Ric Grenell to Newsmax: Incoming Ballots Showing GOP Wins in Arizona

Ric Grenell to Newsmax: Incoming Ballots Showing GOP Wins in Arizona Ric Grenell (Getty Images)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 01:22 PM EST

The "red wave" is strong in Arizona and Nevada and will lead to Republican control of the House and Senate, as Arizona's GOP candidates will all win their races, Newsmax's Ric Grenell, who has been on the ground in Arizona watching the race, said Wednesday, citing the high numbers of election day ballots still be counted.

"Let me just be very specific on the data, and the reality is right now that we have at least 450,000 possibly 500,000 ballots now left," Grenell, an acting director of national intelligence and ambassador under former President Donald Trump, told Newsmax's "John Bachman Now." "Those are almost exclusively election day voters, which we know are traditionally Republican."

There have been four or five dumps of the ballots so far, taking down the number of uncounted ballots to about 450,000 from 1 million, and in those drops, "the Republican team has been winning those by 65-70-75%" in each, Grenell said.

And from that, Grenell said, "there is going to be a red wave" in Arizona.

"Abe Hamadeh, the attorney general candidate, is leading the Republican field here because he's only down by 3,900 votes," said Grenell.

Next are gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake, who is down by 12,000 votes, and U.S. Senate candidate Blake Masters, down by 90,000 votes, but the incoming ballots will push them into the winning categories, Grenell said.

But of the 450,000 votes, "at least, if you calculate that we are winning, let's take the lowest percentage of the night that we've seen, 60-65%, all three of these candidates are going to win," said Grenell, adding that Mark Fincham will win as secretary of state.

"I am absolutely confident that Kari Lake will be governor of Arizona. Abe Hamedah will be the attorney general of Arizona, and I believe that we are on the cusp of seeing Blake Masters completely upset the East Coast media," Grenell said. "He will take that 90,000-vote deficit right now and turn it into a win, and we will then have a Republican-controlled Senate."

Grenell also projected that Republican Joe Lombardo, currently ahead in Nevada's gubernatorial race, will win, along with Adam Laxalt in Nevada, who is holding a slight lead over Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto.

If Masters and Laxalt win, that will give the Republicans control of the Senate, said Grenell.

Grenell noted that his projections are based on the numbers of election day votes that have been received, and because "all of the Republicans have been winning those by overwhelming margins."

Grenell also said that even though the "East Coast media room" is saying that there will not be a red wave in Washington, "if you would have told me a couple of nights ago that the Republicans will win the House and the Senate, I would say that's a red wave."

But aside from the "disappointing" races for governor in New York and the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, the numbers also reveal huge wins for Republicans, Grenell said.

"There was a historic win in New York for the first time ever, where George Santos, an openly gay Republican, has won a seat," Grenell said, adding that Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney, D-NY, the head of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, was defeated.

Grenell also noted that it was disappointing to see the Michigan results, where Gov. Gretchen Whitmer held her seat against GOP challenger Tudor Dixon.

"You have to look at each state individually, but there is no question in my mind that when the Republicans take over the House and the Senate, that is a red wave," Grenell said.

Original Article

Newsmax Projects Georgia Senate Race Will Go to Runoff

Newsmax Projects Georgia Senate Race Will Go to Runoff Newsmax Projects Georgia Senate Race Will Go to Runoff

By Solange Reyner | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 11:56 AM EST

Newsmax, in consultation with election partner Decision Desk HQ, projects that the Senate race between Democrat Sen. Raphael Warnock and GOP challenger Herschel Walker will go to a Dec. 6 runoff.

Warnock currently holds a slight edge over Walker, 49.42% to 48.52%, with 99% of the votes counted. A Libertarian candidate, Chase Oliver, has about 2% of the vote.

But if no candidate surpasses the 50% threshold, a runoff is required.

A senior official in Georgia’s Secretary of State office on Wednesday also confirmed the likelihood of a runoff.

“While county officials are still doing the detailed work on counting the votes, we feel it is safe to say there will be a runoff for the U.S. Senate here in Georgia slated for December 6,” Gabriel Sterling tweeted early Wednesday morning.

