from States Newsroom
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By Kathie Obradovich |
President Donald Trump has kicked off a month-long blitz of campaign stops in Republican-leaning states, including an event coming up Monday in Nebraska.
On Thursday, Trump told an “adoring, boisterous” crowd in Oklahoma to vote like he’s on the ballot. He said the same thing in Alabama, where he spoke to about 8,000 supporters in Mobile. In Ohio on Saturday, Trump said the midterm results would be a “big surprise.”
The first events in the closing stretch of the midterm election campaign suggest his strength with swing voters is limited, as even some Republican candidates seek distance, political analysts said.
TOP IMPACT
By Jonathan Shorman | News from the States
When Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin declared in September that Immigration and Customs Enforcement could serve warrants on individuals at polling places this fall, officials in Denver, a liberal city where roughly 14% of residents are foreign-born, quickly sued.
Local and state officials across the country are bracing for possible federal election interference from now through Nov. 3 — even as they remain unsure of what will actually happen.
Officers from the Tennessee Highway Patrol and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security at a traffic stop in Memphis in October, 2025. (Photo by John Partipilo/Tennessee Lookout)
By Ariana Figueroa | News from the States
This summer, arrests of immigrants in the United States soared to the highest levels since President Donald Trump returned to office.
An unprecedented increase in cooperation between local and state law enforcement and federal immigration officers through collaborations known as 287(g) agreements helped drive numbers up.
BIG PICTURE
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 15, 2026. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION, CONGRESS AND COURTS
USA: US Senate leaves nation’s capital in advance of midterms with much still undone | News from the States
USA: US Senate Dems block bill curbing congressional stock trading, calling it too weak | News from the States
TN: Under Trump, immigration arrests and detentions surge in Tennessee | Tennessee Lookout
USA: US Supreme Court allows Trump to resume deportations outside immigrants’ home countries | News from the States
USA: News orgs banned from White House accuse Trump of First Amendment violation | News from the States
USA: Major bill to set standards for college athletes’ pay passes US Senate | News from the States
USA: Trump used impossible foreign labor standards as tariff workaround, small businesses say | News from the States
USA: Federal funds for local police enforcement accelerated Trump immigration crackdown | News from the States
OH: 5 Haitians from Springfield, Ohio, have been deported after Trump ended protected status | Ohio Capital Journal
USA: GOP senator bungles accusation against former special counsel Jack Smith in heated hearing | News from the States
MD: Trump administration challenges Maryland’s ban on police using masks | Maryland Matters
TN: Nursing Nashville mom reunited with kids 3 months after ICE arrest | Tennessee Lookout
USA: Justice Department indicts 10 noncitizens in quest to prove Trump claims of election fraud | News from the States
USA: Trump thwarted in hunt for rare noncitizen voters as midterms near | News from the States
USA: ‘Dumbfounds us all’: Congress struggles with policies rippling from AI development | News from the States
KS: Immigration insights: Tears and action follow ICE raids in southwest Kansas | Kansas Reflector
USA: Schumer: Democratic US Senate may block Trump nominees for Supreme Court, lower courts | News from the States
NH: Conservationists want Congress to do more to protect New England’s roadless areas | New Hampshire Bulletin
USA: Outraged over 'illegal' wetlands rule, a GOP senator blocks dozens of Trump nominees | News from the States
CO: Boulder, fossil fuel companies face off at the Supreme Court in high-stakes climate case | Colorado Newsline
USA: Trump TV ads paid for with $20M in Homeland Security funds, Dems find | News from the States
USA: Judge blocks federal prosecutors from refiling charges in Reflecting Pool case | News from the States
USA: Appeals court poised to allow contempt probe of DHS deportation flights to El Salvador | News from the States
USA: Congressional watchdog says Trump administration can’t defy lawmakers to revoke $810M | News from the States
CAMPAIGNS, VOTING AND ELECTION LAW
OR: Oregon GOP PAC hires same group Elon Musk used to canvass across swing districts | Oregon Capital Chronicle
