Author: Sky York Journal

Sky York Journal In the first substantial blow to the Trump administration’s redistricting power grab in red states across the country, California voters on Tuesday approved a proposal to redraw the state’s congressional district lines. Governor Gavin Newsom and state Democrats pushed the measure to help offset Trump’s nationwide gerrymandering blitz in red states. The ballot measure’s success was clear nearly immediately after polls closed on the west coast. The AP called the race at 11 p.m. ET. The ballot measure, known as Proposition 50, was spearheaded by Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and was introduced earlier this year. Trump…

Sky York Journal On Tuesday, Maine voters rejected Question 1, a Republican-backed measure primarily about voter ID, that, if approved, would have restricted absentee voting and ballot access and disenfranchised eligible voters. Supporters of the measure insist these changes are necessary for election security, while voting rights activists argue that the new law is merely a form of voter suppression and a way to cast doubt on the security of an already-secure election system.  The attempt to change Maine’s voting policies came as the state is poised to host one of the most significant Senate contests of next year’s midterms.…

Sky York Journal By electing Zohran Mamdani, New Yorkers have just launched one of the most high-profile experiments on the future of the Democratic Party and its opposition to Donald Trump. Mamdani, who won a clear-cut victory, is a young Democratic Socialist who vaulted from relative obscurity in the state legislature to City Hall in the span of about a year, thanks to an ambitious policy agenda and a relentless digital offensive tailor-made for the age of TikTok and Instagram. The Associated Press called the race at 9:34 pm ET, with Mamdani pulling in 50.4% of the vote ahead of…

Sky York Journal Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) is projected to win a decisive victory against Jack Ciattarelli (R) in New Jersey’s race for governor, one of two closely-watched gubernatorial contests this year. The win leaves Democrats two for two after Abigail Spanberger won her race in Virginia earlier Tuesday evening. The AP called the race at 9:23 p.m. ET. With 61% of the vote counted, Sherrill led Ciattarelli 56.9% to 42.5%. Sherrill, a former Navy pilot and assistant U.S. attorney, was only slightly favored in the polls ahead of Election Day — worrying Democrats in what is normally considered a…

Sky York Journal Democrat Abigail Spanberger is projected to become the next governor of Virginia, securing a resounding win for her party in one of the most closely-watched races of 2025. The win will help Virginia Democrats move ahead with a plan to redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterms, an attempt to counter GOP redistricting efforts in red states. The Associated Press called the race at 7:59 pm ET, just an hour after polls closed, with 54.9% of the vote and 44.9% for her Republican opponent, Winsome Earle-Sears. Spanberger held a consistent lead throughout the campaign, framing the…

Sky York Journal President Donald Trump said on Tuesday SNAP benefits will not go out to the nearly 42 million Americans who rely on the nutrition program until Democrats vote to open the federal government — despite an order from a federal judge that the administration must fund the program during the shutdown. “SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office (Due to the fact that they were haphazardly “handed” to anyone for the asking, as opposed to just those in need, which is the purpose of SNAP!),…

Sky York Journal The man who federal agents accused of dealing Greg Bovino a groin injury from which the Border Patrol commander purportedly needed two weeks to recover will no longer face charges after prosecutors on Monday moved to drop their case against him. Per a motion to dismiss, federal prosecutors will no longer pursue a charge of impeding a federal officer. Cole Sheridan, the protester, was initially charged with assaulting and impeding a federal officer over an Oct. 3 protest in which a Homeland Security Investigations agent accused the man of shoving Bovino. A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s…

Sky York Journal ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power. Sign up to receive our biggest stories as soon as they’re published. This article is co-published with The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan local newsroom that informs and engages with Texans. Sign up for The Brief Weekly to get up to speed on their essential coverage of Texas issues. The Department of Homeland Security says it intends to add state driver’s license information to a swiftly expanding federal system envisioned as a one-stop shop for checking citizenship. The plan, outlined in a public notice posted Thursday, is the latest step in…

Sky York Journal The Trump administration told a federal judge on Monday that it plans to use the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) contingency fund to cover 50 percent of November allotments to current eligible households — but that it might take states “a few weeks to up to several months” to disburse the money. A collection of blue state officials sued the administration earlier this month, when the shutdown meant an abrupt cutoff of SNAP payments and the administration expressed resistance to dipping into the contingency fund. It’s the first time in the program’s history that the scheduled payments…

Sky York Journal Judge Karin Immergut handed down a preliminary injunction late Sunday night, keeping the National Guard out of Portland.  “Based on the trial testimony, this Court finds no credible evidence that during the approximately two months before the President’s federalization order, protests grew out of control or involved more than isolated and sporadic instances of violent conduct that resulted in no serious injuries to federal personnel,” she wrote. The ruling maintains the status quo — the Guard remains barred from Portland — but with additional fact-finding by Immergut to back it up based on testimony at a three-day…