Walker, a former University of Georgia running back and Heisman Trophy winner backed by former President Donald Trump, on Tuesday night asked supporters gathered in a hotel ballroom to “hang in there a little bit longer.”

“I’m telling you right now – I didn’t come to lose,” Walker said.

Warnock, whose victory in a 2021 runoff helped Democrats gain control of the Senate, was elected to complete two years of an existing term – senate terms are six years.

Original Article

Video Report: Florida GOP Gov. DeSantis Posts ‘Historic Landslide Victory’

Video Report: Florida GOP Gov. DeSantis Posts 'Historic Landslide Victory' (Newsmax/"National Report")

Leonardo Feldman By Leonardo Feldman Wednesday, 09 November 2022 11:20 AM EST Current | Bio | Archive

Florida delivered a historic landslide victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis against Charlie Crist including Miami-Dade County, Newsmax Miami correspondent Leonardo Feldman reports Wednesday on "National Report."

About NEWSMAX TV:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!

Leonardo Feldman is an Emmy Award-winning journalist. As Newsmax's Miami correspondent, he covers the southeastern United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Get his latest reports here!

Video Report: Florida GOP Gov. DeSantis Posts ‘Historic Landslide Victory’

Video Report: Florida GOP Gov. DeSantis Posts 'Historic Landslide Victory' (Newsmax/"National Report")

Leonardo Feldman By Leonardo Feldman Wednesday, 09 November 2022 11:20 AM EST Current | Bio | Archive

Florida delivered a historic landslide victory for Gov. Ron DeSantis against Charlie Crist including Miami-Dade County, Newsmax Miami correspondent Leonardo Feldman reports Wednesday on "National Report."

About NEWSMAX TV:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!

Leonardo Feldman is an Emmy Award-winning journalist. As Newsmax's Miami correspondent, he covers the southeastern United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Get his latest reports here!

Original Article

Gov. Hutchinson to Newsmax: ‘Delighted’ to Be in 2024 ‘Conversation’

Gov. Hutchinson to Newsmax: 'Delighted' to Be in 2024 'Conversation' arkansas gov. asa hutchinson speaking Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson (Getty Images)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 10:40 AM EST

Outgoing Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson congratulated his successor Sarah Huckabee Sanders on her win and looked forward to his own political future, which may or may not include a run for the White House in 2024.

Hutchinson, a Republican who is leaving office at the end of the year because of term limits, didn't directly confirm a campaign, but said Wednesday on Newsmax's "National Report" that he's "delighted to be part of that national conversation because I'm very concerned about the direction of our country."

"If you look at 2024, we've got to have a candidate that can win in the primary, that can win in November, that can bring people together and problem solve," Hutchinson said. "[That] we've got a lot of great candidates is the good news. We've got to work through that."

It will be vital, he said, to have a better energy policy and be able to better promote the private sector, rather than "simply growing the government."

"That's a kind of conservatism that I think is important, and I'll be talking about in that that for sure in the coming months, whenever you look at experience, the border security and the fentanyl coming across, we've got to address that," Hutchinson said.

Meanwhile, Sanders, a Republican who had served as press secretary for former President Donald Trump, will become Arkansas' first female governor. Hutchinson said her win means the first time in the state's history that one GOP governor will follow another.

"It's exciting for me to see the voters respond to Republican leadership," he said. "Not only did we win this but we were red across the board."

Nationwide, GOP incumbent governors also held their seats, and Hutchinson said that's because "the public likes the record of more freedom," including from the pandemic.

"We lead in terms of whether it's border security, whether it's health care education," he said. "We're putting more money back in people's pockets to help them during these tough times."

About NEWSMAX TV:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!

Original Article

Reschenthaler to Newsmax: Mastriano’s Losses Hurt Pa. Downticket Races

Reschenthaler to Newsmax: Mastriano's Losses Hurt Pa. Downticket Races rep. guy reschenthaler speaking Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa. (Getty Images)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 09:08 AM EST

Republican losses in Pennsylvania's races, including in the key race for the U.S. Senate, came with Democrat gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro taking large numbers from deep red areas after GOP Candidate Doug Mastriano "grossly underperformed expectations," Rep. Guy Reschenthaler said on Newsmax on Wednesday.

