message

Richard Rider would love to have Gov. Pete Wilson’s job. He dreams of hacking away at bureaucracy, crushing all new tax legislation under a huge rubber stamp that reads “VETO.” He’s even imagined the sound this would make: whoooomp!

Rider, the Libertarian candidate for governor, is a realist, however. The 49-year-old stockbroker from San Diego knows that a minor party candidate such as himself has no hope of being elected governor Nov. 8. Still, he thinks he can help defeat Wilson (whom Rider deems a “wimp” and a “Benedict Arnold” masquerading as a Republican), which is why, not long ago, he wrote Democrat Kathleen Brown a letter asking for $500,000.

“I’m the Libertarian Party gubernatorial candidate. Normally that might elicit nothing more from you than a yawn. But I can get you elected,” Rider wrote. “What you need is a third candidate to drain votes from Wilson. I can do that. . . . Dollar for dollar, there is no better use for your campaign funds than in my race for governor.”

Rider’s pitch must have sounded presumptuous coming from a man unknown to most Californians. Like the other minor party candidates for governor–Jerome McCready of the American Independent Party and Gloria La Riva of the Peace & Freedom Party–Rider was not invited to participate in the recent televised debate between Wilson and Brown. He lacks money, exposure and governmental experience.

But Rider has one very powerful thing going for him: a dissatisfied electorate. A recent Times poll shows that California voters are unhappy with Brown and Wilson and that three out of every five are planning to vote for the “lesser of two evils” for governor. If just a tiny fraction of those people vote for a so-called third party candidate, political analysts say, it could alter the race.

“In this state, where elections are won or lost by 1 or 2 points, third party candidates can decide elections,” said Bill Press, chairman of the California Democratic Party, who has followed Rider’s candidacy with interest. “If I had an extra $500,000, I would give it to Richard Rider and it would be money well spent. . . . Every vote he gets is one vote Pete Wilson doesn’t.”

Taken together, the four minor parties that have qualified to appear on the California ballot–American Independent, Green, Libertarian, and Peace & Freedom–represent 456,000 voters, or about 3% of the state’s electorate.

The American Independent and Libertarian parties, though they differ on many principles, are both committed to strictly limiting the power of government and to cutting taxes. Conventional wisdom says that to vote for one of these parties’ candidates is to take a vote away from a Republican candidate.

The Green and the Peace & Freedom parties, though also very different from one another, both seek social justice and equality. These parties are more likely to appeal to voters who might otherwise cast ballots for Democrats.

These minor parties’ candidates face an uphill battle. Virtually ignored by the press and by their more mainstream rivals, they have trouble raising the money needed for expensive broadcast advertising and direct mail flyers. As a result, minor party candidates can campaign tirelessly, making speeches and walking precincts, and still remain largely unknown.

La Riva, the Peace & Freedom candidate for governor, is a printer and labor organizer in San Francisco. McCready, the American Independent nominee, runs a shop that sells pre-hung doors and other construction materials in Castroville. Rider, who closed his financial planning business at the end of last year, is the only minor party candidate who has campaigned for governor full time.

Nevertheless, Press, the Democratic Party chairman, believes that politicians who ignore these alternative candidates do so at their own peril. This year, he has gone so far as to donate his own money to keep a Green Party gubernatorial candidate from competing with Brown.

Leading up to the June primary election, three candidates were vying for the Green gubernatorial nomination–despite widespread concern within the party that a Green nominee would siphon votes from Brown in the general election. Then, one Green leader launched a campaign urging Greens to vote for “None of the Above”–an option that allows Greens to choose no candidate.

Eager to safeguard Brown voters, Press sent a $500 donation to the none-of-the-above campaign, dubbed Friends of Nobody. Then he sent letters to his friends asking them to do the same.

“I raised $5,000 to $6,000 or more for their campaign,” Press said proudly, recalling that the effort to gain more votes for no one than for any of the candidates was successful. “Nobody won. Which I considered a victory.”

Third party candidates are familiar with this kind of circular reasoning. They see no shame in losing, as long as they have introduced new ideas into the race. And they believe that every vote cast for a minor party candidate puts a little more pressure on the major parties to shape up.

