Presidential debates that sparked change

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President Joe Biden’s poor performance during the debate against Donald Trump in June led to his withdrawal from the race and the elevation of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee. Here’s a look at other presidential debates in history that shifted the direction of the campaign. …

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Anxiety, uncertainty build in Ukraine as US election nears

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Many Ukrainians are hoping the outcome of the U.S. elections will help bring an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine. While some worry that Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump will take a softer approach on Moscow, others are concerned that under the policies of Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, aid – while significant -will be slow to arrive. Anna Chernikova reports from Kyiv. VOA footage by Vladyslav Smilianets. …

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West Virginia has consistently delivered for Donald Trump

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Close to the U.S. capital of Washington, the rural state of West Virginia was solidly Democratic for most of the 20th century. But now it’s a Republican stronghold, delivering overwhelming wins for former President Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020. VOA’s congressional correspondent, Katherine Gypson, went to Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, to see how the 2024 election season is playing out. Videographers: Adam Greenbaum, Henry Hernandez and Mary Cieslak …

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US adversaries step up efforts to influence results of next election

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washington — Russia, Iran and China are ramping up efforts to impact the outcome of the U.S. presidential election and down-ballot races, targeting American voters with an expanding array of sophisticated influence operations. The latest assessment from U.S. intelligence agencies, shared Friday, warns that Russia remains the preeminent threat, with Russian influence campaigns seeking to boost the chances of Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump over Democratic candidate Vice President Kamala Harris. Russian actors, led by networks created by the Kremlin-backed media outlet RT, “are supporting Moscow’s efforts to influence voter preferences in favor of the former presidentmore

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Toxic or tonic? Voting on masculinity in US election 

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Washington — Unlike Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign slogan, “I’m With Her,” there is no overt gender messaging in Kamala Harris’ run for the presidency in 2024. Yet, gender is on the ballot as the Harris campaign and that of her Republican rival, Donald Trump, present competing narratives on masculinity, the latest front line in America’s culture war. The contrast was clear at the parties’ conventions. At the Republican National Convention, retired pro wrestler Hulk Hogan took off his suit jacket and ripped off his shirt to reveal the muscles bulging under his Trump-Vance tank top. Hogan was preceded by Tucker Carlson,more

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Trump, Harris offer different futures for Ukraine as they vie for US presidency

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Ukraine faces wildly different prospects under a potential Donald Trump or Kamala Harris U.S. presidency. But as their campaigns race to the finish line, neither candidate has laid out exactly how they plan to deal with Russia’s war on Ukraine. Experts say in that same space of time, the battlefield in Ukraine has itself radically changed, giving more power to Ukraine in determining its own fate. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington. …

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US accuses Russia of using state media to spread disinformation ahead of November election

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Washington — The Biden administration accused Russia on Wednesday of a far-reaching effort to influence the U.S. presidential election, including by promoting disinformation and enlisting unwitting American influencers to spread propaganda on Russian state media. The actions taken by the U.S. government include sanctions against leaders of RT, a state media organization that was forced by the Justice Department to register as a foreign agent, as well as visa restrictions. Intelligence agencies have previously charged that Russia was using disinformation to try to interfere in the election.  In a speech last month, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Russia was themore

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US seeks to reassure voters that presidential election will be safe

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washington — Top U.S. election security officials are asking American voters to tune out the noise and reject what they describe as unfounded claims that the coming presidential election will be rigged.  Instead, in the first of a series of election security briefings planned in the run-up to November’s election, they say U.S. voters should have confidence that when they go to the polls their votes will be counted accurately.  “Throughout the next few months, you are going to hear a lot of different things from different sources. The most important thing is to recognize the signal through the noise, themore

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Vehicles in Walz motorcade crash in Milwaukee; he’s unhurt

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MILWAUKEE — Some vans at the back of a motorcade carrying Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz crashed on the highway while heading from the airport to a campaign stop in Milwaukee on Monday, but Walz was unhurt.  President Joe Biden called from Air Force One and spoke to Walz a short time later, as the president was traveling to a separate campaign stop in Pittsburgh with Vice President Kamala Harris. Harris herself was campaigning in Detroit before heading to the joint event later in the day with Biden, and her campaign said that she also spoke with her running matemore

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Howard University’s capstone moment: Kamala Harris at top of the ticket

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washington — As a young college student, Kamala Harris made the nearly 3-mile trip from Howard University to the National Mall to protest apartheid in South Africa. In 2017, as a senator, she returned to her alma mater to deliver the commencement address. In July, when she received word that she would likely be the Democratic presidential nominee, she was wearing her Howard sweatshirt in the vice president’s residence. Howard, one of the nation’s best known historically Black colleges, has been central to Harris’ origin story, and now, as she seeks to become the first woman elected president, the university ismore

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Judge blocks Ohio law banning foreign nationals’ donations to ballot campaigns

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Columbus, Ohio — A federal judge has blocked a new law banning foreign nationals and green card holders from contributing to state ballot campaigns in Ohio on the grounds that it curtails constitutionally protected free speech rights. U.S. District Judge Michael Watson wrote Saturday that while the government has an interest in preventing foreign influence on state ballot issues, the law as written falls short of that goal and instead harms the First Amendment rights of lawful permanent residents. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed the measure June 2, and it was to have taken effect Sunday. A prominent Democratic law firmmore

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Harris criticizes Trump for Arlington Cemetery incident; some Gold Star families defend his visit

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Some Gold Star families expressed support Sunday for former President Donald Trump, after his campaign was criticized for taking photos and videos at a restricted section of Arlington National Cemetery last week. Vice President Kamala Harris, who is also in the race for the White House, added her voice to those condemning Trump’s visit and deemed it “a political stunt.” VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias has the story. …

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Trump issues statement from Gold Star families defending Arlington Cemetery visit and ripping Harris  

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ATLANTA — Donald Trump’s campaign issued a statement Sunday from the Gold Star military families who invited him to Arlington National Cemetery as they defended the Republican presidential nominee and insisted that Vice President Kamala Harris is the candidate politicizing fallen U.S. service members.  It’s the latest volley in an extended back and forth as Trump tries to saddle Harris with the Biden administration’s handling of the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, including a suicide bombing that killed 13 U.S. service members.  Harris on Saturday accused Trump of staging a “political stunt” that “disrespected sacred ground” where many Afghanistanmore

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Harris calls on Trump to debate with mics ‘on the whole time’

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WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee in the November 5 U.S. presidential election, on Saturday called on her Republican rival, Donald Trump, to debate her with their microphones switched on throughout the event. Harris and the former president have agreed to a debate, hosted by ABC News, on September 10. “Donald Trump is surrendering to his advisors who won’t allow him to debate with a live microphone. If his own team doesn’t have confidence in him, the American people definitely can’t,” Harris said in a post on social media platform X. “We are running for President of themore

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