to prison, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton said he prays Americans accept the outcome of next month’s election. But the veteran judge expressed concern that Donald Trump and his allies are spreading the same sort of conspiracy theories that fueled the mob’s January 6, 2021,more

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Demographic changes shake up Arizona presidential politics

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People in all 50 states will vote in this year’s U.S. presidential election. But it is outcomes from seven so-called swing states that will likely determine the winner. The Southwestern state of Arizona traditionally favored Republican candidates, but Democrat Joe Biden won the state in 2020, and its electoral votes are up for grabs again in 2024. From Arizona, VOA’s Dora Mekouar has our story. Videographer: Miguel Amaya …

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Don’t count on recounts to flip US elections this fall — they rarely do

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washington — With the American electorate so evenly divided, there will be elections in November close enough that officials will have to recount the votes. Just don’t expect those recounts to change the winner. They rarely do, even when the margins are tiny.  “The (original) count is pretty accurate because the machines work — they work very well,” said Tammy Patrick, a former election official in Arizona who is now with the National Association of Election Officials. “We have recounts and we have audits to make sure we got it right.”  There have been 36 recounts in statewide general elections sincemore

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Trump breaks his silence on Sinwar as Harris seizes opportunity in his death  

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washington — Vice President Kamala Harris on Friday reiterated her call to end the bloodshed in Gaza, underscoring that the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar creates an opportunity “to end this war and bring the hostages home.” She spoke between campaign events in Michigan, a state home to the largest percentage of Arab Americans in the country, many of whom are outraged over the Biden administration’s support of Israel’s targeting of Hamas militants, which has caused tens of thousands of Palestinian civilian deaths. A day earlier, in a carefully choreographed move between the White House and her campaign, the Democraticmore

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Muslim candidates surge in local elections in US

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WASHINGTON — As the United States prepares for a presidential election next month, the idyllic New York suburb of Teaneck, New Jersey, is gearing up for elections that reflect a broader trend in U.S. politics. Two Muslim women are running for local office in Teaneck, a town of 41,000 residents with a significant Muslim population. They are among hundreds of Muslim candidates in local, state and federal elections around the country. Teaneck once had a Muslim mayor but never a Muslim woman on its city council. Reshma Khan, a longtime local activist of Indian origin and a council candidate, is aimingmore

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Battleground state starts early in-person voting while recovering from Helene

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ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA — Early in-person voting began statewide Thursday in the presidential battleground of North Carolina, including in mountainous areas where thousands of potential voters still lack power and clean running water after Hurricane Helene’s epic flooding. More than 400 locations in all 100 counties were slated to open for the 17-day early vote period, said State Board of Elections Executive Director Karen Brinson Bell. Only four of 80 sites in the 25 western counties hardest hit by the storm weren’t going to open. Helene’s arrival three weeks ago in the U.S. Southeast decimated remote towns throughout Appalachia and killedmore

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Hurricanes Helene, Milton might affect 2024 voting. Here’s how

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The U.S. states of Florida, North Carolina and Georgia are dealing with the aftermath of two major hurricanes that killed hundreds of people and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage. With the presidential election less than a month away and the race extremely close, White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara looks at how the storms might affect voting in these states. …

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Georgia judge blocks elections rules backed by pro-Trump Republicans

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A judge has overturned changes to Georgia election rules made in August by a Republican-controlled state board, in a case brought by a conservative group that argued the changes would disrupt voting rights ahead of the November 5 U.S. presidential election.  Judge Thomas Cox handed down the decision Wednesday. The case closely mirrored a separate lawsuit brought by the Democratic Party challenging the State Election Board’s actions, which Democrats portrayed as a ploy to impede certification of voting results in a state that could be crucial to the election outcome.  Georgia is one of seven closely contested states that aremore

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Former US president Jimmy Carter, 100, casts vote

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washington — Fifteen days after turning 100, former U.S. president Jimmy Carter cast his ballot in the U.S. election on Wednesday, fulfilling an earlier declared wish to live long enough to vote for Kamala Harris. The former Democratic leader “voted by mail,” according to the Carter Center, the nonprofit he founded after he left the White House in 1981 to pursue his vision of world diplomacy. The centenarian — who left office under a cloud of unpopularity, but has seen his star rise ever since — took advantage of early voting in his home state of Georgia, where he is receivingmore

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Nebraska’s high court says people with felony records can register to vote

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OMAHA, Neb. — Nebraska’s top election official had no authority to declare unconstitutional a state law that restored the voting rights of those who have been convicted of a felony, the state Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in a decision with implications for the approaching election. In July, Secretary of State Bob Evnen ordered county election officials to reject the voter registrations of those with felony convictions, citing an opinion issued by Attorney General Mike Hilgers. That opinion, which Evnen had requested, deemed as unconstitutional a law passed this year by the Legislature immediately restoring the voting rights of people who havemore