LA: Sen. John Kennedy's possible presidential run depends on ‘a bunch of goobers’ | Louisiana Illuminator
MO: Some Missouri Republicans are stressing independence from GOP in 2026 campaign ads | Missouri Independent
AL: North Alabama House district draws rare three-candidate battle | Alabama Reflector
ND: Issue spotlight: North Dakota US House candidates discuss AI regulation, data centers | North Dakota Monitor
WV: New polling shows Morrisey at 31-45% approval; it could affect Republican candidates this fall | West Virginia Watch
ID: Supporters and opponents of Idaho’s abortion rights initiative, Prop 1, have raised millions | Idaho Capital Sun
IN: Right to bail: Amendment asks voters to rewrite pretrial detention rules | Indiana Capital Chronicle
NV: Judge up for fifth term on Clark County bench | Nevada Current
UT: Utah’s top election chief says Trump admin’s ‘gamesmanship’ with voting keeps her up at night | Utah News Dispatch
ND: Lawsuit challenges legality of 4 North Dakota legislative candidates | North Dakota Monitor
IA: Ag sec candidates debate Iowa’s beef herd, water quality, land ownership, local food | Iowa Capital Dispatch
KY: Sen. Julie Raque Adams gets $620K in outside help from GOP committees | Kentucky Lantern
UT: Candidates for Utah’s 3rd Congressional District clash on national monuments, nuclear energy | Utah News Dispatch
KY: Highest monthly total of new voters since 2024 register to vote in Kentucky elections | Kentucky Lantern
ID: Idaho’s general election is less than a month away. Here’s what you need to know. | Idaho Capital Sun
IA: Republican Joe Mitchell, Democratic state Rep. Lindsay James spar in 2nd District debate | Iowa Capital Dispatch
NE: Why Nebraska Republicans say they want to reelect Sen. Pete Ricketts | Nebraska Examiner
WV: WV Republican House candidate under fire for comments about Black women, Muslims | West Virginia Watch
TN: Democrats face uphill battle in winning any Tennessee U.S. House race | Tennessee Lookout
ND: Free school meal ballot measure debated at North Dakota policy summit | North Dakota Monitor
IA: Chris McGowan, Dave Dawson share plans to lower fuel costs at 4th District debate | Iowa Capital Dispatch
SD: Appeals court grants new hearing in lawsuit over petitioning time for South Dakota ballot questions | South Dakota Searchlight
ME: How Mainers are weighing the pay-to-play allegation involving Susan Collins | Maine Morning Star
AZ: Blake Miguez’s primary residence is in New Iberia, outside 6th District, AG says | Arizona Mirror
KY: Lexington brewery owner’s email prompts questions about Kentucky campaign finance laws | Kentucky Lantern
UT: Utah 1st Congressional District debate found middle ground among two moderates | Utah News Dispatch
UT: Trevor Lee resigns from Utah House as AG charges him with fraud | Utah News Dispatch
UT: Utah lawmakers want a higher bar for ballot initiatives that raise taxes. Will voters sign off? | Utah News Dispatch
LA: Louisiana congressional candidates weigh in on federal disaster recovery | Louisiana Illuminator
ND: Absentee ballots available for North Dakota voters | North Dakota Monitor
OR: Data centers take center stage, spur mudslinging, in competitive Gorge-based Oregon House race | Oregon Capital Chronicle
ME: Democrats have been trying to nail Collins on corruption for years. Will this time be different? | Maine Morning Star
SD: Podcast: Pro and con voices on Amendment J, clarifying the citizenship requirement for voting | South Dakota Searchlight
NM: New Mexico Election 2026: New Mexico governor | Source NM
TN: Democratic-leaning PAC goes after Republican congressional candidate over data centers | Tennessee Lookout
NE Nebraska Senate race has seen tough talk and shifts on Immigration | Nebraska Examiner
ME: With Christie by his side, Bobby Charles distances himself from Trump | Maine Morning Star
KY: Follow the Money: Beshear PAC helps Dem candidates for governor in Georgia, New Mexico | Kentucky Lantern
ND: Sponsor, opponent debate need for North Dakota ballot measure to change constitution | North Dakota Monitor
CO: Few trans students play school sports in Colorado. A 2026 ballot measure would ban them. | Colorado Newsline
LA: 5th District candidates disagree on Iran war, public food assistance | Louisiana Illuminator
ND: North Dakota Supreme Court races are nonpartisan, but Republicans play a big role | North Dakota Monitor
SD: Departing congressman says voter choices and Trump’s ‘lost focus’ contribute to DC’s troubles | South Dakota Searchlight
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