Study: Underrepresentation of eligible voters of color persists despite growth in California

In the last two elections, the number of eligible Asian American and Latino voters in California increased while the amount of eligible White voters throughout the state decreased.

But despite the increase in those eligible minority voters, they remain underrepresented at the ballot box.

According to new research from the University of Southern California’s Center for Inclusive Democracy, more than four in 10 Asian American and Latino eligible voters in the state — approximately 5.4 million people — did not vote in the 2020 general election.

In 2022, that number went up to six in 10, meaning that around 8.6 million eligible Asian American and Latino voters did not cast a ballot. And in 2022, the difference between Latino voters who cast a ballot and the California electorate was nearly 17 percentage points; it was around 7.7 percentage points for Asian American voters.

—The Orange County Register

Death Valley, the Earth’s hottest place, just had its hottest summer ever

The hottest place on Earth has officially made it through its hottest summer ever, Death Valley National Park rangers said on Thursday.

Death Valley, a popular national park across the California state line, experienced an average 24-hour temperature of 104.5 degrees, besting its previous record of 104.2 degrees, which was set in 2021 and 2018.

In a statement released after July became the park’s hottest month on record, park Superintendent Mike Reynolds emphasized that records will continue to be shattered as climate change elevates heat across the globe.

“Six of the 10 hottest summers have come in the past 10 years, which should serve as a wake up call,” Reynolds said. “Record-breaking months like this one could become the norm as we continue to see global temperatures rise.”

—Las Vegas Review-Journal

White House secures release of 135 political prisoners in Nicaragua

WASHINGTON — The Biden administration said Thursday it had secured the release of 135 “unjustly detained political prisoners” in Nicaragua on humanitarian grounds, including 13 members of a Texas-based missionary organization.

Other individuals released include students, Catholic laypeople, “others who Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo consider a threat to their authoritarian rule,” Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security advisor, said in a statement.

“The United States welcomes the leadership and generosity of the Government of Guatemala for graciously agreeing to accept these Nicaraguan citizens. Once in Guatemala, these individuals will be offered the opportunity to apply for lawful ways to rebuild their lives in the United States or other countries through President Biden’s Safe Mobility Office initiative,” Sullivan said.

“President Biden and Vice President Harris are grateful to President Arévalo for his continued leadership across the region in addressing humanitarian issues and championing democratic freedom.” “The United States again calls on the Government of Nicaragua to immediately cease the arbitrary arrest and detention of its citizens for merely exercising their fundamental freedoms,” Sullivan added.

—Miami Herald

Barnier reaches out to Le Pen’s far right in bid for stability in France

France’s new prime minister, Michel Barnier, made a plea for the country’s political factions to work together in order to move beyond the turbulence that’s caused so much chaos over the past two months.

The former Brexit czar for the European Union pledged to focus on issues important to the far right such as security and reducing migration in a nod to the central priorities of Marine Le Pen’s populist National Rally, though he didn’t mention her by name.

Barnier will speak with her, probably later on Thursday or Friday, according to a person familiar with his thinking, as he continues to consult with political leaders, as well as former presidents and prime minsters. Her party wields an unprecedented amount of power since snap elections were called in June.

“This is a new page in France’s history and this is something we need to broach with a sense of humility,” Barnier said in a speech Thursday in Paris as he started his new job.

—Bloomberg News