"I'm shocked. I'm disappointed," said the Pennsylvania Republican on Newsmax's "Wake Up America," where on Tuesday he'd predicted Oz would win over Senate-elect John Fetterman by 3% of the vote.

Oz performed well, said Reschenthaler, but with Shapiro siphoning off votes, that not only was bad news for Oz but for the congressional seats Republicans had thought they were picking up.

"We thought we were going to have three pickups in Pennsylvania, but the headwinds at the top just didn't get us over," said Reschenthaler.

He added that he thought that Fetterman, who suffered a stroke in May, conducted a "disingenuous" campaign, "much like Biden hiding in the basement, and not putting himself out there."

Pollster Jim McLaughlin, also on the show segment, said he believes voters in Pennsylvania and across the country were done a "disservice" by politicians who refused debates. However, he said that "casual voters" still picked those candidates, even though they did not know their stances on the issues.

"They wanted to make these campaigns about personalities and not about issues because they knew the Republicans had the advantage on most of the issues, especially with the candidate like Fetterman, who was really out of touch on a lot of the most important issues in Pennsylvania," McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin, who was the pollster for former President Donald Trump's 2020 campaign, also said Republicans must start doing a better job with early voting.

"Florida does early voting in person and by mail and on Election Day the Republicans outnumbered the Democrats by 321,000 votes in Florida," he said. "They've got the tactics down. If these are going to be the rules, the Republicans have to learn how to play by those rules across the country."

About NEWSMAX TV:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!

Original Article

Reschenthaler to Newsmax: Mastriano’s Losses Hurt Pa. Downticket Races

Reschenthaler to Newsmax: Mastriano's Losses Hurt Pa. Downticket Races guy reschenthaler looks on Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, R-Pa. (Getty Images)

By Sandy Fitzgerald | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 09:38 AM EST

Republican losses in Pennsylvania's races, including in the key race for the U.S. Senate, came with Democrat gubernatorial candidate Josh Shapiro taking large numbers from deep red areas after GOP Candidate Doug Mastriano "grossly underperformed expectations," Rep. Guy Reschenthaler told Newsmax on Wednesday.

"I'm shocked. I'm disappointed," said the Pennsylvania Republican on Newsmax's "Wake Up America," where on Tuesday he'd predicted Oz would win over Senate-elect John Fetterman by 3% of the vote.

Oz performed well, said Reschenthaler, but with Shapiro siphoning off votes, that not only was bad news for Oz, but for the congressional seats Republicans had thought they were picking up.

"We thought we were going to have three pickups in Pennsylvania, but the headwinds at the top just didn't get us over," said Reschenthaler.

He added that he thought that Fetterman, who suffered a stroke in May, conducted a "disingenuous" campaign, "much like Biden hiding in the basement, and not putting himself out there."

Pollster Jim McLaughlin, also on the show segment, said he believes voters in Pennsylvania and across the country were done a "disservice" by politicians who refused debates. However, he said that "casual voters" still picked those candidates, even though they did not know their stances on the issues.

"They wanted to make these campaigns about personalities and not about issues because they knew the Republicans had the advantage on most of the issues, especially with the candidate like Fetterman, who was really out of touch on a lot of the most important issues in Pennsylvania," McLaughlin said.

McLaughlin, who was the pollster for former President Donald Trump's 2020 campaign, also said Republicans must start doing a better job with early voting.

"Florida does early voting in person and by mail, and on Election Day, the Republicans outnumbered the Democrats by 321,000 votes in Florida," he said. "They've got the tactics down. If these are going to be the rules, the Republicans have to learn how to play by those rules across the country."

About NEWSMAX TV:

NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!

Original Article

Mike Lee wins Utah Senatorial Race

Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee celebrates as he speaks to supporters during an election night party on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
Utah Republican Sen. Mike Lee celebrates as he speaks to supporters during an election night party on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 10:33 PM PT – Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Mike Lee wins Utah’s Senate seat.

