Everything you need to know about how winners are called, how states count ballots and Trump’s election denialism There’s no simple answer as to when US voters will know the results of the midterms. Elections are managed locally throughout the US, and it’s different in each state. Sometimes, if a race isn’t close, there’s a near-instantaneous sense of who won. In more contested races, it can take many hours, days or even weeks. Continue reading...
Reddit challenges ban on grounds it impinges implied freedom of political communications for teens The Australian government’s rush to pass the under-16s social media ban legislation in 2024 led to “ill-thought-out, over-broad legislation” that has since been narrowed after Reddit sued the government, lawyers for the social media company told the high court on Tuesday. Reddit, one of the top 10 websites visited in the world, has challenged the teen social media ban on the grounds that it impinges the implied freedom of political communication for under-16s. Continue reading...
US voters will decide whether Republicans will retain control of Congress or whether Democrats will rise up to stymie Trump’s agenda Donald Trump will still be US president on the morning of 4 November. But he could be facing a very different political landscape, depending on the results of the US midterm elections held the previous day. As the name implies, midterm elections fall nearly halfway through a president’s term. They are often a telling referendum on the sitting president’s performance, something Trump is actively encouraging by telling voters “pretend I’m on the ballot”. In this case, voters will decide whether Trump’s Republican party can retain its grip on Congress. All 435 seats in the House of Representatives. Republicans are defending a narrow majority, with Democrats needing a net gain of four seats to take control. 35 seats in the Senate. Thirty-three seats are up in regular elections, along with two special elections in Florida and Ohio to fill the remainder of terms that were vacated early. Republicans currently hold 53 seats, against 47 held by Democrats and independents who caucus with them. Democrats need to gain four seats to secure a majority. 39 governorships. Voters will choose governors in 36 states and three US territories. Thousands of state legislative seats, as well as local offices, judicial contests and ballot measures on issues including taxes, abortion rights and voting rules. Continue reading...
US President Donald Trump signaled progress on Tuesday in talks with Iran to avoid a return to war, as Tehran reported “intensive” exchanges while offering to reopen the Strait of Hormuz under strict conditions. The fresh diplomatic signals came ahead of US midterm elections on Tuesday, in which Trump’s Republican Party is pushing to retain control of Congress, faced with voter dissatisfaction over the conflict and the soaring fuel prices it has triggered. A deal with Tehran “could happen,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “Iran wants a settlement, as soon as possible.” But hours later, Washington’s diplomatic overtures were dashed by a report that the United States had attacked Iran, in what the Wall Street Journal said was the latest in a string of limited strikes it secretly carried out against the Islamic republic in recent weeks. Iranian state media reported five explosions in rapid succession on Qeshm island in the Strait of Hormuz. The US Central Command did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment. Earlier, oil prices plunged by more than seven per cent on Monday on optimism over a possible end to the eight-month-old conflict. The WSJ report came shortly before polls opened in the midterms, in which Democrats expect to win at least partial control of Congress and impose political constraints on Trump for the first time in two years. Reopen the strait Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Monday that indirect talks with Washington were taking place via mediators. “Given the sensitivity and gravity of the current situation, consultations and deliberations are very intensive,” Araghchi told state media. “Qatar and Pakistan are playing a very active mediating role in these negotiations.” Vice President JD Vance said both he and Trump were optimistic about securing an agreement. “We’ve certainly made some progress. We’ll see if we can make some more,” Vance told reporters on Monday. China also urged a return to diplomacy, while Iran’s security chief discussed the conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Earlier, the Axios news outlet reported that Vance had sent a letter to Iranian national security chief Mohsen Rezaei about possible new talks, marking the highest-level move in months. Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said the messages received from Washington were “an acknowledgement of our victory.” A senior Iranian official said that Tehran was ready to open the Hormuz strait, an export conduit for the energy-rich Gulf, within two days — as long as Washington agreed to its list of demands. In September, Iran proposed a seven-day plan to reopen the strait, with demands including ending the war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian assets, lifting oil sanctions and ending its counter-blockade of Iranian ports. “The possibility of implementing this plan in two days is another indication of Iran’s good-faith approach,” Tehran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters at a briefing. Chinese President Xi Jinping also discussed the war with Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq in Beijing on Monday – the first visit to China by the Gulf nation’s head of state since diplomatic ties were established. “The two sides called for resolving disputes through political and diplomatic means, urging the United States and Iran to pursue a peaceful path, achieve a ceasefire (and) prevent war entirely,” an Omani statement said. ‘No compromises’ China held meetings with Iranian and Saudi officials in Beijing on Monday as well. Beijing supports Tehran in “safeguarding its own sovereignty and security,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Ali Bagheri, deputy secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, according to a Chinese statement. Bagheri told Wang that “Tehran’s stance on defending its national security, sovereignty, and territorial integrity remains unchanged, and that Iran will make no compromises in this regard,” state TV reported. In an interview with Al Jazeera released on Sunday, Araghchi said Washington must accept a new route agreed between Iran and Oman for transiting the strait. He said Washington must also remove sanctions imposed recently and reduce American troop numbers in the region. Trump has kept up his threats against Tehran, saying on Sunday that the United States may have to give Iran “the hammer” at some unspecified time. On Saturday, the US leader said he still had to “take care” of one or two targets including Pickaxe mountain in central Iran, a suspected nuclear site which Tehran denies is such a facility. Baqaei warned that any act of aggression against Iran “will be met with a powerful, immediate and comprehensive response. “
Iranian state media reported the sound of explosions on the island in the strait of Hormuz, coming on the eve of crucial US midterms The US launched limited strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island late on Monday, according to reports in US media, hours after US vice-president JD Vance said he was optimistic diplomatic efforts to end the war were moving in the right direction. The strikes were reported as being “defensive”, and not thought to be a signal of a return to full hostilities, but came on the eve of crucial midterm elections in which Donald Trump’s Republican party is expected to be punished by voters for the cascading effect the war has had on the US cost of living. Continue reading...
South Korea’s foreign ministry said on Tuesday it was taking steps to reissue passports for all 168 people affected by an online leak of sensitive personal information, including President Lee Jae Myung and first lady Kim Hea-kyung, as police investigate how the data was exposed. “The foreign ministry is swiftly taking measures to ensure the smooth reissuance of passports for all affected individuals, including the president and first lady,” ministry spokesman Park Doo-soon said during a...
Group of 20 foreign ministers met in Atlanta amid sharp divisions over the war in Ukraine, leading to the cancellation of the official group photo and the collapse of a joint communique. The two-day summit centered on maritime security, energy markets, and supply chains while highlighting disputes over Russian participation.
Latest arrests come after DoJ unsuccessfully fought to force state election officials to set aside about 20,000 ballots US midterms – live updates The US Department of Justice (DoJ) in California has charged six more people with alleged voter fraud crimes, an escalation of the Trump administration’s campaign against the state’s election processes on the eve of the midterms. Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in Los Angeles and a close ally of the president, announced on Monday that his office was prosecuting six lawful permanent residents accused of unlawfully registering to vote and casting fraudulent ballots. The DoJ filed similar charges against 28 people across California last month and arranged for a dramatic on-camera arrest of one 72-year-old defendant, editing the footage into a DoJ promotional video. Sam Levine contributed reporting Continue reading...
South Africa will, from next year, be removed from the duty-free benefits of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), the US government announced. This was after the SA government had “constructively responded” to US concerns.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing for another wave of strikes on Iran after Tuesday’s midterm elections in the United States, according to two regional officials and a third person familiar with the matter. A return to full-scale war with Iran could help Netanyahu to form an emergency government after he and his far-right allies lost their parliamentary majority in last week’s elections. US President Donald Trump has alternated between threatening major strikes while pushing...
The two FBI agents were charged with making false statements to Congress while testifying about the bureau’s role in investigating Biden’s laptop A federal judge dismissed criminal charges against two former FBI officials who were accused of lying about their involvement in the investigation into Hunter Biden, the son of former president Joe Biden, on Monday. Magistrate Judge Zia Faruqui said prosecutors failed to show probable cause that the two former officials, Nikki Floris and Bradley Benavides, had knowingly made false statements. Continue reading...
