Articles and explainers
The Iran war and the Strait of Hormuz: where things standIran says Hormuz stays shut without a deal, oil is back above $110, a third U.S. carrier group is…Gas, diesel and the $8 billion farm aid: the Iran war hits walletsGas is about $4.30 a gallon, diesel hit a record in September, and inflation rose to 3.7%. The…Israel votes October 27: Netanyahu vs. Eisenkot, and the pollsIsrael holds a Knesset election in the middle of the Iran war. Final polls show Gadi Eisenkot's…Immigration enforcement: record deportations and the fight over ICE tacticsRemovals are on pace for a record, detention is near all-time highs, and a string of shootings has…Tariffs after the Supreme Court: what changed and what you're payingThe Court struck down the IEEPA tariffs in February and refunds now top $120 billion, but new…The 2026 midterms: what's at stake on November 3Ten days out, early voting is setting records, forecasters keep moving races toward Democrats, and…Texas Senate: Talarico vs. Paxton, and the pollsDemocrats haven't won a Senate race in Texas since 1988. With early voting under way, polls show a…Maine Senate: Collins vs. Jackson, and the pollsSen. Susan Collins is seeking a sixth term against former state Senate President Troy Jackson in a…Ohio Senate: Brown vs. Husted, and the pollsFormer Sen. Sherrod Brown is trying to return to the Senate in a special election against Sen. Jon…Michigan Senate: El-Sayed vs. Rogers, and the pollsAn open seat in a swing state pits progressive Abdul El-Sayed against former Rep. Mike Rogers, who…Kansas Senate: Marshall vs. Hamilton, and the pollsKansas hasn't elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1932. A megachurch pastor endorsed by two…Ohio governor: Acton vs. Ramaswamy, and the ad that moved the raceAn ad featuring Democrat Amy Acton's estranged mother set off a backlash, and two forecasters…The fights over who votes and which ballots countWith early voting under way, the Justice Department is charging alleged noncitizen voters and…The redistricting wars and the Voting Rights Act rulingA dozen states redrew their congressional maps mid-decade, and the Supreme Court narrowed the…Health insurance costs: 2027 premiums rise again as open enrollment nearsThe extra Obamacare subsidies ended in 2025 and enrollment fell. Open enrollment for 2027 starts…AI data centers and your electric bill: who should pay?The AI building boom is driving up power demand. States are split on whether data centers or…Ukraine: Oslo talks, a Trump–Zelensky rift and a hard winter aheadZelensky met U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and European leaders in Oslo as President Trump grows more…Brazil's runoff: Lula vs. Flávio Bolsonaro on October 25Latin America's largest democracy chooses between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Sen.…The December 11 deadline: shutdown risk, SNAP and the farm billGovernment funding runs out December 11, and a pile of other deadlines lands the same month.…The Supreme Court's new term: AR-15 bans, religious preschools and proof of citizenshipThe justices returned in October with cases on guns, religion, parental rights, voting and…