That is why a conservative such as Rider is working so hard to help a Democrat such as Brown. Rider is probably the only Brown supporter who wants to do away with state income taxes, abolish the workers’ compensation system and phase out all welfare payments. He wants to repeal the law that requires motorcyclists to wear helmets. He believes the Endangered Species Act will result in the nationalization of all property. And he supports the death penalty–which Brown opposes, though she pledges to enforce it as governor.

“Obviously, I’m no fan of the Democrats’ pipe dream of a socialist utopia. . . . Kathleen Brown would make a terrible governor,” Rider said.

But Brown would do less damage than Wilson, Rider added, and a Brown victory would send a clear signal to the GOP. If he could do that, Rider said, he would feel like a winner no matter how badly he lost.

And, he said, Wilson is not a true Republican.

“Brown is a very ineffective Democrat. Wilson is a very effective Democrat. It’s time the Republican Party stopped running stealth Democrats for governor,” Rider said. “If I pull enough conservative votes to cause Wilson to lose, then Republicans will have to start running real limited-government candidates such as Ron Unz.”

Rider is a big fan of Unz, the 32-year-old Silicon Valley entrepreneur who challenged Wilson for the Republican gubernatorial nomination last spring. Before the primary, Rider endorsed Unz, knowing full well it might cost him some votes. Then after Unz lost, while winning 34% of the Republican vote, Rider began presenting himself as the next best thing.

Unz recently wrote letters that were published in the state’s major newspapers urging his supporters not to launch an Unz write-in campaign Nov. 8. Although he stopped short of endorsing Rider, Unz asked the 700,000 people who voted for him to support “candidates up and down the ticket who are true to the core values of the Republican Party–smaller government, lower taxes and fewer regulations.”

Rider said that is as good as an Unz endorsement. After all, Rider proposes cutting 90% of all state regulations. And he so abhors taxes that he closed his financial planning office in large part to avoid paying them.

“I was working until July 19 for the government,” he said. “For a Libertarian, that’s unacceptable.”

Rider has made sacrifices to run for governor. To enable him to afford campaigning full time, Rider and his wife pulled their two sons out of private school. (“May God forgive me for that,” he said.) The campaign, headquartered in one of his spare bedrooms with a “Rider for Governor” bumper sticker taped to the door, is truly no-frills.

His phones are answered by two volunteers–retirees who refer to Rider as “Guv.” When Rider is on the road, he often sleeps on supporters’ couches. Recently, when he heard about a promotion for a time-share condominium, he and his wife went and sat through the pitch. The reason: In exchange for their time, they received free plane tickets to San Francisco, a city where Rider wanted to campaign.

Most of the $40,000 Rider has been able to raise has gone to buy cable television time for his lone commercial, which features the candidate in a butcher’s smock, whacking a sausage with a meat cleaver and exclaiming, “Wilson won’t cut taxes, but I will!” By Nov. 8 this spot will have aired in the state’s five major media markets, and Rider hopes that combined with his frequent talk-radio appearances, it will get people’s attention.

Wilson campaign officials do not appear worried. With the latest Times poll showing the incumbent 9 points ahead of Brown among likely voters, Rider is barely a blip on the radar screen.

But against all odds, Rider perseveres. He knows that some people see voting for him as a waste.

“We’ve been taught since childhood that third parties are dangerous or crazy or both,” he said, recalling that when he first heard about the Libertarian Party in the 1970s he thought it was a “left-wing, commie group.”

“And yeah, sure, we’re not going to win,” he said. “But the success of a third party is in changing the direction of the country. . . . You vote to send a message to whoever’s in power that this is the direction you want to go.”

Meanwhile, the fund-raising message Rider sent Brown has yet to yield a single penny. Brown campaign spokesman John Whitehurst said he was unaware of the letter asking for $500,000.

Rider is not bitter. If Brown is not farsighted enough to see that a hefty donation to Rider for Governor could result in her own election, he said, it is her loss.

“I keep checking the mail,” he said. “Without my effort, they’re dead meat.”

A 22-year-old influencer and Latin musician was killed in an ambush-style shooting in Northridge in the early hours of Saturday morning, authorities said.

Maria de la Rosa was fatally shot when multiple rounds were fired at several people sitting in a car parked on Bryant Street near Tampa Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Witnesses described seeing two men approach the vehicle around 1:25 a.m. Saturday, police said. De la Rosa was transported to a hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.

No further information was available on the suspects or whether the others inside the car were wounded.

