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Hawaii, Utah, Missouri, Wisconsin kick off in-person early voting

Early in-person voting kicks off in Hawaii, Utah, Missouri and Wisconsin this week as candidates have begun urging their supporters to cast their ballots ahead of Election Day. Here is everything you need to know. Wisconsin is one of three Rust Belt states that voted for former President Trump in 2016, then flipped back to the Democrats in 2020. President Biden won the state by just 20,682 votes, or 0.7 points. Like the other competitive Midwestern states, it is defined by its White working class population. Fifty-eight percent of the state’s voters are White without a college degree, according to the Fox News Voter Analysis. That is 15 points higher than the national electorate. Those voters favored Trump by 11 points in the last presidential cycle, and he will look to build on that margin to put this state back into the GOP’s column. For Democrats, the goal is to keep turnout high in the cities and surrounding areas by activating Black and suburban voters. There are highly populated pockets of deep-blue voters in Milwaukee and Madison, and the counties that those cities call home make up nearly a quarter of the statewide vote. FOX NEWS POLL: TRUMP TAKES NATIONAL LEAD, HARRIS LEADS BATTLEGROUND STATES In the Senate race, incumbent Democrat Tammy Baldwin faces Republican banker Eric Hovde as she seeks a third term. The race is ranked “Lean D” in the Fox News Power Rankings. Voting begins today in several battleground House districts. For a full list of competitive races, see the latest Senate and House rankings. This is a guide to registration and early voting. For comprehensive and up-to-date information on voter eligibility, processes and deadlines, please go to Vote.gov and the election website for Hawaii. Hawaii has begun absentee voting. The state began delivering ballots to eligible voters on Oct. 18, and those ballots must be delivered to election officials by Nov. 5. Residents do not need to provide an excuse to receive a ballot. TIM WALZ’S SELECTION AS HARRIS RUNNING MATE DRAWS SKEPTICISM, EVEN AMONG ANTI-TRUMP FIGURES Some Hawaii counties offer early in-person voting beginning Tuesday, but it varies by location. Check the state’s website for more information. Hawaii residents can register to vote by mail through Oct. 28. They can register in person or online at any point through Election Day. This is a guide to registration and early voting. For comprehensive and up-to-date information on voter eligibility, processes and deadlines, please go to Vote.gov and the election website for Utah. Residents do not need to provide an excuse to receive a ballot in Utah. State officials will send ballots to eligible voters beginning Oct. 15 through Oct. 29, and those ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 4 if sent by mail or delivered in person to state officials by Nov. 5. Utah offers early in-person voting starting Tuesday in some locations, but the start dates vary by county. Check the state’s website for more information. FOX NEWS POLL: TRUMP AHEAD OF HARRIS BY 2 POINTS NATIONALLY Utah residents can register to vote online or by mail through Oct. 25. They can also register in person during early voting, Oct. 22 through Nov. 1, and on Election Day. This is a guide to registration and early voting. For comprehensive and up-to-date information on voter eligibility, processes and deadlines, please go to Vote.gov and the election website for Missouri. Missouri began absentee voting on Tuesday. Applicants need to provide an excuse to receive a ballot. The state must receive a ballot application by Oct. 23 and that ballot must be delivered to state officials by Nov. 5. Missouri began in-person early voting on Tuesday, Oct. 22, and it will continue through Nov. 4. Missouri residents were required to register to vote by Oct. 9. This is a guide to registration and early voting. For comprehensive and up-to-date information on voter eligibility, processes and deadlines, please go to Vote.gov and the election website for Wisconsin. Wisconsin applicants do not need to provide an excuse to receive a ballot. The state must receive a ballot application by Oct. 31 and that ballot must be delivered to state officials by Nov. 5. Some counties in Wisconsin began in-person early voting on Tuesday, Oct. 21, but the start date varies by location. Check the state’s website for more information. Wisconsin residents can register to vote in person during early voting or on Election Day.

