Amarillo voters reject abortion “travel ban,” a rare rebuke of anti-abortion movement in Texas
Tuesday’s vote was a rare chance for Texans to vote directly on abortion restrictions. The state already has a near-total abortion ban.
Cal Hendrick wins Odessa mayor’s race, beating incumbent who focused on faith
Odessa City Council critics have worried Joven and his allies have focused too much on social issues and not enough on infrastructure.
Monica De La Cruz retains GOP control of South Texas congressional district
De La Cruz defeated Democrat Michelle Vallejo for Texas’ 15th Congressional District in a rematch from two years ago.
GOP Rep Monica De La Cruz projected to win re-election in Texas, fending off Democrat Michelle Vallejo
Republican Rep. Monica De La Cruz is projected to again defeat Democrat challenger Michelle Vallejo in Texas’ 15th Congressional District on Tuesday. The 2024 election is not the first time De La Cruz and Vallejo have faced off for the seat. CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE 2024 ELECTION De La Cruz and Vallejo ran against each other in the 2022 midterm elections, with De La Cruz defeating Vallejo to become the first Republican to represent the traditionally deep-blue district since 1901. WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLS INDICATE IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN In 2020, De La Cruz ran against then-incumbent Democrat Rep. Vicente Gonzalez Jr. but was defeated. The seat was redrawn following the 2020 census and includes a region of South Texas along the U.S.-Mexico border in the Rio Grande Valley. Both De La Cruz and Vallejo are the children of Mexican immigrants. In 2022, Vallejo picked up the support of top liberal politicians like Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and she is a strong supporter of abortion rights and Medicare for all. The district has a majority-Hispanic electorate. In the 118th Congress, De La Cruz served on the House Agriculture Committee, the House Committee on Financial Services and is a member of a number of caucuses, including the Bipartisan Women’s Caucus, of which she is the vice chair. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Top Republican Bryan Steil’s re-election in Wisconsin projected by Associated Press
Republican Rep. Bryan Steil, chair of the House Administration Committee, is projected to win re-election in Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District on Tuesday, defeating Democrat opponent Peter Barca, according to the Associated Press. Also running in the race was Green Party candidate Chester Todd Jr. Steil was first elected to Congress in 2018 and currently serves as the top member of a crucial congressional committee. In 2020, he won his first re-election race against Democrat Roger Polack by a significant margin. He then defeated Democrat Ann Roe in 2022 by a somewhat smaller number to hold onto his seat. CHECK OUT OUR FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB HERE The 2024 race was considered “Likely Republican” by a top political handicapper, the Cook Political Report. Before Steil, Wisconsin’s 1st District was represented by then-House Speaker Paul Ryan. TOP REPUBLICANS PROBE BIDEN ADMIN ON AFGHAN NATIONALS’ ALLEGED ELECTION DAY TERRORIST PLOT In Steil’s capacity as chair of the House Administration Committee, he manages daily operations in the lower chamber. The committee is responsible for setting budget authorizations for committee expenses and individual member expenses. It also conducts oversight of House officers. HARRIS BREAKS SILENCE AFTER GOP LEADERS SAY ANTI-TRUMP RHETORIC ‘RISKS INVITING’ ANOTHER ASSASSINATION ATTEMPT Meanwhile, Barca was a member of the American Federation of Teachers before becoming involved in politics. According to his website, he was in the Wisconsin State Legislature for two decades and spent seven years as the assembly minority leader. He was formerly the secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Revenue up until early 2024. SEN TAMMY BALDWIN HITS BACK AT GOP OPPONENT’S CLINTON COMPARISON: ‘ACTUALLY CALLED YOU DEPLORABLE’ Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District includes parts of Kenosha, Milwaukee, Racine, Rock, Walworth and Waukesha counties. Waukesha County was notably considered one of the top battleground counties in the entire country ahead of the 2024 presidential election. The race between Steil and Barca was one of many that was expected to determine which party gains the majority in the House in the next Congress beginning in 2025. Steil’s seat was eyed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee early on, with the group including him in their offensive target list. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
GOP Rep Thomas Kean projected to survive Susan Altman’s challenge in hotly contested New Jersey district
