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Danica Roem becomes Virginia's first openly transgender state senator

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

Virginia Democrat Danica Roem was projected to win her election Tuesday, according to Decision Desk HQ, becoming the commonwealth's first openly transgender state senator and the first out transgender person elected to a state Senate anywhere in the South.Roem, 39, defeated former Fairfax County police detective Bill Woolf, a conservative Republican endorsed by Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who vowed to bar transgender athletes from competing on school sports teams if elected.“You attack trans kids in my district at your own political peril,” Roem told The Hill in a recent interview.Roem, who became the nation’s first openly transgender state lawmaker when she was elected to Virginia’s House of Delegates in 2017, campaigned on her experience in the legislature and successful bipartisan bills, including legislation signed by Youngkin guaranteeing hot meals to public school students and reducing traffic congestion along Route 28 in Virginia.“I’m known nationally for being trans – ...

Gabe Amo elected as Rhode Island's first Black congressman

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

Former White House aide Gabe Amo (D) is projected to win the special election to fill the remainder of former Rep. David Cicilline’s (D-R.I.) seat in Rhode Island, according to Decision Desk HQ, making him the state's first Black representative to Congress.Amo beat out Marine veteran Gerry Leonard (R) to fill Cicilline’s vacancy in Rhode Island’s 1st Congressional District. The Rhode Island Democrat announced in February that he was leaving his seat in June to be the CEO and president of the Rhode Island Foundation. The former White House aide won a crowded Democratic primary in September, and a poll from the Pell Center at Salve Regina University in late October found Amo leading Leonard 46 percent to 35 percent. More Election Day coverage from The HillDemocrat Andy Beshear wins reelection in Kentucky governor’s raceOhio passes Issue 1 ballot measure enshrining abortion protectionsElection Day 2023 live updates: Stay up to date as results come inThe seat we...

Texas homestead tax exemption increase approved by voters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texans voted to approve Proposition 4 which will increase the homestead tax exemption and provide property tax relief, according to Associated Press projections. ELECTION DAY BLOG: Texans vote on 14 state constitutional amendments, local propositions With 40% of the vote reported, 84% voted in favor of the proposition.The changes will apply to the 2023 tax bills due in January.Proposition 4, stemming from H.J.R 2 from the 2nd special session this year, will:Raise the general school district homestead exemption to $100,000Allow legislature to set a cap on annual appraised-value increase for non-homestead real propertyEnsure appropriations for property tax relief does not count towards the constitutional spending limitAllow legislature to set four-year terms for members of an appraisal entity’s governing body in counties with 75,000+ residents Why Texas’ constitutional amendment elections historically have low voter turnout BackgroundEfforts to make this propert...

Texas Energy Fund to make electric grid more reliable approved by voters

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texans voted on a proposition that would create funding to increase “reliability” for Texas’ electric grid in the Nov. 7 constitutional amendment election. ELECTION DAY BLOG: Texans vote on 14 state constitutional amendments, local propositions The Associated Press projected Texas Proposition 7, which originated from S.J.R. 93, would pass. The proposition would create the Texas Energy Fund, which would support and finance the “construction, maintenance, and modernization of electric generating facilities.” Turnout tracker: How many people have voted in the November 2023 election? BackgroundProposition 7 comes after power grid challenges experienced most notably during winter storms in the past years.Pablo Vegas, president and CEO of ERCOT, emphasized the grid has become more “volatile” given the current resources. Election Results “The complexities of managing a growing demand, and a very dynamic load environment with those...

Billions added to Texas teacher's retirement system

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texans voted to approve Proposition 9 which will add billions to the Texas retired teacher's pension, according to Associated Press projections. ELECTION DAY BLOG: Texans vote on 14 state constitutional amendments, local propositions Proposition 9, stemming from H.J.R 2 from the 88th regular session, would make an "appropriation of $3.45 billion to the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS)" to provide cost-of-living adjustments to eligible annuitants within TRS.With 40% of the vote reported, 84% voted in favor of Prop 9.BackgroundJoe Ramirez, a former high school teacher of the year from the Austin Independent School District, has been retired for 11 years, and his pension check of $2,000 hasn't increased since.“People are basically living from month-to-month. And they need to have a little bit more security to make sure that their futures in their golden years are better off,” Ramirez said. Election Results Over a quarter of the system’s beneficiaries rece...