‘Left behind’: Vulnerable Dem incumbent in key swing state slammed for putting ‘knife in back’ of workers

TOLEDO – Ohio GOP State Rep. Derek Merrin, who is running for Congress against vulnerable Democrat incumbent Marcy Kaptur, spoke to Fox News Digital about why the issues affecting Northwest Ohioans in 2024 are putting Kaptur’s 41-year tenure in Congress in jeopardy. “Northwest Ohio has been left behind for many years because of Marcy Kaptur and Marcy Kaptur’s values do not represent northwest Ohio,” Merrin told Fox News Digital at the Lucas County GOP Headquarters about why he decided to enter the race to try to unseat the longtime Democratic congresswoman.  “I felt there’s a real opportunity to win this race. There’s a real opportunity to change and I really believe that the future of our country is at stake and we have to stop the liberal policies of Joe Biden and Marcy Kaptur of the Democratic Party to save our country.” Kaptur, currently serving her 21st term in Congress representing Ohio’s 9th Congressional District, is considered one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the House. While the Cook Political Report ranks her race as “Lean Democrat,” redistricting following the 2020 census has Republicans believing the seat is a prime opportunity to ensure control of the House and that they can flip the seat. ‘MUST APOLOGIZE’: VULNERABLE HOUSE DEM FACES RENEWED BACKLASH OVER COMPARISON INVOLVING 9/11 TERRORIST Merrin told Fox News Digital that he expects a significant number of Independents, and some Democrats, to support his candidacy pointing to the “ineffectiveness” of Congress and unpopular Democrat policies. “The vast majority of Americans are fed up with the Democratic Party but guess what?” Merrin said. “Not everyone’s a Republican. People want policy. They want to lower the cost of living. They want secure borders, and they’re tired of the political class. I’m going to pick up votes from Democrats. I’ll pick up a lot of votes from independents because my message and policies are aligned with what they want to see happen.” “They want to pay less money at the pump. They want their health insurance to go down. They want their housing costs to go down. They want their insurance costs to go down. They want to be able to take their family out to eat for under $100 every time they go out to eat. And I’m going to work on policies that are going to get our country moving again, that are going to bring back American jobs and to lower the cost of living and to secure our border.”  WATCH: DEM. REP. SNATCHES PHONE IN TESTY AIRPORT EXCHANGE OVER BIDEN’S MENTAL CLARITY: ‘WHO OWNS YOU?’ Kaptur is one of eight Democrats running in 2024 in a district that voted for Trump in 2020. Trump won the state of Ohio by 8 points in 2020 and is expected to equal or surpass that in 2024. “This is a new district,” Merrin said. “This is a Republican-leaning district and Marcy Kaptur’s values are being exposed for what she’s actually done in Washington, D.C. She doesn’t believe anyone should be allowed to drive a gas-powered car. She believes basically everyone needs to pay more taxes. She puts illegal immigrants ahead of United States citizens. And when people realize her record and her failure, she’s been one of the most ineffective Congress people passing legislation in our country. People want change. They’re worse off than they were four years ago, and I think they’re looking for a new change and I’m going to deliver it.”  Merrin told Fox News Digital that when he goes around his district talking to voters, it’s clear that the economy and inflation are the number one cause for concern. “The cost of living, I mean, you look, you can’t take a family of four out in northwest Ohio at a restaurant for under $100 and people can’t afford it,” Merrin said. “You look at car insurance, you look at home insurance, you look at the cost of living overall. It’s hurting people and people are very uncertain on where we’re at and they’re looking for policies that are going to lower the cost of living, lower the cost of energy and make their lives better. People want their kids to be able to experience the American dream that they were able to experience. And I think most families believe that’s in jeopardy right now.” Pro-Merrin ads running on television in northwest Ohio have highlighted Kaptur’s record of voting with the Biden administration 90% of the time, and Kaptur has also faced criticism from Merrin for introducing just 5 bills that have become law in 41 years, which her campaign pushed back on citing hundreds of bills that she has cosponsored. “Yes, they do,” Merrin told Fox News Digital if voters in his district are in favor of term limits. “People want term limits for members of Congress. I support term limits. I’ve signed a pledge to support legislation that would limit members of Congress in the House to three terms and I think that’s a winning message that’s resonating with voters.” Merrin also hit Kaptur on illegal immigration and said that Ohioans are “fed up” with the negative consequences stemming from the millions of illegal immigrants who have entered the country over the last four years. “Crime has surged among our community and a large part of it’s due to illegal immigration,” Merrin said. “I mean, tens of thousands of people are in northwest Ohio here illegally and it’s just we’re tired and fed up with it.” “We want to put American citizens first. They’re burdening our health care system, our education system and our criminal justice system. And it’s not too much to ask to say, hey, our federal government needs to secure our borders and put American citizens first and Marcy Kaptur, she’s put a knife in the back of the American people, in union workers, allowing illegal immigrants to come in and take their jobs. It’s an outrage. It’s outrageous. She’s not a proponent of the working man in middle class America. She’s