De la Rosa released her first song, “No me llames” (“Don’t Call Me”) in August under the name DELAROSA. The most recent post on her Instagram account, which has more than 40,000 followers, shows her with an electric guitar in a recording studio and is captioned “Ocupada cocinando en el Stu,” meaning “Busy cooking in the Stu[dio],” alluding to the upcoming release of more music.

Many people left messages expressing grief for the loss of the young performer in the comments, including several figures in the Latin music community such as music producer Jimmy Humilde and Juan Moises, the lead singer of Los Gemelos de Sinaloa.

In a message in Spanish, music producer and engineer Times J Martinez wrote that she was a young and talented musician.

“Me duele que alla sido con violencia,” he wrote, or “It hurts that it happened with violence.”

The motive for De la Rosa’s shooting is unknown, and so far no arrests have been made, police said. Anyone with information is asked to contact Valley Bureau homicide detectives at (818) 374-9550. Anonymous tips can be left at (800) 222-8477 or at the Crime Stoppers website.

Tiffany Calver has quit her role on BBC Radio 1 after seven years on air and has been inundated with messages from her celebrity friends over her decision to step down

A broadcaster has quit her role on BBC Radio 1 with an emotional message. Tiffany Calver, 31, first joined the station in 2019 as a replacement for fellow DJ Charlie Sloth but announced on Friday evening that she had made the decision to ‘move on’ after so many years on air.

She took to social media to post a lengthy statement in which she admitted it had been ‘sheer magic’ to have had that job but that it was time to move on. She wrote: “Hey friends. I’d like to share that I’ve made the decision to move on from 1Xtra.

“It’s quite hard to put into words just what it means to be given the opportunity to live your dream for as many years as I have had the pleasure of doing. I will never be able to quite explain the sheer magic that happens when you press play on that first song, or greet your listeners for the first time on air every week, and I will miss it dearly.”

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During her time at the radio station, Tiffany became known for curating playlists and made history as the first female to host Radio 1’s Rap Show before moving on to her current position.

She added: “I am so grateful for the memories made and for the opportunity to grow as a broadcaster during my time in one of the best places for radio in the world. I feel like now is the right time for me to continue to grow, but from outside of the station.

“Most importantly, I want to thank those of you who have tuned in and spent some time with me and my never-ending quest to keep finding and sharing the music I love with you all every week. That part will never change, as big as this might feel.

Tiffany was inundated with messages from celebrity pals, including Little Mix star Jade Thirlwall, who wrote: “We [love] you! Excited for your next chapter,” whilst Love Island host Maya Jama wrote: “gwan!” and emblazoned her comment with a series of clapping hand emojis.

BBC’s RadioXtra account wrote: “You’re going to be SO missed! Thanks for 7 incredible years of passion and for championing the artists who matter!”

When Tiffany landed her own show in 2023, Kenny Allstar took over from her on Rap Show. At the time, he said: “From the age of 11, I remember taking my mother’s cassette tapes to record The Rap Show on Saturdays.

“This was more than a radio show it was my entire social life. I always wanted to one day be the host of this powerful slot on these powerful networks.

“I hope to uphold the legacy that Tiffany left in place and continue to showcase the hottest in Hip Hop music on a global scale”.

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1 of 2 | American Catholic bishops pictured April 2008 singing in the Crypt Church of the Basilica of the National Shrine in Washington, D.C. On Wednesday, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops issued sharp criticism to the Trump administration’s ongoing mass deportation of immigrants. File Photo by Alexis C. Glenn/UPI | License Photo

Nov. 13 (UPI) — America’s Catholic bishops sent sharp criticism of rising fear in the United States and ongoing mass deportations in a rebuke of Trump administration immigration policy.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said its some 273 active bishops were “disturbed” to see that “among our people a climate of fear and anxiety around questions of profiling and immigration enforcement.”

“We are saddened by the state of contemporary debate and the vilification of immigrants,” the group wrote in its statement.

It arrived after U.S.-born Pope Leo XIV directed bishops in the United States to be vocal and speak out against President Donald Trump‘s hardline crackdown on migration.

The U.S. religious leaders approved the rare “special message” with 5 votes against and 3 abstentions of 216 ballots cast at its meeting Wednesday in Baltimore, Md.

“We recognize that nations have a responsibility to regulate their borders and establish a just and orderly immigration system for the sake of the common good,” the plethora of all-male bishops added. “Without such processes, immigrants face the risk of trafficking and other forms of exploitation. Safe and legal pathways serve as an antidote to such risks.”

