Good morning. The U.S. Department of Justice reportedly issued subpoenas after learning that Alaska Democrat Mary Peltola’s campaign worked with party members to bring a challenger with the same name as Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan to the midterms.
Ballot stacking is a political tactic used in elections to siphon votes away from an opponent by “stacking” ballots with other candidates. Although not illegal, the U.S. president and the Justice Department filed a preemptive lawsuit to block certification of the Senate election results if the incumbent senator lost. Ariana Baio explains what’s going on.
More mid-term developments:
The Trump administration has opened a criminal investigation in California following allegations that thousands of non-citizens were registered to vote. Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that the California elections were “corrupt” and “rigged.” Some employees of the Los Angeles County Recorder’s Office have received grand jury subpoenas, the office confirmed.
Government corruption has become a major issue in the upcoming elections.with an overwhelming majority of Americans saying US government officials use their public office for personal financial gain, according to an exclusive Harris poll for the Guardian. Three-quarters of voters said they think elected officials care more about getting richer than improving the economy for ordinary citizens.
Vivek Ramaswamy, the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, confirmed that his campaign launched an attack ad featuring Donna Arthur.the ex-mother of his Democratic opponent, Amy Acton. This followed a public backlash following the revelation that Arthur had lost custody of Acton in 1978 after Arthur’s second husband was accused of repeated rapes of the then-child.
Canadian rocker Bryan Adams trolled Donald Trump with a new song criticizing his attempt to rename Lake Ontario, and another track called 51st State about Trump’s efforts to annex Canada.
Netanyahu accused of defaming Arab voters to retain power
Benjamin Netanyahu has been accused of using smear tactics to cling to power, after claiming that Israeli Arab parties used foreign support to “steal” Israeli elections, in which the prime minister’s coalition lost its parliamentary majority. Netanyahu and his allies have asked the domestic security service, the Shin Bet, to investigate allegations of vote buying.
Gadi Eisenkot, the leader of the main opposition bloc, accused the prime minister of trying to derail the election results. Netanyahu was also reprimanded by President Isaac Herzog for “tarnishing an entire community,” while the acting director general of the Central Election Commission, Dean Livneh, said the claims appeared unfounded.
This explanatory video provides a three-and-a-half minute overview of the possibility of Israeli opposition parties working with the new Palestinian members of the Knesset to oust Netanyahu.
JD Vance’s letter could offer one last chance to avoid new conflict between the United States and Iran
Hopes of avoiding another major conflagration between Iran and the United States may rest on Iran’s response to a personal letter from US Vice President JD Vance. The letter demands that Tehran agree to make commitments on its nuclear program at the start of a process that would lead to the opening of the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, in exchange for relief from US sanctions.
DHS cites risk to more than 40,000 employees working to take leaked data offline
The US Department of Homeland Security on Thursday asked an Icelandic hosting company to delete or limit access to data relating to thousands of agency employees, saying its content put them at risk. The database “places more than 40,000 identifiable individuals at risk of harassment, stalking, and physical violence,” the request states.
In other news…
Star Trek: TNG and X-Men actor Patrick Stewart dies at 86. The famous British stage and screen actor died at his home in Los Angeles after “a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia.” Peter Bradshaw described him as “a uniquely charismatic force” in this tribute, and our Picture Desk has put together this gallery of his incredible life.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reportedly fired a top military strategist. after allegations he leaked classified information to the public.
Amazon painted a mixed picture of its financial health in its quarterly earnings report. It gave cautious sales forecasts for the fourth quarter after its third-quarter results fell short of Wall Street analysts’ expectations.
Polymarket has temporarily suspended trading on its international platform due to a security incident that compromised a third-party vendor, the company said.
Survivors recounted details of the train accident in Spain which killed at least 68 people. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said the victims could include people of 27 different nationalities.
Police Scotland said they were investigating the time spent by former Prince Andrew, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell at the private estate of King Charles.
Stat of the day: North Korean group accused of $6.3 billion Binance hack in largest crypto heist on record.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange has been hit by a record $6.3 billion hack, with experts identifying North Korea as the likely culprit. Binance co-founder Yi He said the company would cover “all losses related to the hack.”
Culture Pick: “I Left Shocked” – Screenwriters Talk About Their Scariest Non-Horror Movies
As Halloween approaches, our writers present to you a selection of great films that are not in the horror genre but which are nevertheless indeed terrifying. We also have a piece from the woman who lives in the house from the 80s horror film Poltergeist, and a wonderful interview with Olivia Colman and Alexander Skårsgard about their steamy folk horror film Wicker.
Don’t miss this: Writer Jeanette Winterson on AI and the future of humanity
The author believes that we are at a turning point as a species, but “there is no inevitable dystopia.” Aida Edemariam explains to him that the risks of AI do not come from the technology itself, but from the fact that, she says, “our masters use obsolete and unsuitable economic models”.
…or this: The lawyer who quit her job and became the voice of the hit Netflix series, Spike
Emily McGonagle was watching cartoons with her sons when she decided to make a career change. A decade later, she is the star of a globally popular children’s series.
Climate assessment: record high tides cause chaos throughout California
High tides caused chaos along the California coast this week, as parts of the state were inundated by record water levels. The National Weather Service has issued a series of flood advisories and warnings that will last for several days. Daniel Swain, a climate scientist, said the sharp rise in sea levels was made worse by the human-made climate crisis.
Last Thing: Visiting Norway Makes Shits ‘Great Again’ After Trump Insult
Days after the US president once again expressed his fury at failing to win the Nobel Peace Prize by calling Norway a “shithole country”, the Norwegian tourist board has chosen to lift the lid on some of the country’s finest toilets.
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