Republican U.S. Rep. David Valadao defeated former Democratic Assemblyman Rudy Salas again in California’s 22nd Congressional District, The Associated Press projected.

Valadao, of Hanford, had 53.5% of the votes and Salas, of Bakersfield, had 46.5% as of 6:36 p.m Pacific Time on Tuesday. An estimated 82% of votes had been counted.

Their 2024...Read more

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump has picked his former national intelligence director, John Ratcliffe, to be the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, selecting a fierce loyalist from his first administration to lead the nation’s intelligence apparatus.

Ratcliffe, 59, is expected to bring a heavy focus on countering national...Read more

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump is nominating Pete Hegseth, host of Fox News Channel’s weekend morning program and an Army National Guard officer, as his defense secretary, the president-elect said in a statement on Tuesday evening, putting another fierce loyalist in charge of the government’s biggest agency.

“Pete has spent his entire life ...Read more

The State Board of Elections is coordinating with federal officials after 15 local boards of elections received bomb threats as votes were being counted Friday, according to Maryland’s elections administrator.

“This is something that I want to see pursued, because it affects all of us as election administrators. It affected our volunteers ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is nominating former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee to be the U.S. ambassador to Israel and appointing real estate investor Steve Witkoff as a special envoy to the Middle East, tapping two key allies to help formulate and implement his policies for the region.

Trump announced the selections Tuesday, ...Read more

In a move that further signals Donald Trump’s commitment to enforce stringent controls on illegal immigration, the president-elect confirmed Tuesday he planned to appoint South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security.

Trump has already signaled he will tap Stephen Miller and Tom Homan, two longtime allies ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that campaign mega-donor Elon Musk will lead the incoming administration’s planned Department of Government Efficiency, or “DOGE,” alongside former Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.

“Together, these two wonderful Americans will pave the way for my Administration to dismantle Government ...Read more

Incoming Senate Republican leadership has flirted with handing over a significant portion of its power to allow President-elect Donald Trump a chance to avoid the Senate’s confirmation process entirely to staff up the administration in his second term.

Ahead of Wednesday’s leadership elections, Trump and his allies have pushed the ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump is turning to Congress for his initial picks for top diplomatic postings, opting to elevate partisan warriors instead of individuals with management experience in the private sector or government.

Trump said Monday he would nominate Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., to be ambassador to the United Nations and many news ...Read more

NEW YORK — A Manhattan judge has delayed a highly anticipated decision and sentencing in Donald Trump’s hush money case following his election victory at the request of the president-elect’s lawyers and the Manhattan district attorney, according to court documents filed Tuesday.

Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan granted a joint...Read more

The Seven Nation Army is apparently retreating.

In the aftermath of the 2024 presidential election, The White Stripes have dropped their copyright infringement lawsuit against the Donald Trump campaign for using their signature song without their permission.

Attorneys for the Grammy-winning rock duo filed legal documents in New York federal ...Read more

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is reportedly poised to win President-elect Trump’s nomination to lead the Department of Homeland Security.

Noem, 51, a two-term conservative Republican, will become the third key immigration hard-liner to be named to Trump’s new administration cabinet after Stephen Miller was tapped to be deputy White House ...Read more

MIAMI — Florida is emerging as a new hub of political power in the United States.

Donald Trump’s victory in last week’s election made him the first Sunshine State resident to win the White House, and since then he’s elevated a growing number of his home-state allies to some of the most prestigious posts in U.S. and world politics.

His ...Read more

WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump is nominating former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee to be the U.S. ambassador to Israel.

“He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that “Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A pregnant Kentucky woman who wants an abortion but is unable to legally get one is suing the state in an effort to reverse its near-total ban on abortions.

The woman, about seven weeks pregnant, is seeking to overturn a pair of state laws that took effect soon after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022: a ...Read more

WASHINGTON — Former New York Rep. Lee Zeldin, President-elect Donald Trump’s intended nominee for EPA administrator, brings scant experience on environmental issues to the job but strong ties to Trump.

In a statement, Trump said that Zeldin “will ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the ...Read more

President-elect Donald Trump has only begun to fill out the ranks of his incoming administration. His first choices confirm that his son Donald Jr. and the former Fox TV personality Tucker Carlson have emerged as major influences over his picks.

Carlson and Trump Jr. played a role in persuading Trump to choose JD Vance as his running mate at ...Read more

LANSING, Mich. — Michigan's Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says she's focused on finding "some shared priorities" with Republican President-elect Donald Trump and wants to see progress, in the coming weeks, on a massive economic development project planned for Genesee County.

Whitmer took questions from Michigan reporters Tuesday in Lansing...Read more

Sen. John Fetterman, D.-Pa., said Tuesday on X that Sen. Marco Rubio, R.-Fla., President-elect Donald Trump’s expected pick for secretary of state, is a “strong choice” and that he will “look forward” to voting for his confirmation.

Fetterman’s post is a rare glimmer of Democratic support for Trump’s prospective cabinet.

...Read more

LEXINGTON, Ky. — A pregnant Kentucky woman who wants an abortion but is unable to get one is suing the state in an effort to reverse its near-total ban on abortions.

The woman, about seven weeks pregnant, is seeking to overturn a pair of state laws that took effect soon after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022: a six-week ...Read more