It marked the first time in 12 years the USCCB invoked its urgent way of collectively speaking as a body.

“We are concerned about the conditions in detention centers and the lack of access to pastoral care,” the bishops added. “We lament that some immigrants in the United States have arbitrarily lost their legal status.”

Trump has targeted immigration enforcement in Democratic-run cities such as the nation’s capital, Los Angeles and in Chicago with the presence of masked ICE agents leading to violent activity, arrests and sprayed tear gas.

The bishops wrote that Catholic teaching “exhorts nations to recognize the fundamental dignity of all persons, including immigrants.”

“We bishops advocate for a meaningful reform of our nation’s immigration laws and procedures,” they continued. “Human dignity and national security are not in conflict.”

The new pope has called for an end to Israel’s war in Gaza with the militant wing Hamas, expanded access to much-needed aid for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees and children and a cease to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

On Wednesday, the Catholic leaders said national security and human dignity both “are possible if people of good will work together.

Jeremy Renner, a star in the “Avengers” universe and the HBO series “Mayor of Kingstown,” is facing allegations of misconduct from filmmaker Yi Zhou.

In an extensive series of posts on Instagram last week Zhou alleges that beginning in June Renner sent “a string of unwanted / unsolicited pornographic images.” After a relationship over calls and text, according to Zhou, “The first physical encounter was not consensual. … Later interactions became consensual, yet the earlier incident remained deeply distressing.” Another post claims that Renner “threatened to call immigration/ICE on me,” which left her “shocked and frightened.”

A representative for Renner responded to a request for comment Sunday by saying, “The accusations being made by this individual are totally inaccurate and untrue.”

Many of Zhou’s Instagram posts, which include images of supposed messages between the two of them and what appear to be candid, personal photos of the actor, added the hashtag “#CancelJeremyRenner.”

Zhou, born in China and based in Los Angeles, has directed two films, the documentary “Masters of Cinema: Chronicles of Disney” and the animated “Stardust Future,” which she says Renner participated in and then refused to promote.

People reported that Renner’s attorney, Marty Singer, sent Zhou a cease-and-desist letter to prevent further “salacious lies” on Friday. A message to Singer’s office Sunday was not immediately returned.

In one of her posts, Zhou wrote of her motivation for speaking out. “My intention is not retaliation but transparency,” she said. “I have the right to protect my professional reputation, to set boundaries, and to correct misinformation when selective reporting distorts the facts.” She posted a cease-and-desist letter she purportedly emailed to Renner on Instagram asking him to stop “any form of verbal abuse, yelling or intimidation.”

In a 2025 interview with the Guardian promoting his memoir “My Last Breath,” which chronicles the 2023 accident involving an industrial snowcat that nearly killed him, Renner denied previous allegations of misconduct — substance abuse and a verbal threat — that came out in a custody dispute with his ex-wife Sonni Pacheco over their daughter, Ava.

“Being accused of things you’ve not done, right? That doesn’t feel good to anybody,” Renner said. “It certainly doesn’t feel good when you’re a celebrity and it’s known to everybody.”

Strictly Come Dancing’s Vicky Pattison and her professional partner Kai Widdrington topped the leaderboard on Saturday night (November 8) with 39 points

Strictly Come Dancing’s Vicky Pattison was over the moon as she achieved her highest score of the series, topping the leaderboard.

On Saturday night (November 8), Vicky and her professional partner Kai Widdrington wowed the audience with a Tango to Taylor Swift’s The Fate Of Ophelia.

The pair ended the night on a high note, achieving their personal best score of the series – an impressive 39 points. Craig Revel Horwood was full of praise, describing the performance as “perfect”, while Anton Du Beke admitted he was “a bit stunned” because it was “that good”.

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He enthused: “I thought it was absolutely marvellous. I loved it. Your line is the best line I’ve ever seen. It was immaculate.” Meanwhile, Motsi Mabuse and head judge Shirley Ballas declared it their “dance of the night”, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Motsi gushed: “Last week I said you were a contender for the final, and this dance just proved what I meant. You confirmed my intuition. Without a doubt, you are on fire. Whatever is giving you that fire – keep it up. This was for me, till now, the dance of the night.”