Incumbent Republican Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. is projected to win re-election Tuesday night to represent New Jersey’s hotly contested 7th Congressional District in the House of Representatives. CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE 2024 ELECTION The contest was widely viewed as one of the most competitive races in the state and considered a battleground, as the district voted for President Biden in 2020. Kean was the Republicans’ 175th projected victory of the evening, according to the Associated Press’s tally at the time of the race call. The seat has alternated between Republican and Democrat for several cycles, with Kean first being elected in 2022. Kean worked for former President George H. W. Bush and served in both the New Jersey General Assembly and the state Senate. He is the grandson of former U.S. Rep. Robert Kean and the son of former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean Sr. Kean, this cycle, said he was most focused on the economy and on “keeping costs low for families” in his district. WHAT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POLLS INDICATE IN THE HARRIS-TRUMP SHOWDOWN Meanwhile, Altman is a former women’s college basketball player for Columbia University. She later played professionally in Europe for Killester in the Irish Women’s Super League in Dublin and for Medical Instinct Veilchen in Goettingen, Germany. Altman has said she grew up in a family of Republicans but that her time at Columbia made her more liberal. Protecting women in sports has been a hot topic this election cycle, as Republicans seek to keep biological males out of women’s sports competitions and locker rooms. Altman told the New York Post that she and others in women’s locker rooms are not worried about the presence of transgender athletes. Altman also advocated for allowing transgender athletes in girls’ sports at the youth level but suggested she would be in favor of leaving individual committees the decision to allow those athletes to compete. New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District is among several seats encircling New York City that could determine who controls the House. Fox News Power Rankings showed the district leans Republican. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Biden-district Republican Nick LaLota projected to win re-election in New York
First-term Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., is projected to win the battle for a second term in Congress, a critical victory for House GOP leaders as they fight to keep their majority. He defeated Democrat John Avlon, a former CNN anchor, the Associated Press projects, in a race that was expected to slightly favor Republicans but run tight overall. The 2022 election cycle saw residents of suburban New York and California rebel against local cities’ progressive crime policies, leading to Republicans sweeping key seats outside the Big Apple, Los Angeles and the Bay Area. LaLota’s district, which leans more to the right than several of his neighboring House constituencies, is one of 16 seats represented by a Republican that President Biden won in 2020. CLUB FOR GROWTH POURS $5M INTO TIGHT HOUSE RACES AS GOP BRACES FOR TOUGH ELECTION New York’s 1st Congressional District is located on Long Island, a suburban stretch of land just outside New York City. It includes a wide range of voters, from ultra-wealthy residents of the Hamptons to farm-centered communities like Jamesport. SPEAKER JOHNSON RIPS ‘LACK OF LEADERSHIP’ IN BIDEN ADMIN’S HELENE RESPONSE: ‘ALARMED AND DISAPPOINTED’ LaLota is a Navy veteran who touts himself as a lifelong Long Island resident. Avlon, who is an author in addition to being a journalist, left his job as a political commentator to run for office. Both House Democrats’ and Republicans’ campaign arms dedicated time and resources to the race, part of their wider fight for control of Congress. FORMER REPUBLICAN US SENATOR ENDORSES KAMALA HARRIS, SAYS ELECTION OFFERS ‘STARK CHOICE’ LaLota has carved out a more moderate path than most of his Republican colleagues in Congress, as has much of the GOP New York delegation. However, he was the first Biden-district Republican to endorse former President Donald Trump for re-election in 2024. He also participated in a tele-rally held by Trump and House GOP Conference Chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., the Saturday before the White House hopeful’s massive rally at Madison Square Garden. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
‘Fascist’: Liberal critics melt down after Florida voters reject abortion rights amendment