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Growing number of young women say abortion rights top election issue

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Since the U.S. Supreme Court sent the issue of abortion back to the states in 2022, Democrats have mobilized to protect abortion rights while Republicans have worked to restrict the procedure on religious and moral grounds. The issue is motivating voters to go to the polls this election year. VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more from Nevada. Videographer: Mary Cieslak …

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Georgia judge blocks ballot counting rule and says county officials must certify election results

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ATLANTA — A judge has blocked a new rule that requires Georgia Election Day ballots to be counted by hand after the close of voting. The ruling came a day after the same judge ruled that county election officials must certify election results by the deadline set in law. The State Election Board last month passed the rule requiring that three poll workers each count the paper ballots — not votes — by hand after the polls close. The county election board in Cobb County, in Atlanta’s suburbs, had filed a lawsuit seeking to have a judge declare that rule andmore

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Voting rights groups seek investigation into Wisconsin text messages

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madison, wisconsin — Voting rights advocates on Tuesday asked state and federal authorities to investigate anonymous text messages apparently targeting young Wisconsin voters, warning them not to vote in a state where they are ineligible. Free Speech for People, on behalf of the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, made the request to the U.S. Department of Justice as well as the Wisconsin Department of Justice. The letter says that “thousands of young voters across Wisconsin” received the text message last week, including staff members at the League of Women Voters and students at the University of Wisconsin. The text inmore

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How Republican-leaning Nevada became a swing state

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In the U.S., all eyes are on the seven so-called battleground states that are expected to determine the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. While some of them have shifted politically over the years, the Western swing state of Nevada does not lean strongly toward one major party or the other. VOA’s Dora Mekouar reports from Las Vegas. Camera: Miguel Amaya …

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Georgia judge rules county election officials must certify election results

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ATLANTA, georgia — A Georgia judge has ruled county election officials must certify election results by the deadline set in law and cannot exclude any group of votes from certification even if they suspect error or fraud.  Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney ruled that “no election superintendent (or member of a board of elections and registration) may refuse to certify or abstain from certifying election results under any circumstance.” While they have the right to inspect the conduct of an election and to review related documents, he wrote, “any delay in receiving such information is not a basis formore

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As US presidential vote looms, newsrooms focus on how to stay safe

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Washington/New York — On a rainy day in September, a group of journalists gathered in a nondescript office building outside Washington. Some were seasoned reporters, others still students. But they were all there to learn how to stay safe while covering elections and unrest. Organized by the International Women’s Media Foundation, or IWMF, the training session was part of a national campaign to teach journalists based in the United States how to stay safe on assignment, including while reporting on the presidential campaign. Over the past year, the IWMF has trained more than 620 journalists across 13 states. “This safety tourmore

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Microsoft: Cybercriminals increasingly help Russia, China, Iran target US, allies

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WASHINGTON — Russia, China and Iran are increasingly relying on criminal networks to lead cyberespionage and hacking operations against adversaries such as the United States, according to a report on digital threats published Tuesday by Microsoft. The growing collaboration between authoritarian governments and criminal hackers has alarmed national security officials and cybersecurity experts. They say it represents the increasingly blurred lines between actions directed by Beijing or the Kremlin aimed at undermining rivals and the illicit activities of groups typically more interested in financial gain. In one example, Microsoft’s analysts found that a criminal hacking group with links to Iran infiltratedmore

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How Republican-leaning Arizona became a swing state

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There are 50 U.S. states, but voters from seven so-called battleground states are expected to determine the outcome of the 2024 presidential election. The Southwestern state of Arizona used to reliably lean toward Republican candidates. But President Joe Biden, a Democrat, won the state in 2020. And this year, Arizona’s electoral votes are up for grabs again. …

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Harris laying out plan to empower Black men, earn their votes 

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washington — Vice President Kamala Harris is announcing a plan to give Black men more economic opportunities and other chances to thrive as she works to energize a key voting bloc that has Democrats concerned about a lack of enthusiasm.  Harris’ plan includes providing forgivable business loans for Black entrepreneurs, creating more apprenticeships, and studying sickle cell and other diseases that disproportionately affect African American men.  Harris already has said she supports legalizing marijuana, and her plan calls for working to ensure that Black men have opportunities to participate as a “national cannabis industry takes shape.” She is also calling formore

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Harris, Trump campaigning in battleground Pennsylvania Monday

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Harrisburg, Pennsylvania — Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump will take their fight for Pennsylvania to opposite ends of the state on Monday, with Harris speaking in the northwest corner in Erie and Trump in the southeastern suburbs of Philadelphia. Democrat Harris and Republican Trump have been making regular appearances in what is the country’s largest battleground state — it will be Harris’ 10th visit to Pennsylvania this campaign season, and just last week Trump made stops in both Scranton and Reading. Pennsylvania’s energy industry and natural gas fracking are likely topics as they compete for the fractionmore

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