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News about the United States by Reuters.






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Poll worker asks if anyone is here to drop off a ballot? Nope, all here to do it the old-fashioned way. #copolitics http://t.co/ZKqAgPHdE4Nov. 4, 2014
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This Congress continues to have enacted fewest bills. At 185 new statutes, lowest in the first 666 days of any Congress at least since 1973.Nov. 4, 2014
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Jonathan Kaminsky spoke to more voters in New Orleans:In New Orleans, a bastion for Democrats in a heavily red-leaning state of Louisiana, Andrew Miragliotta, a 29-year-old lawyer, said he voted to re-elect Democratic U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu partly because of her worker-friendly positions and in spite of her strong support for the state’s oil and gas industries.
“You’re never going to find someone who agrees with every single thing that is part of what you’re looking to advocate for,” he said. “In Louisiana, a senate candidate who is pro-alternative energy is going to be a tough sell.”
Maggie Runyan-Shefa, 41, who co-directs an education non-profit in New Orleans, said she was voting for Landrieu in part over the senator’s efforts to help steer rebuilding funds to the state after Hurricane Katrina.
“If people vote, I’m hopeful that she will win,” she said. “I don’t know if I’d say confident, but hopeful.”
Landrieu faces an uphill battle for re-election that most analysts predict will go to a December runoff with Republican challenger Bill Cassidy, a lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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Workers’ advocates have bypassed the legislature and placed a
minimum-wage increase on the ballot in several red states — and they are
confident that voters will approve those measures on Tuesday.
More from Steven Greenhouse in NYTimes on how support for minimum wage on ballot may change the size and demographics of turnout. -
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Voting at a swimming pool and other scenes from #Midterms2014 http://t.co/RywRuiapTq http://t.co/X0KsHWfeHbNov. 4, 2014
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Obama, on CT radio: "This is probably the worst possible group of states for Democrats since Dwight Eisenhower." http://t.co/2GfgUNiJmXNov. 4, 2014
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Meanwhile, in North Carolina... Marti Maguire speaks to voters in Raleigh:
At a polling place in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Tuesday afternoon, Edward Sanders, 59, said the economy was his number one issue and expressed increasing frustration with Democrats’ policies.
After voting for Democrat Kay Hagan for the U.S. Senate in 2008, Sanders said he decided this time to go with her challenger, Republican Thom Tillis.
“I don't particularly like Tillis, but he seemed more likely to shake things up in Washington,” Sanders said, a mechanical engineer.
Sanders said he would like to see Congress simplify the tax code and start repealing policies that hurt small businesses, such as some environmental standards and provisions of the Affordable Care Act.
Kyle Stephenson, 26, an accountant, said he recently switched parties from Republican to Democrat. He cited widening economic inequality as his key issue.
“It seems like the gap between the really rich and the rest of us is just getting bigger and bigger," he said. “It’s gotten harder and harder for regular Americans to make a living."
He said he was not concerned about Washington gridlock stalling progress.
“You don't want progress to move too quickly in either direction because you end up with extremes," Stephenson said. “What we need is balance." -
Candidates matter, campaigns matter, spending matters, and local quirks matter, too. But, like all elections, this fall's midterm has also been heavily shaped by systemic structural factors that transcend the competitions between individual candidates.
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Reminder: roughly 1/3 of likely voters had already cast their ballots before November even began. http://t.co/iJxocpOvoeNov. 4, 2014
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Clues to watch as the polls close (and full list of poll closing times): http://t.co/bNqTNlnjy9 via @ccamia http://t.co/7NWGJGicb4Nov. 4, 2014
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Presidential elections usually bring out both more voters and more spurious correlations serving as prognosticators, but in lieu of a litany of crackpot, sports-related guesses at the winners of tonight’s midterms, we’ll trust in the polls and await the final numbers.
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How's it going in Louisiana? Our Jonathan Kaminsky sends an update from New Orleans:
Early voting data from Louisiana shows robust turnout among Democrats and African-Americans. But those figures will likely be of limited comfort to Democratic U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu, who is fighting an uphill battle to retain her seat, with most analysts predicting a December runoff against Republican challenger Bill Cassidy, a U.S. congressman.
Nearly 53 percent of early voters are registered Democrats, according to data from the Louisiana Secretary of State’s office, while about 34 percent are Republicans. About 245,000 early votes had been tallied as of Nov. 4, accounting for 8.4 percent of registered voters.