After the show, Vicky took to Instagram to share her disbelief, posting a snapshot of the leaderboard with the caption: “This can not be real”. Saturday’s episode marked the halfway point of the series, with nine couples taking to the dance floor.

Hot on their heels in second place were West End star Amber Davies and professional dancer Nikita Kuzmin, who performed a Salsa to You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) by Sylvester.

The duo bagged two perfect 10s, racking up a total of 38 points – their highest in the series, which Craig enthusiastically labelled as: “Ah-mazing”.

Follow our Strictly Come Dancing blog by clicking here.

ROCK legend Jon Bon Jovi is the next big name star to join CBeebies Bedtime Story slot.

And he uses his stint to share a loving message about his new granddaughter.

Jon has gushed about his new family role since his son Jake Bongiovi and wife Millie Bobby Brown adopted a baby girl.

The Bon Jovi singer said: “Some of my favourite things in life are music and being a grandad – or as I like to say,‘papa’ – and going on adventures.

“When my grandchildren are a little older, I can’t wait to take them on amazing adventures.

“Music has played a part in all of my kids’ childhoods and I’m looking forward to watching my children become parents and seeing our grandchildren become part of our lives.

 “It’s not about what I’m going to teach my grandchildren, but what they’re going to teach me!”

The TV storytelling gig has welcomed everyone from Harry Styles to Idris Elba to the bedtime armchair.

Jon has chosen to read his friend Paul McCartney’s book Hey Grandude! tomorrow night (Friday 7 November) at 6.50pm on CBeebies and BBC iPlayer.

He added: “I picked Hey Grandude! because it’s written by the great Paul McCartney, singer, songwriter, storyteller.

“He’s someone I’ve always admired and looked up to, not just for his music but for his parenting and grandparenting skills. He’s a dear friend and someone we all admire.”

Jon will also feature in an episode of the CBeebies Parenting Helpline podcast, out November 27 on the CBeebies Parenting website and BBC Sounds.

He will pose a question about when (and when not) to give parenting advice to your own children.

NEW YORK — With the Pentagon’s press room largely cleared of mainstream reporters, conservative activist and presidential ally Laura Loomer says she has been granted a credential to work there.

Loomer has an influential social media presence and the ear of President Trump, frequently campaigning for the firings of government officials she deems insufficiently loyal to his administration. Some targets have been in the field of national security, including Dan Driscoll, secretary of the Army.

Pentagon officials did not immediately return a message seeking comment on Tuesday. The Washington Post first reported the news of her attaining credentials.

Virtually all Pentagon reporters for legacy media outlets walked out last month rather than agree to a new policy they say would restrict their ability to report news not given approval for release by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Several right-wing outlets have taken their place, although the banned journalists are continuing to work on stories related to the Pentagon.

“I’m excited to announce that after a year of breaking the most impactful stories that pertain to our national security and rooting out deceptive and disloyal bad actors” from the Defense Department, she was ready to join the press corps, Loomer said on X, formerly Twitter. She did not immediately return a message seeking comment.

Earlier this year, she criticized Driscoll for publicly honoring a Medal of Honor recipient who had previously spoken at a Democratic National Convention. Separately, Driscoll rescinded the appointment of a former Biden administration official to teach at West Point after Loomer attacked him for it.

Although Trump later downplayed Loomer’s influence, the president last spring fired a handful of National Security Council officials after she had presented him with evidence of their supposed disloyalty.

Still, she’s been a polarizing force among some in the administration, wary of her influence, which has included riding on Air Force One with Trump. Although granted space in the Pentagon press room, Loomer has not received reporting credentials at the White House. Loomer has also been criticized for entertaining conspiracy theories and making anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim posts.

“There is no denying that my investigative reporting has had a massive impact on the landscape of personnel decisions within the Executive Branch, our intelligence agencies and the Pentagon,” Loomer wrote on X. “I look forward to covering the Pentagon and breaking more stories that impact our country and our national security.”

In her social media post, she also reached out to people to alert her to news through “the Loomered Tip Line, the most influential Tip Line in all of DC.”

Phil Stewart, a national security reporter for Reuters, noted on a social media post Tuesday that Hegseth’s new media policy would make reporters subject to having their access revoked for seeking out information from Defense Department personnel that had not been authorized for release.

However, Loomer’s appeal for tips did not explicitly target people who work at the Defense Department.

Bauder writes for the Associated Press.