Bertram man sentenced in child pornography case

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — A Central Texas man was sentenced Monday for advertising child sexual abuse material online, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.According to the DOJ, 35-year-old Neal Staton Grubert, of Bertram, received 15 years in prison, as well five years of supervised release.The DOJ said on July 12, Grubert pleaded guilty to one count of advertising child pornography.An undercover investigation found images and a video uploaded and published by Grubert on a dark website, according to the DOJ.“This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse,” the DOJ said.

Election results: 2023 St. Paul-area races

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

Check here for live election results. And remember, there’s an asterisk on all of Tuesday night’s results: Not all absentee ballots have been counted yet. That means some contests won’t be definitively called Tuesday night.App users: Try our mobile site if the chart below is not visible. MINNESOTA GENERAL ELECTION LIVE RESULTSRelated ArticlesElections | Local voters cast ballots in election featuring city council, school board races, ballot questions Elections | Kentucky Gov. Beshear wins reelection. Ohio passes amendment on abortion rights. Follow live updates Elections | What you need to know for Election Day Elections | Voters in the St. Anthony-New Brighton School District will decide on two questions on Tuesday’s ballot Elections | Stillwater School District: Voters will elect board member and decide on $175M bond referendum

City of Albany hosts job fair ahead of ShopRite closure

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- The city of Albany is working to help ShopRite employees find jobs before the store closes in December. The city hosted a job fair at the ShopRite location on Central Avenue on Tuesday.It gave ShopRite employees a chance to learn about employment opportunities with the city and then connect them with employment training programs. The goal is to help as many people as possible. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! "We can't hire everyone, obviously. We do have a limited number of vacancies, but we can help people get jobs," City of Albany Dir. of Human Resources Tatiana Diaz said. "So we felt that it was very important for us to not only be able to help some people with jobs but hold their hand through their job search process."More than 500 current ShopRite employees will lose their jobs. The company said they have not brought in enough revenue to keep those stores open.

Suburban voters select new mayors in Lakewood and Arvada, decide on police and fire funding

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

Voters on Tuesday were set to elect new mayors for two of Colorado’s largest cities, bringing to an end eight-year runs at the top of Lakewood’s and Arvada’s municipal power structures.Councilwoman Wendi Strom held a sizable lead over challengers Cathy Kentner and Don Burkhart in Lakewood, the state’s fifth-largest city, with 46.7% of the vote, according to preliminary results released shortly after polls closed at 7 p.m. In Arvada, the state’s seventh-largest city, John Marriott had a slender 50.3% to 49.7% lead over Lauren Simpson.Both Marriott and Simpson currently serve on the City Council.Suburban voters had a host of candidates and ballot issues to decide on in this election, including a myriad of local tax measures and three separate ballot questions in Commerce City about whether residents can keep backyard ducks, chickens and bees. In early results, chickens and bees were in the winning column while ducks were not so welcome.The winner in Lakew...

Incumbent Mike Coffman leading Juan Marcano in Aurora mayor’s race

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 15:56:31 GMT

Incumbent Mike Coffman had a significant lead in the race for Aurora mayor in the first round of election results posted at 7 p.m. Tuesday.City Council member Juan Marcano is challenging Coffman for the seat, and in the early results, Coffman, who is running for a second term, had 56.61% of the vote to Marcano’s 36.35%, leading by more than 8,100 votes.The third candidate in the race, Jeff Sanford, who ran a limited campaign for the seat, had received 7.04% of the vote.Although the citywide races are nonpartisan, the candidates for mayor and City Council could take Aurora in vastly different directions, depending on who voters ultimately elect.Coffman, a Republican and former U.S. congressman, was elected to his first term leading the left-leaning city in 2019. In 2021, the City Council majority also flipped to conservative leadership. While Coffman and others running for local seats hope to see that trend continue, Marcano, a Democrat, and other progressive candidates are pus...