Those figures are deceiving, however, as many registered Democrats in the state have long voted Republican, with little incentive to change their party affiliation given the state’s open primaries, said Kurt Corbello, associate professor of political science at Southeastern Louisiana University.
African-Americans, who overwhelmingly support Landrieu, account for 32.5 percent of early voters - a robust figure, but below their early voting ratios in 2008 and 2012, when Barack Obama’s presence at the top of the ticket compelled many black voters to go to the polls.
“Landrieu’s in trouble and it will be left to the get-out-the-vote machine that both sides have set up to determine the outcome,” Corbello said. -
Had a chance to speak with #ky voters earlier today. Here's a sample of what they said... #whyIvotedNov. 4, 2014
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Nore Ghibaudy, spokesman for Jefferson Co's (Louisville) board of elections, said there are nearly 550,000 registered voters here #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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Spoke with Nathan Haney, the chair of the Louisville GOP. He's hearing high turnout numbers from big GOP precincts in the East End #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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Goldberg, a retiree, was not pleased with either candidate's stance on coal. "It nauseated me," she said. #kysen #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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If Grimes beats McConnell tonight "suddenly, Kentucky comes from leading the pack to playing second fiddle," Sullivan added #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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"His position in national government gives him power and abilities beyond what a junior senator can," Sullivan said. #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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Charles "Hawkeye" Dixon, 63, of Blackberry, KY (in Pike Co.) said the state has not benefited from McConnell's tenure in Washington...Nov. 4, 2014- Reply
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"We lost 20,000 coal jobs before Obama even turned the lights on," said Dixon, 63, a retired coal miner. #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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Anthony Sullivan, 36, a software developer in Louisville's South End thinks McConnell's position brings value and helps the state #kyelectNov. 4, 2014- Reply
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Costly U.S. Senate race in North Carolina in dead heat
(Reuters) - After the most expensive U.S. Senate race in history, North Carolina voters were set on Tuesday to choose between Democratic incumbent Kay Hagan and Republican Thom Tillis in a matchup that will help decide majority control of the chamber.
More than $108 million has been spent on the contest, according to the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation. Yet the candidates remained nearly before Election Day, with the RealClearPolitics poll average showing Hagan up by just 0.7 percentage point.
Hagan, 61, is seeking a second term in a polarized state that has leaned more heavily in favor of Republicans since she beat Elizabeth Dole for the seat in 2008.
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12 PM Turnout is 59,039 Voters or 15.39% of eligible voters in the City of Boston. #bosvote #bospoli #mapoliNov. 4, 2014
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Reader comment: IMO, the final thing you should consider before you vote is how the parties' policies have historically worked out economically:
GDP- politicsthatwork.com
Job creation- politicsthatwork.com
Personal income- politicsthatwork.com
Stock market- politicsthatwork.com -
Our David Beasley checks in with voters in Atlanta:
In suburban Atlanta, Josh Bailey, a 32-year-old medical clinic director, said he was voting for Republican candidates David Perdue and Nathan Deal in the state’s close Senate and gubernatorial races, respectively.
Bailey said he did not believe the election was about President Barack Obama's policies. But, he added, "Obamacare doesn't sit well with me."
Photographer Ben Rollins, 31, was in an anti-incumbent mood as he voted against Deal, the incumbent governor, on Tuesday. Deal is being challenged by Democrat Jason Carter, grandson of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter.
“I don’t like the way things in Georgia are run right now,” Rollins said. “There needs to be some sort of change. I came out to vote for people who aren’t in right now.”
Rollins said he also voted for Democrat Michelle Nunn in the state’s Senate race because he wants more gender diversity among elected officials.
“I voted for her because I want change and diversity, which Georgia needs more of,” he said. -
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This just in from correspondent Brendan O’Brien:
It is damp, windy and cool fall day in Wisconsin. Jordan Wescott, who supports Republican Governor Scott Walker, voted at Manitoba Elementary School on Milwaukee's south side on Tuesday morning before heading to work.
"I think we are moving the right way," Wescott said. "I feel he's an honest person and he's very black and white on issues and he stays out of the social issues, which I like."
The 33-year-old Wescott, who runs a construction company and is a 14-year veteran of the Wisconsin Air National Guard, said he is a fiscal conservative, but leans liberal on social issues such as gay marriage, which he supports.
