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Thousands of voters in a key battleground state are racing the clock to save their ballots after Republicans changed the rules.Nearly 6 percent of mail ballots counted so far in North Carolina's 2026 midterms have been flagged with problems, Democracy Docket reported Tuesday, and county monitors point to a new GOP-imposed requirement that the inner ballot envelope be completely sealed inside the outer one.The figures, compiled by the group Common Cause North Carolina from statewide data through Oct. 24, show 3,672 ballots still in jeopardy. Another 742 voters have already fixed their ballots, but about two-thirds of all problem ballots were spoiled outright.A spoiled ballot can't be repaired with a simple attestation form. Instead, voters must return a brand-new ballot or show up in person before polls close on Election Day, Nov. 3.Those voters have to "start all over again," Sailor Jones, state director of Common Cause North Carolina, told Democracy Docket. "And while it's possible to fix or cure many of these ballots before the state deadline, many of these voters shouldn't have had to."The problem is showing up even in the state's biggest, best-connected counties. In Wake County, inner envelope issues account for 53 percent of all rejections, and Spencer Berg, a deputy director with Wake County elections, said some voters have had to resubmit their ballots four or five times. Hundreds of ballots in Mecklenburg County were also rejected over the seal requirement, according to local reports."It's the largest county of urban population, great access to Wi-Fi and broadband, and those folks are still struggling to get those votes in and get those votes corrected," Jones said. "So what hope do people in rural hubs with very little broadband access and lower information channels, fewer media resources, have to correct their ballots?"

Trump loyalists lashed out at the federal judiciary Tuesday after a judge ruled against one of the president's hand-picked prosecutors.Senior U.S. District Judge J. Michael Seabright disqualified Bill Essayli on Tuesday from serving as first assistant U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, Fox News correspondent Matt Finn reported on X. Finn noted the ruling does not take effect immediately."We respectfully disagree with the court's order," Essayli said in a statement Finn shared. "The President and the Attorney General have every right to select supervisors within the Justice Department."Essayli added that the order is automatically stayed while the government seeks a full stay pending appeal, insisting, "This question will be decided by the Supreme Court, and I look forward to serving in my current role until then."Tuesday's ruling set off Trump's online allies.Jennifer Van Laar, managing editor of RedState, sarcastically wrote, "We don't have activist judges here, no, sir," before demanding that Senate Majority Leader John Thune scrap the blue slip custom, which lets home-state senators block nominees. She called the situation "INFURIATING."Political columnist Brian Cates had a blunter reaction. "What the actual f—?” he asked.Ed Martin, the Trump loyalist who led the Justice Department's weaponization working group, went further. "Impeaching Judges is Necessary at Times," he declared.Not everyone was upset. National security journalist Marcy Wheeler mocked Essayli, quipping that it turns out he "was playacting."The ruling comes after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a lower court's order disqualifying Nevada prosecutor Sigal Chattah, a decision Loyola Law School professor Laurie Levenson predicted would lead public defenders to "reinvigorate their challenge" to Essayli.Tuesday's ruling escalates a fight that began last fall. Seabright ruled in October 2025 that Essayli, a former California Republican state lawmaker, had been serving unlawfully after then-Attorney General Pam Bondi named him first assistant days before his 120-day interim term ran out, CBS News reported. That order still let Essayli stay on as first assistant, effectively keeping him atop the office.Seabright himself had signaled discomfort with the earlier ruling. He wrote last year that he shared concerns the outcome "appears to be little remedy at all," Bloomberg Law reported.So immediately after he enters a stellar argument at the TRO hearing, this happens? Of course.We don't have activist judges here, no, sir.Hey @LeaderJohnThune how about getting rid of the blue slip "tradition"? INFURIATING— Jennifer Van Laar (@jenvanlaar) October 28, 2026

A federal judge on Tuesday ruled that Bill Essayli, a scandal-plagued federal prosecutor in southern California, is disqualified from overseeing several cases.According to The Guardian, the ruling is stayed for the time being and won’t take immediate effect while the Trump administration appeals.Essayli said he "respectfully disagrees" with the order, arguing that “the President and the Attorney General have every right to select supervisors within the Justice Department.” He said the question will ultimately "be decided by the Supreme Court" and that he looks forward "to serving in my current role until then."The Trump administration previously appointed Essayli to be a U.S. Attorney in California, but federal courts determined he was not lawfully appointed to that role. Since then, the Justice Department has been effectively ignoring that ruling by naming him as an "assistant" in charge of cases in the jurisdiction — the role this new court order finds to be illegal.In recent weeks, Essayli has been helming a legal case against California, accusing the state of allowing noncitizens onto their voter rolls. Essayli has faced scrutiny from legal observers for skirting ethics lines related to the case; he publicly called California Gov. Gavin Newsom a "fraud king" on social media at the same time he is litigating the issue.Immediately prior to the ruling being issued, the judge hearing the arguments appeared highly skeptical of Essayli's legitimacy as a federal prosecutor.

Visitors could be forgiven for thinking they'd stumbled across the training ground for the next olympic games during their recent visit to a Chinese zoo.

Kiarious Marshun Hall and his wife, Jazmine Hall, were attending their daughter's game at Imperial Park in Sugar Land, Texas, on Saturday when the violence occurred.

President Donald Trump's Justice Department wasted no time trying to salvage his plans for a historic Washington golf course after a judge blocked them.On Tuesday, the DOJ filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, challenging U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes' order granting a preliminary injunction in the fight over East Potomac Golf Links. Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward Jr. signed the filing alongside attorneys from the department's Environment and Natural Resources Division.Reyes issued the injunction Monday. It bars the Trump administration from removing or damaging any more trees at the course and requires 10 business days' written notice before any irreparable changes to East Potomac Park while the case plays out, NBC News reported. The order came two weeks after the government cut down more than 400 trees over the Columbus Day holiday weekend.In her ruling, Reyes pointed to Trump's own Truth Social posts, which contradicted sworn testimony from government employees and arguments from senior Justice Department attorneys."Rarely, if ever, has the United States Department of Justice urged a federal court not to believe the sitting President," Reyes wrote. "And yet, here we are."The judge also concluded in her 70-page opinion that the Trump administration likely violated environmental laws, according to reporting by ABC News.Trump fired back late Monday, vowing an immediate appeal and insisting the course would still close Nov. 15 for renovations. He complained that giving advance notice to a judge with "no expertise in Golf, Architecture, Landscaping, Construction" was unfair and unconstitutional, CNN reported.At a gaggle with reporters after his Mississippi rally Monday night, Trump also mocked Reyes as an "architectural critic of golf courses," ABC News reported.On Tuesday, Reyes gave the Trump administration roughly 24 hours to clarify whether a plan exists to close the golf course and how it squares with what its lawyers previously told her, according to reporting by NPR.

After becoming the first British player in 25 years to win the Ballon d'Or, the most prestigious honour in football, family man Harry Kane celebrated by dancing with his mum at a London nightclub.

MasterChef Australia surprised fans in April when none other than Meghan Markle made a shock appearance on the cooking reality show.

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott reported a number of tech-related donations as his race against Democrat Gina Hinojosa heads to the finish line.