What are election betting odds? Expert explains why Trump is current favorite

Former President Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, has opened up a sizable advantage in the election betting odds in recent weeks, giving Americans a new way of trying to piece together what might happen come Election Day. “More than two billion dollars have been bet on the election already,” Maxim Lott, who runs ElectionBettingOdds.com, told Fox News Digital. The comments come as Lott’s website, which uses data from five different betting sites to display a betting average, shows Trump has a 58.5% chance of winning the presidential election as of Monday. Lott’s website isn’t the only one tracking the betting odds, with popular sites such as RealClearPolitics, which has become known over the years for tracking polling averages, joining the fray. TRUMP OPENS UP LARGEST BETTING LEAD SINCE DAYS AFTER BIDEN’S DROPOUT Like ElectionBettingOdds.com, the RealClearPolitics betting average shows Trump as the favorite with a 59% chance to win the election as of Monday. Trump’s chances of winning the election have dramatically risen over the last few weeks, with his Democrat opponent, Vice President Harris, being the betting favorite on RealClearPolitics as recently as Oct. 4. But Trump took the lead the next day and hasn’t looked back, eventually rising to the nearly 20 percentage-point advantage the former president enjoyed on Monday. For Lott, looking at betting averages gives people a much clearer picture of what the most likely outcome of the election is compared to trying to piece together polls. “These are really accurate, they’re more accurate than just trying to look at polls or especially more accurate than listening to pundits bloviating,” Lott said. “[The bettors] look at all sorts of historical data, they look at trends,” he added. “I find the percent more useful than the polls.” CHECK OUT THE LATEST FOX NEWS POWER RANKINGS IN THE 2024 ELECTION Lott, who previously served as a program executive producer for the Fox Business Network, also noted that people risk their own money to make a bet on an outcome, creating a market that has the ability to “discipline people” who get it wrong. “If you’re not very smart, or very biased, you’re going to lose your money pretty quickly, and then maybe you won’t bet again next election,” Lott said. While betting on elections is newer than more well-known gambling pastimes such as sports betting and casino games, Lott said the market has become robust enough to offer election followers a glimpse into what the most likely outcome will be. “Last cycle we had more than a billion dollars traded. That’s still [not] that much if you compare it to … the stock market or something, but it’s enough that we have a reliable indicator, and that’s what [is] important to us as users who just want to know what’s going to happen,” Lott said. As for Trump’s lead, Lott said it likely reflects an end to the “honeymoon period” Harris enjoyed after being elevated as the Democrat nominee, noting that Trump had risen to around 70% likely to win the election before President Biden dropped his bid for re-election and has bounced back into the lead once again. “Things have kind of reverted back to the mean where – it is a tough cycle for Democrats with things like inflation and immigration, and so maybe for a couple months people were like, ‘Oh, Harris, this is interesting, this is new, this is refreshing,’ and then it’s kind of sinking in: ‘This is the same administration we didn’t like with Biden,” Lott said. Get the latest updates from the 2024 campaign trail, exclusive interviews and more at our Fox News Digital election hub.

