EL PASO, Texas — Sen. Ted Cruz fended off a spirited underdog challenge from Democrat Beto O'Rourke to win re-election on Tuesday in a Texas race that once seemed like a cakewalk but needed a late boost from President Donald Trump to help push the incumbent over the top. Cruz...
Massachusetts Sends 1st Black Woman to Congress
WASHINGTON — Democrat Ayanna Pressley has completed her quest to become Massachusetts' first black woman elected to Congress. Pressley is also the first African-American to serve on the Boston City Council. She sailed through Tuesday's general election to Congress unopposed, two months after unseating 10-term Rep. Michael Capuano in a...
AP Survey: Trump a Dominant Force on Voters’ Minds
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump was a dominant force in the 2018 midterm elections as attitudes toward the polarizing leader influenced the decisions of more than 6 in 10 voters. Nearly 40 percent of voters cast their ballots to express opposition to the president, according to AP VoteCast, a national...
Trump Views Midterms Through Presidency-Defining Lens
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump knows he's on the line. The president spent Election Day calling allies, tweeting endorsements and following news coverage, after concluding a six-day rally blitz in Missouri late Monday. Trump packed his closing argument with hardline immigration rhetoric and harsh attacks on Democrats as he...
Election Pits Trump’s Incendiary Politics vs Dem Resistance
WASHINGTON — A turbulent election season that tested President Donald Trump's slash-and-burn political style against the strength of the Democratic resistance comes to a close as Americans cast ballots in the first national election of the Trump era. With voters going to the polls Tuesday, nothing is certain. Weather could...
Enthusiasm Bump Not Reflected in Early California Voting
SACRAMENTO — The enthusiasm both parties say exists in the electorate hasn't yet translated into early voting in California, where the percentage of people who have voted so far is similar to this time four years ago. Voters who are Republican, white and older are sending in their ballots early at...
Lock Her Up? Now It's Dianne Feinstein Instead of Clinton
COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — Chants of "Lock her up!" rang once again throughout an Iowa arena as President Donald Trump rallied supporters Tuesday night. But this time, the staple of Trump's 2016 campaign against Democrat Hillary Clinton had a new target: California Sen. Dianne Feinstein. Trump, who was in the...
Cox and Newsom Debate Cost of Living, Criminal Justice
SAN FRANCISCO — The two men hoping to be California's next governor said during a Monday debate that the cost of living is the top issue facing the state. Republican John Cox and Democrat Gavin Newsom squared off at San Francisco public radio station KQED — their only face-off ahead...
Supreme Court Nominee Kavanaugh Clears Crucial Senate Hurdle
WASHINGTON — A deeply divided Senate pushed Brett Kavanaugh's Supreme Court nomination past a key procedural hurdle Friday, setting up a likely final showdown this weekend in a battle that's seen claims of long-ago sexual assault by the nominee threaten President Donald Trump's effort to tip the court rightward for...
Trump Predicts Havoc If Democrats Take Over Congress
JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. — As the fate of his Supreme Court pick hangs in the balance, President Donald Trump barnstormed for a Republican Senate candidate in Tennessee, warning that Democrats will unleash havoc if they gain control of Congress and accusing them of trying to sink his nominee. "A Democratic...