NEW YORK — Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City on Tuesday, capping a stunning ascent for the 34-year-old state lawmaker, who was set to become the city’s most liberal mayor in generations.

In a victory for the Democratic party’s progressive wing, Mamdani defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious — skeptics say unrealistic — campaign promises.

With the victory, the democratic socialist will etch his place in history as the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage and the first born in Africa. He will also become the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office Jan. 1.

Mamdani’s unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive, left-wing candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party.

It was one of three victories by Democrats in high-profile races for elective office that were being viewed as a gauge of public sentiment toward President Trump in his second term. In California, voters were expected to approve Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Proposition 50, a redistricting measure aimed at boosting Democrats’ chances in the midterm elections.

In New Jersey, Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill was elected New Jersey governor over Republican Jack Ciattarelli, who was endorsed by Trump.

Sherrill, a 53-year-old Navy veteran who represented a northern New Jersey district in the U.S. House for four terms, will be the state’s second female governor.

Democrat Abigail Spanberger won the Virginia governor’s race, defeating Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears to give Democrats a key victory heading into the 2026 midterm elections and make history as the first woman to lead the commonwealth.

Spanberger, 46, is a center-left Democrat and former CIA case officer who helped her party win a House majority during Trump’s first presidency.

Economic worries were the dominant concern as voters cast ballots for Tuesday’s elections, according to preliminary findings from the AP Voter Poll.

The results of the expansive survey of more than 17,000 voters in New Jersey, Virginia, California and New York City suggested the public was troubled by an economy that seems trapped by higher prices and fewer job opportunities.

Mamdani has already faced scrutiny from national Republicans, including Trump, who have eagerly cast him as a threat and the face of what they say is a more radical Democratic Party.

The contest drove the biggest turnout in a mayoral race in more than 50 years, with more than 2 million New Yorkers casting ballots, according to the city’s Board of Elections.

Mamdani’s grassroots campaign centered on affordability, and his charisma spoiled Cuomo’s attempted political comeback. The former governor, who resigned four years ago following allegations of sexual harassment that he continues to deny, was dogged by his past throughout the race and was criticized for running a negative campaign.

There’s also the question of how he will deal with Trump, who threatened to take over the city and to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won. Mamdani was born in Uganda, where he spent his early childhood, but was raised in New York City and became a U.S. citizen in 2018.

Mamdani, who was criticized throughout the campaign for his thin resume, will now have to begin staffing his incoming administration before taking office next year and game out how he plans to accomplish the ambitious but polarizing agenda that drove him to victory.

Among the campaign’s promises are free child care, free city bus service, city-run grocery stores and a new Department of Community Safety that would send mental health care workers to handle certain emergency calls rather than police officers. It is unclear how Mamdani will pay for such initiatives, given Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul’s steadfast opposition to his calls to raise taxes on wealthy people.

His decisions around the leadership of the New York Police Department will also be closely watched. Mamdani was a fierce critic of the department in 2020, calling for “this rogue agency” to be defunded and slamming it as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety.” He has since apologized for those comments and has said he will ask the current NYPD commissioner to stay on the job.

Mamdani’s campaign was driven by his optimistic view of the city and his promises to improve the quality of life for its middle and lower classes.

But Cuomo, Sliwa and other critics assailed him over his vehement criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Mamdani, a longtime advocate of Palestinian rights, has accused Israel of committing genocide and said he would honor an arrest warrant the International Criminal Court issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Going into the Democratic primary, Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed federal corruption case.

But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos and populist economic platform energized voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name ID grew.

In New Jersey, Sherrill built her campaign around pushing back against Trump. She recently seized on the administration’s decision to abruptly freeze funding for a multibillion-dollar project to replace the aging rail tunnels that connect New Jersey to New York City beneath the Hudson River.

Spanberger’s victory in Virginia will flip partisan control of the governor’s office when she succeeds outgoing Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin.

“We sent a message to every corner of the commonwealth, a message to our neighbors and our fellow Americans across the country,” Spanberger told cheering supporters in Richmond. “We sent a message to the whole word that in 2025, Virginia chose pragmatism over partisanship. We chose our commonwealth over chaos.”

Izaguirre and Colvin write for the Associated Press. AP writers Mike Catalini, Adriana Gomez Licon, Olivia Diaz and Bill Barrow contributed to this report.