Incumbent Senator Mike Lee (R-Utah) went up against Senate candidate Evan McMullin (I-Utah) in Utah’s Senate race.

McMullin, the Democrat-backed Independent, is a former undercover CIA officer and Chief Policy Director for Congress.

His challenger, Lee, was endorsed and then re-endorsed by former President Donald Trump days leading up to the election. Lee has been in the Senate since 2011, and is working to tackle issues surrounding national security, education, the Second Amendment and healthcare.

“The great people of Utah have a gem in Mike Lee,” Trump said. He then called McMullin by another name. “He will never let you down, whereas his opponent, McMuffin, will only let you down.”

McMullin has said he would work to cut healthcare costs, inflation and political extremism.

Original Article Oann

J.D. Vance Wins Ohio’s Senate Seat

Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance arrives to speak before former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Wright Bros. Aero Inc. at Dayton International Airport on Monday, Nov. 7, 2022, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Ohio Senate candidate JD Vance arrives to speak before former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at Wright Bros. Aero Inc. at Dayton International Airport on Monday, Nov. 7, 2022, in Vandalia, Ohio. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 8:49 PM PT – Tuesday, November 8, 2022

J.D. Vance wins Ohio’s Senate seat.

Tuesday’s highly anticipated results between J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Representative Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) came after the GOP campaigned in several battleground states to ensure Republicans take back the majority, and Ohio was in the spotlight.

Vance and Ryan have gone head-to-head for months.

The Trump endorsed Republican served in the Iraq War as a Marine and received a law degree from Yale Law School. He also is a bestselling author after writing ‘Hillbilly Elegy,’ which was later turned into a Netflix film.

Vance said he witnessed an economic downturn in his hometown in Middletown, Ohio as jobs and families slowly disappeared.

“The U.S. Senate needs someone who knows what it’s like to live in a left-behind community, not a career politician who has done nothing for the people of Ohio,” Vance said.

His campaign focused on the America First policy, the border crisis, combatting the drug and opioid epidemic, and ending abortion, among other top issues.

Meanwhile Vance’s Democrat opponent, Tim Ryan, has spent his career fighting for the states’ workers.

Ryan was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2002 and has since been reelected nine times. He also served in the Ohio State Senate.

The Democrat has remained focused on the quality of life and economy in his home state and has also worked across the aisle to combat the nations opioid crisis.

In the Senate, the lifelong Ohioan sought to fight raise wages, make healthcare more affordable, rebuild public infrastructure and invest in education.

Original Article Oann

Sarah Huckabee Sanders wins Arkansas Gubernatorial Race

Sarah Huckabee Sanders visit "The Story with Martha MacCallum" on September 17, 2019, in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ferdman/Getty Images) (Steven Ferdman/Getty Images)
Sarah Huckabee Sanders visit “The Story with Martha MacCallum” on September 17, 2019, in New York City. (Photo by Steven Ferdman/Getty Images) (Steven Ferdman/Getty Images)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 5:20 PM PT – Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Sarah Huckabee Sanders wins the race for Arkansas Governor.

Republican incumbent Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R-Ark.) has worked in several leadership roles for U.S senators, governors and presidential campaigns. She worked as a national political director for her father Mike Huckabee’s (R-Ark.) 2008 presidential campaign and also worked as a senior advisor to Senator Tom Cotton’s 2014 race against Democrat incumbent Mark Pryor.

She later joined Donald Trump’s presidential campaign as his senior advisor in 2016 and served as his White House Press Secretary from 2017 to 2019. She was the third woman to hold the job. Upon her departure, Trump said Sanders was “a very special person with extraordinary talents.”

Her campaign highlighted that the nation’s freedom and rule of law are under attack under the Biden Administration.

“To remain free, we must have law and order and resolve our differences peacefully,” Sanders said. “The radical lefts solution is to impose government control and censorship from the top down.”

Sanders’ Democrat challenger Chris Jones (D-Ark.) received a B.S. in physics and mathematics from Morehouse College in 1999 on a NASA scholarship. Throughout his career, Jones has worked as a physicist, minister and as non-profit leader.