Harris touts growing up in middle class while pushing mandate most ‘won’t be able to afford’: economist

Vice President Harris frequently says that if elected she will build a “strong middle class,” even as the Biden administration pushes for an electric vehicle mandate that one economist says is out of step with most middle-class Americans. “I believe we need to grow our middle class and make sure our economy works for everyone, for people like the people in the neighborhood where I grew up and the hardworking Americans I meet every day across our nation,” Harris said at a campaign event in September. “When we invest in those things that strengthen the middle class – manufacturing, housing, health care, education, small businesses, and our communities – we grow our economy and catalyze the entire country to succeed.” After becoming the Democrat presidential nominee, Harris said she does not support imposing mandates on electric vehicles. However, the Biden-Harris administration is currently pushing one that an economist says is not practical for the middle class. “We know just from the facts that middle-class people are rejecting EVs. There are a lot of reasons why that’s happening, why the trend is shifting on EVs, but one of them is the cost. These are $80,000 cars,” Stephen Moore, economist and senior visiting fellow in economics at the Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital. HARRIS SUPPORT FOR EVS COULD TANK CAMPAIGN IN CRITICAL SWING STATE, EXPERT SAYS The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a final rule in March under the Clean Air Act to set new emissions standards that would require up to two-thirds of new car sales to be electric by 2032. The new standards would affect “light-duty vehicle manufacturers, independent commercial importers, alternative fuel converters, and manufacturers and converters of medium-duty vehicles,” according to the EPA’s final rule. The rule offers a tax credit of up to $7,500 for qualified purchases, but Moore said that even with the tax credit, EVs are “still out of [middle-class Americans’] price range.” HARRIS WON’T SUPPORT EXPANDING FOSSIL FUEL DRILLING, CAMPAIGN SAYS “The idea that you’re going to force people to buy $75-, $80- $90,000 cars is going to mean a lot of Americans won’t be able to afford to buy a car if you continue with these mandates,” he said. Moore added that the Biden-Harris administration mandate, which the House voted to block in September, would prevent those in the middle class from being able to afford a car. “EVs are cars that wealthy people can afford, but not middle-class people, for the most part. They’ve got these mandates that say eventually 65% of cars are going to be EVs, but you’ve only got half that number of people that want to buy EVS. That means that there’s going to be a shortage of gas cars, which is the cars that middle-class people can afford,” Moore said in an interview with Fox News Digital. The average electric vehicle costs more than $56,000 as of September 2024, according to Kelley Blue Book, a vehicle valuation firm. The average middle-class American earns two-thirds or double the median national household income, which stands at $80,610, according to the U.S. Census Bureau via Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED). Given the current median, the middle-class income today ranges from about $53,000 to $160,000. A Capital One price analysis on electric vehicles reported that EV purchases are “out of reach of anyone bringing home less than about $120,000 per year,” thus excluding most of the middle class from eligibility based on the U.S. Census Bureau via FRED average. Recent surveys suggest that most middle-class Americans are not currently looking to purchase an electric vehicle. A Gallup survey released in April found that only 5% of middle-income Americans own an electric vehicle and that 44% would not consider buying one. Additional polling from Pew Research, released in June, found that three in 10 Americans would seriously consider buying an electric vehicle. “Why are EVs practical for anyone (not just the middle class)? They offer a superior driving experience. They are quieter, smoother and have far superior acceleration,” John Higham, Electric Vehicle Association Board of Directors, argued that electric vehicles can be more practical for middle class citizens. Higham noted the factor of charging as a main reason every household might not be ready for an electric vehicle.  “I think most importantly is EVs can be more economical to drive. Note I said “can be.” They can also be more expensive to drive and I see a lot of math tilted to show that later instead of demonstrating the former,” Higham told Fox News Digital. “Then if EVs are nicer to drive and can cost less than a gasoline counterpart, why aren’t they for everyone one? It comes down to charging. If you can charge at home, you are likely a good candidate for an EV. If not, then probably not.” Fox News Digital reached out to the Harris campaign for comment.