"I think if we get the money in order and get people working, the rest of those issues will work themselves out," he said.
Wescott also voted for Republican Dan Sebring, who is challenging incumbent Gwen Moore for the 4th Congressional District seat. He said change in Washington is needed to stop the gridlock.
"I would like to see stuff start moving along and see some bills brought to the floor," he said.
Milwaukee cabbie Sukhdev Singh, 33, and his wife Meenu, 34, also voted at Manitoba Elementary School.
“I’m not that political, I just came to vote to be a good citizen,” he said.
The couple refused to disclose who they voted for, saying they hold both political parties accountable for the shape of the country.
“Everybody is the same. It’s not a big difference,” he said. -
Kid handing out GOP material at #VA10 polling place wore track suit from McLean High and had "Land of the Free, Home of the Brave" sign.Nov. 4, 2014
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Vastly more "I Ran The NYC Marathon" badges than "I Voted" stickers in Manhattan this morning.Nov. 4, 2014
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In Jeff Co, clerk's office predicts 60-65% turnout. Here's why: 23,000 new voters since '12, including 10,000 since May primary. #kyelectNov. 4, 2014
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Factbox: Republicans poised to expand control of U.S. House of Representatives
(Reuters) - With all 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives up for election on Tuesday, Republicans are expected to expand their majority amid dissatisfaction with President Barack Obama, whose approval ratings have dipped to 38 percent.
Republicans, who currently control 233 out of 435 seats in the House, may pick up ten or more in Tuesday's balloting – not enough to override a presidential veto, but good for bragging rights as the party accumulates what could be its biggest majority since the late 1940s.
Take a look at the breakdown here -
It's Election Day: Here Are 5 Headlines That Tell The Story n.pr/1AaHh9rby NPR via twitter 11/4/2014 2:04:00 PM
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All voting locations in Floyd County, Ind. are now open as officials have replaced computer chips in malfunctioning machines @ 4 sitesNov. 4, 2014
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Our David Beasley is in Atlanta, and here's his latest from the field:
At a polling site in Atlanta on Tuesday, real estate broker Clarke Weeks said he voted for Democrats Michelle Nunn and Jason Carter in Georgia’s Senate and governor races, respectively, in part because of their famous family names.
Nunn is the daughter of former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn, and Carter is the grandson of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. Both Democrats are locked in tight races and could be headed to run-offs if no one gets at least 50 percent of the vote.
"I like Jimmy Carter," said Weeks, 66, who voted early on Tuesday near Emory University. "He's been vilified, but if we had followed his energy policies, maybe we would not have had to fight so many wars. Sam Nunn is an outstanding man. I assume his daughter learned something from him."
The larger issue for Weeks was the partisan bickering in Washington. In the Senate race to replace retiring Republican Saxby Chambliss, Weeks said Republican David Perdue's campaign was focused on attacking President Barack Obama, while Nunn stressed working together to solve national problems.
"Perdue is going to Washington to fight with everybody," said Weeks. "That's the last thing we need. The whole purpose of the Constitution was to force people to work together and make compromises.” -
Fayette Co. Clerk Don Blevins says no major issues, all polls open but many with lines. #kyvoteNov. 4, 2014
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Good turnout this morning at my polling place. No line at 8:30 a.m., but all 8 booths were filled when I got there. #kyelectNov. 4, 2014
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"We're an incumbent protection organization" -@DemGovs executive director @Cocomartun on @mikeallen's Open Mike: politi.co/1oFs7xmby POLITICO Video via twitter 11/4/2014 1:40:11 PM
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Fun roundup of some quirky election day traditions from congresspeoples atr.rollcall.com/election-day-2…by ShaneGoldmacher via twitter 11/4/2014 1:08:28 PM
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North Dakota will vote today on whether life begins at conception vox.com/2014/11/4/7151…by Sarah Kliff via twitter 11/4/2014 1:03:09 PM
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Costly U.S. Senate race in North Carolina in dead heat
ReutersWINSTON-SALEM N.C. (Reuters) - After the most expensive U.S. Senate race in history, North Carolina voters were set on Tuesday to choose between Democratic incumbent Kay Hagan and Republican Thom Tillis
Putin says Russia will follow up fast after Ukraine call with Biden
MOSCOW Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia would send ideas to Washington within a week to follow up his talks with U.S. President Joe Biden on the Ukraine crisis.
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