Liberal social media commenters and left-wing members of the media slammed Florida voters and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis for rejecting an amendment that would have created a constitutional right to abortion, describing its failure as “openly fascist.” “He’s put everything on it, including, as you said, threats, whatever it takes to try to make sure that that amendment fails using the power of government in a way that is, I would say, openly fascist and very determined,” MSNBC’s Joy Reid said Tuesday evening on air about Florida’s Amendment 4 failing. DeSantis signed the Heartbeat Protection Act into law last year, which banned most abortions after six weeks of gestation. This year, Florida residents voted on Amendment 4, the Right to Abortion Initiative, which worked to overturn the ban. In Florida, constitutional amendments must get 60% of the vote, not a simple majority, to pass. Amendment 4 received majority support among voters but failed to meet the 60% threshold, which sparked an onslaught of criticism from Democrats, left-wing media outlets and pro-choice advocates. DESANTIS CLAIMS VICTORY OVER FLORIDA ABORTION, MARIJUANA AMENDMENTS AS SUPPORTERS CELEBRATE: ‘PRAISE GOD’ “Desantis’ Dirty Tricks Pay Off as Florida Abortion Measure Fails,” a Rolling Stone headline published Tuesday evening declared. And social media users chimed in with expletives aimed at voters who rejected the ballot measure. JD VANCE VOWS TRUMP WOULD NOT IMPOSE FEDERAL ABORTION BAN, VETO IT IF COMES ACROSS DESK Other commenters launched expletives aimed at DeSantis and voters who rejected the amendment. “No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider. This amendment does not change the Legislature’s constitutional authority to require notification to a parent or guardian before a minor has an abortion,” the amendment states. HARRIS CLAIMS TRUMP ABORTION PLATFORM MAKES ‘NO EXCEPTION,’ MOMENTS AFTER TRUMP SAYS THE OPPOSITE Republicans and religious leaders in the state have railed against the pro-choice amendment in the months leading up to Election Day, including DeSantis, who said the amendment potentially passing would represent “the end of the pro-life movement.” “If you care about building a culture of life in this state or this country, them winning in Florida I think really represents the end of the pro-life movement,” DeSantis said in September during an event at Jesuit High School in Tampa, the Tampa Bay Times reported. “If you look at the state of Florida, we do not have a pro-life majority,” DeSantis warned. “We’ve got a big chunk, but we don’t have a majority. If only people that are pro-life oppose it, it very well might pass.” ABORTION ‘ON THE BALLOT’ IN 10 STATES THIS ELECTION, BUT IT MIGHT NOT MATTER Catholic leaders in the state had also slammed the amendment as “extremely grave” and urged all “Floridians of goodwill” to vote against it. “We urge all Floridians of goodwill to stand against the legalization of late-term abortion and oppose the abortion amendment. In doing so, we will not only protect the weakest, most innocent, and defenseless of human life among us but also countless women throughout the state from the harms of abortion,” the Catholic bishops of Florida said in a statement on Amendment 4. After its failure to pass, pro-life and religious groups celebrated the news as a massive win for the pro-life movement. “The defeat of Amendment 4 in Florida is a huge victory for the whole state, especially its most vulnerable. Proponents of Amendment 4 used the same playbook they have in other states which relied on fearmongering and disinformation backed by a funding advantage of tens of millions of out-of-state dollars,” Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote, said in a statement. “But Floridians rejected the proposal when they learned it would open the floodgates for abortion, at any time, for any reason, funded by taxpayers. We are grateful to Governor Ron DeSantis, who, from the outset, led the effort to cut through the pro-abortion campaign of lies and exposed the ugly truth about Amendment 4.” Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Fox News Decision Desk projects GOP takes back Senate majority in devastating blow to Dems
The Fox News Decision Desk projected that Republicans will take back control of the Senate in 2025 once the 119th Congress is sworn in. The GOP officially won enough Senate seats in the 2024 elections to take the majority back from the Democrats. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has led the upper chamber since 2021. Republicans had a significantly more favorable map in terms of which Senate seats were up for election this cycle than the Democrats. CHECK OUT OUR FOX NEWS ELECTION HUB HERE The Republicans up for re-election were all in relatively safe states, and the party was all but guaranteed a win in West Virginia to replace outgoing Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va. With a West Virginia win and retaining all incumbents who were up for re-election, the GOP would be at 50 members already. Democrats were in a much more difficult position, expected to lose Manchin’s seat and having to fight a tight battle for outgoing Independent Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s