GRAP II in Delhi-NCR: Air quality dips to ‘very poor’ category in national capital; know what’s allowed, what’s not

This deterioration in air quality led to prompting enforcement of Stage II of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) in Delhi, which enforces a ban on the use of coal and firewood, including tandoors in hotels, restaurants, and open eateries, as well as diesel generator sets.

Good news for Delhi: Stubble burning cases have fallen to 2,300 in 2023, says Haryana State Pollution Control Board

Haryana State Pollution Control Board Secretary Pradeep Kumar reported a significant drop in stubble burning cases in 2023.

Sakshi Malik’s BIG claim, says BJP’s Babita Phogat wanted to be WFI chief, encouraged wrestlers to…

Regarding the rumours that Congress supported the protest, Malik said that it was two BJP leaders…

Peruvian ex-president sentenced to more than 20 years in bribery case

Alejandro Toledo is the latest Latin American leader to be implicated in the Odebrecht corruption scandal. Peruvian ex-President Alejandro Toledo has been sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, the latest Latin American leader to be jailed in connection with the Odebrecht construction firm corruption scandal. Toledo was convicted of taking $35m in bribes from the Brazilian construction firm in exchange for a freeway construction contract, and was sentenced to 20 years and six months in prison on Monday. “I want to go to a private clinic. I ask you please to let me get better or die at home,” Toledo said at a hearing last week, saying that he was dealing with health issues stemming from cancer. The 78-year-old former leader of the Andean nation, who served in office from 2001 to 2006, received one of the harshest sentences yet handed out in connection to Odebrecht’s campaign of bribery in exchange for political favours across the continent. During a yearlong trial, Toledo consistently denied charges of money laundering and collusion levelled against him by prosecutors. He was first arrested in the United States in 2019 after Peru requested his extradition, and was sent back there in 2022 after years of legal debate over his potential extradition. Odebrecht-related scandals have led to the jailing of officials in Peru, Panama, and Ecuador. Probes of corruption by the construction giant have also occurred in countries such as Guatemala and Mexico. The company has since changed its name to Novonor. In 2019, Peru jailed 14 top lawyers while they were investigated for allegations of providing the firm with preferential treatment in public works contracts. Toledo will serve his sentence in a prison on the outskirts of the Peruvian capital of Lima, specially constructed to house former presidents. He may soon have additional company. Two more ex-presidents, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski and Ollanta Humala, are under investigation in similar cases related to Odebrecht. Former President Pedro Castillo is also being detained as he faces charges of “rebellion” after a failed attempt to dissolve Congress in 2022. Adblock test (Why?)