His campaign focused on high quality education for Arkansans, affordable internet for every home and economic development through created high wage jobs. Jones maintained that problems are solved by bringing people together in order to move forward.

“The Promise of Arkansas is the Faith that together we can address our challenges,” Jones said. “It is the hope that unified we make space for all Arkansans to live out their unique potential.”

Original Article Oann

Marco Rubio wins Florida’s Senatorial seat

Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks before former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks before former President Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Miami-Dade County Fair and Exposition on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2022, in Miami. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

OAN Newsroom
UPDATED 5:33 PM PT – Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Marco Rubio wins Florida’s Senate seat.

Florida Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) and Representative Val Demings (D-Fla.) went head-to-head in what has been a hotly contested Senate race for Florida voters.

Rubio has served in the Senate since 2011, and has been a vocal advocate in preventing what he calls “mass migration” at the border. He has an opposing stance to Demings, who has openly stated that the country does not have open borders.

As one of Florida’s Senators, Rubio touted his accomplishments in fighting for Floridian assistance, including affordable housing, supporting small businesses and working towards disaster recovery.

Demings, who has served in Florida’s 10th Congressional District since 2017, said on her Senate campaign website that she is fighting for better jobs, healthcare for all and is also a proponent of affordable housing.

During their Senate debate, Rubio and Demings spared over inflation, abortion and immigration.

Original Article Oann

GOP Eyes Arizona US House Seats in Bid to Flip Control

GOP Eyes Arizona US House Seats in Bid to Flip Control GOP Eyes Arizona US House Seats in Bid to Flip Control Arizona GOP gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake greets supporters at the Republican Party of Arizona rally on election night on November 08, 2022 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Justin Sullivan/Getty)

Associated Press Wednesday, 09 November 2022 12:28 AM EST

The partisan makeup of Arizona's U.S. House delegation and control of Congress itself are up for grabs Tuesday, with Republicans hoping to shift the state's 5-4 Democratic tilt by picking up two and possibly three seats.

Redistricting after the 2020 U.S. Census gave the GOP candidates a leg up in those three districts. Meanwhile, a district that had strongly favored Republicans for the past decade got only slightly less GOP-friendly. The other five districts are shoo-ins for the incumbents in districts that heavily favor the sitting members of Congress.

Nationally, Republicans need to net just five seats to take control of the U.S. House.

The most vulnerable Democratic incumbent is three-term U.S. Rep. Tom O'Halleran, whose sprawling 2nd Congressional District covers much of northeastern Arizona and dips south to the northern Tucson suburbs. Redistricting remade the district into one that strongly favors the GOP by drawing in the Prescott area.

O'Halleran hopes his voting record as a moderate is enough to overcome the heavy Republican advantage as he faces political newcomer Eli Crane. A businessman and former Navy SEAL, Crane has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

Democratic Rep. Greg Stanton has a better chance of beating Republican Kelly Cooper, a restaurant owner and Marine veteran who is another political newcomer, in the 4th District that includes parts of Tempe, Mesa, Phoenix and Chandler. The district has been held by Democrats since being created a decade ago, but Stanton faces a tougher fight as he seeks a third term.

Cooper, who also has Trump's backing, blames Stanton and President Joe Biden for inflation, high gas prices and the number of border crossings.

Stanton points to Cooper's call to defund the FBI, release people who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and paints Cooper as an extremist on abortion, which has been a big focus for Democrats this year.

Southern Arizona's 6th District, held by retiring Democratic Rep. Ann Kirkpatrick, also is slightly less favorable to Democrats under maps approved last year by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission.

Republicans have chosen Juan Ciscomani, a former senior adviser to outgoing GOP Gov. Doug Ducey with strong ties to the business community, as their candidate in the district that runs from Tucson east to the New Mexico border. He's facing Kirsten Engel, an environmental law professor who resigned from the state Legislature to run for Congress.