Arizona Senate seat. HOW GOP, DEM SENATORS ARE USING 2024 CAMPAIGN TRAIL TO LOBBY FOR CONFERENCE INFLUENCE At the same time, several incredibly vulnerable Senate Democrats just so happened to be up for re-election this cycle, including Montana’s Jon Tester and Sherrod Brown of Ohio, in red-voting states, and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Jacky Rosen of Nevada, and Bob Casey of Pennsylvania, in presidential battleground states. If that weren’t enough, the seat of outgoing Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., was also at severe risk of going red. TOP REPUBLICANS PROBE BIDEN ADMIN ON AFGHAN NATIONALS’ ALLEGED ELECTION DAY TERRORIST PLOT Democrats only had a 51-member majority over their Republican counterparts, who had a 49-person conference. The party could not afford to lose practically any races in the 2024 elections, given their many vulnerabilities. What made the 2024 elections even more difficult for Democrats to hang onto the majority was the sharp decrease in split-ticket voting. In several states, the races were very likely to be decided by the winner of the presidential race, as voters were expected to pick one party and vote for candidates in that column down the ballot. ‘ILL-FATED EFFORT’: MCCONNELL WAS ‘FURIOUS’ AT RICK SCOTT’S 2022 LEADER BID, BOOK SAYS When Republicans vote for their new leader this month, they’ll also be selecting the next person to control the Senate floor after Schumer. The new GOP leader will succeed Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the longest-serving party leader in Senate history. The newly elected Republican senators will participate in a secret ballot. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.
Fox News Decision Desk projects Republican Deb Fischer holds Senate seat despite independent challenge
The Fox News Decision Desk projected that incumbent Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., will win re-election and successfully fend off a challenge from an independent candidate. Independent candidate Dan Osborn, a union leader and mechanic, sought to unseat the senator, accusing her of representing lobbyist interests rather than those of Nebraskans. No Democrat candidate was nominated to run in the Senate race. SOROS-LINKED DARK MONEY GROUP PROPS UP NEBRASKA INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE IN KEY SENATE RACE Fischer was first elected to the Senate in 2012 and re-elected in 2018. With her latest win, she will serve a third term in the upper chamber. Some of the issues listed on Osborn’s campaign website revolved around supporting veterans and workers and legalizing marijuana. He does not support any federal limit on abortion, per his website, and he backs what he called “reasonable gun safety measures,” but reinforced his support for the Second Amendment. His candidacy had presented late warnings for Republicans, as top handicappers acknowledged some movement and loosening of the GOP’s grasp on the election. NEBRASKA SUPREME COURT SETS UP ABORTION SHOWDOWN ON ELECTION DAY WITH COMPETING BALLOT MEASURES Both the Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics opted to shift their ratings of the race from “Solid” or “Safe” Republican to “Likely Republican.” While Fischer and Republicans still enjoyed an advantage, the race was placed alongside that of Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., in each rating system, which was understood to be fairly competitive. HOW A LONE NEBRASKA DISTRICT COULD DECIDE THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION Sabato’s Crystal Ball also ranked the Nebraska Senate race in the same category as Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, but Cook had moved the Texas match-up to a more competitive placement. However, some of Osborn’s financial backers led to controversy late in the race. The candidate was supported heavily by two outside super PACs, which both received significant contributions from a controversial dark money group called the Sixteen Thirty Fund, which is operated by left-wing Washington, D.C., political consulting firm, Arabella Advisers. The fund doesn’t reveal its donors, but according to the website for billionaire George Soros’ group, the Open Society Foundations, it has granted more than $75 million to the Sixteen Thirty Fund between 2016 and 2022. One of the PACs that supported Osborn had also received monetary support from Democratic megadonor and Vice President Kamala Harris supporter Reid Hoffman, who co-founded LinkedIn. Osborn reportedly pledged to create an Independent caucus if elected, rather than caucusing with Democrats or Republicans in the Senate. All the independents currently serving in the upper chamber caucus with the Democrats. Fischer’s win prevented any potential threats to the Republicans re-taking the Senate majority in 2025. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.