Southeast Asia deepening dependence on fossil fuels, report warns

ASEAN’s 10 members met the entirety of region’s rise in electricity demand last year through fossil fuels, report says. Southeast Asia is at risk of deepening its dependence on fossil fuels as it tries to meet surging demand for electricity, an environmental think tank has warned. The 10 nations of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) met the entirety of the region’s 3.6 percent rise in electricity demand last year through fossil fuels, the United Kingdom-based think tank Ember said in a report released on Tuesday. ASEAN’s share of energy generated by renewables, meanwhile, fell to 26 percent compared with 28 percent in 2022 amid a decline in hydropower production due to droughts and other extreme events, the report said. Carbon emissions grew by 6.6 percent last year, representing an additional 44 million tonnes of CO2 in the atmosphere, according to the report. Top coal polluters included Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines, while Singapore and Thailand’s emissions mostly came from natural gas, according to the report. Ember said the region’s slow energy transition means it is missing out on the benefits of renewables, including the declining cost of solar and wind power, which are now cheaper than fossil fuels. “Continuing at this pace of transition risks ASEAN becoming more dependent on fossil fuels, missing opportunities presented by emerging clean energy technologies and economics, and failing to meet climate targets,” the think tank said in its report. “Meanwhile, electricity demand continues to grow rapidly, making it more important than ever to meet this demand with clean energy.” Ember said two of the most promising long-term solutions are solar power and wind power, as hydropower faces increasing reliability issues due to droughts and changing rain patterns. The report came as the International Energy Agency (IEA) on Tuesday warned that Southeast Asia would need to invest $190bn – or five times its current rate of investment – to achieve its climate goals by 2035. Even with clean energy sources projected to meet more than one-third of the growth in energy demand, the region is still on track to increase its carbon emissions by 35 percent between now and 2050, the Paris-based intergovernmental organisation said in a report. Demand for electricity in Southeast Asia is set to grow at an annual rate of 4 percent, according to the IEA report. “Clean energy technologies are not expanding quickly enough and the continued heavy reliance on fossil fuel imports is leaving countries highly exposed to future risks,” the IEA’s executive director, Fatih Birol, said. Courtney Weatherby, the deputy director of the Stimson Center’s Southeast Asia programme, said that renewables like solar power have great potential but there are still many institutional roadblocks in the way. Many ASEAN countries are trying to modernise and expand their energy generation capacity at the same time, leading to conflicting priorities, Weatherby said, while renewables still face problems like storage, grid management and the inability to produce power on demand during peak hours. “Most countries in ASEAN are coming from a relatively low starting point for solar/wind deployment and this means that even rapid expansion will not lead to a full transition in a timely manner,” Weatherby told Al Jazeera. “More importantly, the mandate for power utilities is to ensure that the power supply is stable and reliable in order to ensure both access to power for consumers and also support ongoing economic development through attracting investment, often in manufacturing,” she added. Adblock test (Why?)

Harvey Weinstein diagnosed with bone marrow cancer, reports say

Jailed Hollywood producer is being treated in prison for chronic myeloid leukaemia, US media outlets report. Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein has been diagnosed with bone marrow cancer, media outlets in the United States have reported. Weinstein, who became the most infamous face of the #MeToo era after dozens of women accused him of sexual harassment and assault, is being treated in prison for chronic myeloid leukaemia, NBC News and ABC News reported on Monday, citing unnamed sources. Chronic myeloid leukaemia, also known as chronic myelogenous leukaemia, is a type of cancer that starts in the blood-forming cells of the bone marrow and invades the blood, according to the American Cancer Society. It makes up about 15 percent of leukaemia cases in adults, according to the organisation. The reports come as Weinstein is awaiting a new trial in New York after an appeals court threw out his 2020 convictions for rape and sexual assault. The New York State Court of Appeals ruled 4-3 that the judge in the original case had wrongly allowed prosecutors to present allegations that were not part of the charges. Weinstein was not released from prison after the decision as he is also serving a 16-year prison sentence in Los Angeles for rape and sexual assault. He is also being prosecuted over a newer allegation that he sexually assaulted a woman at a Manhattan hotel in 2006. The 72-year-old film mogul last month pleaded not guilty to one count of criminal sex act in the first degree in that case. He has insisted that all sexual encounters he was involved in were consensual. Weinstein, whose production house Miramax released blockbusters such as Shakespeare In Love and Pulp Fiction, has reportedly faced a myriad of health issues since his imprisonment. Last month, he underwent emergency heart surgery to remove fluid in his lungs and heart, according to his representatives. In July, the once-powerful film executive was hospitalised for a range of conditions including COVID-19 and double pneumonia, according to his representatives. Adblock test (Why?)