The lone Republican U.S. House incumbent facing a realistic challenge is David Schweikert, whose wealthy 1st Congressional District covers parts of northeast Phoenix, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley and Fountain Hills. He faces Democrat Jevin Hodge, who runs a Head Start program and has called out Schweikert for past ethics issues and his support for Trump.

Schweikert says voters in the slightly less GOP-tilted district prefer his positions on the economy.

Republican Reps. Debbie Lesko in the 8th District and Paul Gosar in the 9th faced only write-in candidates and won. Democratic Reps. Ruben Gallego in the 3rd District and Raul Grijalva in the 7th also were reelected.

Republican Rep. Andy Biggs in the 5th is expected to cruise to victory because of the political makeup of his district.

Original Article

Tudor Dixon Bashes Fox’s ‘Premature’ Call: ‘This Race Is Not Over Yet’

Tudor Dixon Bashes Fox's 'Premature' Call: 'This Race Is Not Over Yet' (Newsmax)

By Eric Mack | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 12:19 AM EST

Despite some projections suggesting Michigan Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will win Tuesday night, GOP gubernatorial challenger Tudor Dixon is vowing to continue battling in a race too close to call.

Newsmax has not called the race, but Dixon was trailing the incumbent and some "premature" election calls have left former President Donald Trump's endorsed candidate angry.

"This race is not over yet, and Fox's call was premature," Dixon told her campaign headquarters. "We expect counting to continue into tomorrow in our major counties. This race has a long way to go."

Original Article

Hochul Defeats Zeldin in NY Governor’s Race

Hochul Defeats Zeldin in NY Governor's Race Hochul Defeats Zeldin in NY Governor's Race Kathy Hochul (Getty Images)

By Jack Gournell | Tuesday, 08 November 2022 11:58 PM EST

Kathy Hochul, who became New York's governor when her predecessor Andrew Cuomo resigned amid scandal, defeated GOP challenger Lee Zeldin on Tuesday, Newsmax projects.

She becomes the first woman to win election to the job.

Zeldin, an ally of former President Donald Trump who objected to the 2020 election results, closed in on polling late in the race by focusing on the issue of crime, which Republicans have been running on across the country. Nowhere was its saliency more on display than in the campaign of Zeldin, who harnessed it to carve a potential path to win in the blue state and become the first Republican elected New York governor in two decades.

Though Hochul has been governor for a year, she is not as well known as her predecessor. Cuomo was known for his aggressive style and became a national media fixture for his pandemic briefings before his tenure was overshadowed by scandal.

Hochul, a former congresswoman, was serving as Cuomo’s low-profile lieutenant governor before taking over in August 2021 when he resigned amid sexual harassment allegations, which he denies. She has tried to cast herself as a fresh change from Cuomo, promising more collaboration and transparency while trying to steer the state through the pandemic aftereffects.

The Buffalo native’s formidable campaign fundraising brought in about $50 million, which she’s used to fund a smattering of campaign ads staking herself as a defender of abortion rights and portraying Zeldin, who hails from Long Island, as “extreme and dangerous” because of his ties to Trump and his vote against certifying the 2020 election results.

As Zeldin's message appeared to be resonating in the final month, Democrats found themselves on the defensive.

Hochul began speaking more about public safety, including announcing an effort to deploy more officers to New York City subways and called in Democratic heavy hitters to rally with her in the final days, including Vice President Kamala Harris and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Zeldin is an Army Reserve lieutenant colonel who has represented eastern Long Island in Congress since 2015. He was a vocal defender of Trump during his two impeachments and as a member of the U.S. House voted against certifying Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.

As he has run to lead New York, Zeldin has downplayed his ties to Trump, appearing with the former president at a closed-door campaign fundraiser but not at any public rallies, as candidates elsewhere have done.

He has focused almost exclusively on sending a message that violent crime is out of control — casting blame on policies passed by Democrats in Albany who control the Legislature, along with Hochul and Cuomo.

Rates of violent crime and killings have broadly increased around the U.S. since the coronavirus pandemic, in some places climbing from historic lows.

The issue became personal for Zeldin in the final month of the election, when two teenage boys were wounded in a drive-by-shooting in front of his Long Island home.

