Author: Julie Carr Smyth
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Texas stunner: Democrat Taylor Rehmet flips Republican state Senate district Trump won by 17 points
Democrat Taylor Rehmet flipped a reliably Republican state Senate district in Texas in Saturday’s special election, continuing a string of surprise victories for Democrats across the U.S. in the year since President Donald Trump returned to the White House. Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called it “a wake-up call for Republicans across Texas,” where the…
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Big changes to the agency charged with securing elections lead to midterm worries
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Since it was created in 2018, the federal government’s cybersecurity agency has helped warn state and local election officials about potential threats from foreign governments, showed officials how to protect polling places from attacks and gamed out how to respond to the unexpected, such as an Election Day bomb threat or sudden…
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Vance wins Ohio’s GOP Senate primary
COLUMBUS, Ohio • Bestselling author JD Vance has won Ohio’s contentious and hypercompetitive GOP Senate primary, buoyed by Donald Trump’s endorsement in a race widely seen as an early test of the former president’s hold on his party as the midterm season kicks into high gear. Vance’s win brings to a close an exceptionally bitter…
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Russia business deals muddy GOP US Senate primary in Ohio
COLUMBUS, Ohio • Several Republicans competing for the party’s nomination to run for U.S. Senate in Ohio are facing scrutiny for their ties to Russia as the country intensifies its war against Ukraine. Much of the attention has focused on former Ohio Republican Party Chair Jane Timken, whose husband’s family founded a company that does…
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Down syndrome abortion ban is going before a federal court
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal court in Cincinnati will hear complex legal arguments Wednesday for and against Ohio’s Down syndrome abortion ban in a case viewed as pivotal in the national debate over the procedure. Attorneys for the government contend in legal filings that the sidelined 2017 law does not infringe on a woman’s…
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Abortion arguments at play in limiting veterans’ fertilization benefit
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A federal program to help injured veterans and their spouses conceive children through in vitro fertilization is being hobbled by anti-abortion forces that oppose how the process can lead to embryos being destroyed. Since 2012, Democrats in Congress have repeatedly championed legislation permanently extending IVF benefits to veterans whose injuries in the…
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Ban on abortions after 1st heartbeat sent to Ohio governor
COLUMBUS, Ohio • No topic seemed off limits, including tales of back alleys and coat hangers, as abortion-rights supporters in Ohio fought perhaps the last battle over a twice-vetoed heartbeat abortion ban, which Gov. Mike DeWine has said he will sign. After nearly 10 years of fighting, Democrats let loose during run-up to final House…
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Obama-backed committee targeting political races in Colorado, 10 other states
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Democratic group backed by former President Barack Obama said this week it plans to invest millions of dollars in state-level elections in 11 states this year, with its heaviest focus on Ohio. The National Democratic Redistricting Committee, led by former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, said this year’s election cycle is…
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Candidate for Ohio governor reveals sexual past on Facebook
COLUMBUS, Ohio — A state Supreme Court justice running for Ohio governor volunteered candid details of his sexual past on Facebook, saying Friday that he was taking a swipe at the “media frenzy” over sexual misconduct. Democrat William O’Neill’s post was immediately attacked as inappropriate and led to calls for his ouster. In it, he wrote that…
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Official: Ohio attacker was angry about treatment of Muslims
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Somali-born student who went on a car-and-knife rampage at Ohio State University railed on Facebook against U.S. interference in Muslim lands and warned, “If you want us Muslims to stop carrying lone wolf attacks, then make peace” with the Islamic State group, a law enforcement official said Tuesday. The posts from…