“It doesn’t hit any closer to home than this,” Zeldin said. “This could be anyone across this entire state.”

He has called for toughening the state’s bail laws and declaring a crime “emergency” that would allow him to suspend laws that curb solitary confinement in jails and that stopped automatically treating 16 and 17-year-olds as adults in the criminal justice system.

Hochul meanwhile, has poured blame on Republicans and conservatives on the U.S. Supreme Court for opposing gun control measures. She led an effort to tighten licensing rules for semiautomatic rifles after a racist mass shooting killed 10 Black people at a supermarket in her hometown of Buffalo last spring.

Original Article

GOP’s Ted Budd Wins North Carolina Senate Seat in Close Race

GOP's Ted Budd Wins North Carolina Senate Seat in Close Race (Newsmax)

By Eric Mack | Tuesday, 08 November 2022 11:42 PM EST

In a race that was close, GOP candidate Ted Budd has held off Democrat Cheri Beasley to retain the North Carolina Senate seat Tuesday night, Newsmax projects.

Budd, endorsed by former President Donald Trump, helps the Republican's slim hopes to gain the Senate majority from Democrats.

Original Article

Shapiro Defeats Mastriano for Pa. Gov

Shapiro Defeats Mastriano for Pa. Gov Shapiro Defeats Mastriano for Pa. Gov Josh Shapiro (Getty Images)

By Jack Gournell | Tuesday, 08 November 2022 11:21 PM EST

Democrat Josh Shapiro is the winner of the Pennsylvania governor's race, keeping the office in Democratic hands and defeating GOP challenger Doug Mastriano, Newsmax projects.

Mastriano had the backing of former President Donald Trump and was being watch closely as it was hoped by Republicans to be a pickup.

As vote-counting continued in the closely watched Senate race, split-ticket voting showed Trump-backed Republican Mehmet Oz performing better in his race against Democrat John Fetterman. Fetterman performed poorly in the only debate between the two following a stroke in May.

Original Article

Federal Judge Tosses Vindman Lawsuit Against Trump Allies

Federal Judge Tosses Vindman Lawsuit Against Trump Allies (Newsmax)

By Michael Katz | Tuesday, 08 November 2022 10:48 PM EST

A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by a key witness in the first impeachment of former President Donald Trump, Breitbart reported.

Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman filed the lawsuit in February, alleging witness intimidation by Donald Trump Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and two Trump White House staffers.

Vindman’s lawsuit alleged that, following his subpoena to testify as part of the House investigation, Vindman became the target of “a dangerous campaign of witness intimidation by President Trump and a group of conspirators” to deter him from testifying.

The Hill reported among the defendants listed in the federal suit were Trump Jr., Giuliani, and Trump advisers Dan Scavino and Julia Hahn.

The 29-page ruling was issued by Judge James Boasberg, a Barack Obama appointee to the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. He said Vindman’s complaint failed to make an adequate showing the defendants conspired against him.

“Plaintiff’s pled facts, taken as true, certainly suggest that Defendants leveled harsh, meanspirited, and at times misleading attacks against him,” Boasberg wrote, according to The Hill. “But political hackery alone does not violate (the law at issue).”

In 2019, Vindman testified about a phone call in which Trump was alleged to have offered a quid pro quo to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a phone call that led to Trump’s impeachment. The alleged deal involved an exchange of U.S. military aid for an investigation into Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, and his ties to Ukrainian businesses during the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.

Hunter Biden was on the board of a Ukrainian energy company, Burisma, that was under investigation at a time when Biden allegedly insisted Ukraine fire the head prosecutor.

Following the Senate’s acquittal of Trump, Vindman was fired from his post at the White House National Security Council, and he retired from the military soon thereafter. He alleged he was a victim of “bullying” and “retaliation” by the Trump White House, which he blamed for ending his military career.

Related stories

Original Article

Federal Judge Tosses Vindman Lawsuit Against Trump Allies

Federal Judge Tosses Vindman Lawsuit Against Trump Allies (Newsmax)

By Michael Katz | Tuesday, 08 November 2022 10:48 PM EST

A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by a key witness in the first impeachment of former President Donald Trump, Breitbart reported.

Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman filed the lawsuit in February, alleging witness intimidation by Donald Trump Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and two Trump White House staffers.

Vindman's lawsuit alleged that, following his subpoena to testify as part of the House investigation, Vindman became the target of "a dangerous campaign of witness intimidation by President Trump and a group of conspirators" to deter him from testifying.

The Hill reported among the defendants listed in the federal suit were Trump Jr., Giuliani, and Trump advisers Dan Scavino and Julia Hahn.

The 29-page ruling was issued by Judge James Boasberg, a Barack Obama appointee to the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. He said Vindman's complaint failed to make an adequate showing the defendants conspired against him.

"Plaintiff's pled facts, taken as true, certainly suggest that Defendants leveled harsh, mean-spirited, and at times misleading attacks against him," Boasberg wrote, according to The Hill. "But political hackery alone does not violate (the law at issue)."

In 2019, Vindman testified about a phone call in which Trump was alleged to have offered a quid pro quo to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a phone call that led to Trump's impeachment. The alleged deal involved an exchange of U.S. military aid for an investigation into Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden's son, Hunter, and his ties to Ukrainian businesses during the run-up to the 2020 presidential election.

Hunter Biden was on the board of a Ukrainian energy company, Burisma, that was under investigation at a time when Biden allegedly insisted Ukraine fire the head prosecutor.

Following the Senate's acquittal of Trump, Vindman was fired from his post at the White House National Security Council, and he retired from the military soon thereafter. He alleged he was a victim of "bullying" and "retaliation" by the Trump White House, which he blamed for ending his military career.

Original Article

New Hampshire Dem Sen. Hassan Holds Seat, Defeats GOP’s Bolduc

New Hampshire Dem Sen. Hassan Holds Seat, Defeats GOP's Bolduc (Newsmax)

By Eric Mack | Wednesday, 09 November 2022 12:02 AM EST

Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-N.H., has held off the challenge from Republican Don Bolduc, giving Democrats a key hold as they seek to stem the tide of a red wave and keep the Senate majority in these midterms, Newsmax projects.

Hassan, a former governor, had been considered vulnerable given her narrow win in 2016. But her odds improved after popular Gov. Chris Sununu took a pass at challenging her, and Republicans nominated Bolduc, a retired Army general who has espoused conspiracy theories about vaccines and the 2020 presidential election.

"I promise you, Democrats, independents and Republicans, the people who voted for me and those who did not, that I will keep working every day to serve you faithfully, to listen to you and to work with you to address the challenges facing your families, our state and our country," Hassan told cheering supporters in Manchester.

Hassan spent much of the campaign casting Bolduc as "the most extreme nominee for U.S. Senate that New Hampshire has seen in modern history," and pouncing on his past statements on abortion, Social Security, and the 2020 presidential election.

"Had he stayed strong and true, he would have won easily," Trump wrote of Bolduc on his social media platform Tuesday night.

Nearly two years after Trump's defeat, there has been no evidence of widespread fraud. Numerous reviews in the battleground states where Trump disputed his loss have affirmed the results, courts have rejected dozens of lawsuits filed by Trump and his allies, and even Trump's own Department of Justice concluded the results were accurate.

Bolduc, who insisted voters weren't interested in rehashing 2020, sought to both harness dissatisfaction over the economy and draw upon the connections he forged from the nearly constant grassroots campaigning he did after he unsuccessfully sought the nomination for the state's other senate seat two years ago. And he spent much of the campaign trying to link Hassan to Biden administration policies he said were hurting Americans.

In his concession speech, Bolduc urged his supporters to hold elected officials accountable.

"We have created a rumble. We have created an idea that government should not tread on its people and that career politicians must change," he said in Manchester. "We didn't win today, but imagine if we continue to come together, if we join hands, if we decide that they work for us and we don't work for them."

"If we can do this even in losing we will win," he said.

Hassan defeated Republican Sen. Kelly Ayotte in 2016 to become the second woman in American history to be elected both governor and U.S. senator, following fellow New Hampshire Democrat Jeanne Shaheen.

Original Article