Democratic Dust-up Puts Must-Win Seat at Risk

President Trump plans to end his midterm campaign push with a speech tonight at Washington’s Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, where a senior White House official says he will promote restoration projects in the capital. Trump also rallied voters in Kansas, which he won by 16 points in 2024, for Senator Roger Marshall’s toss-up race against Democrat Adam Hilton. He highlighted policies aimed at agriculture, especially high fuel and fertilizer costs, jokingly urged voters to produce more beef, and said he did not think his rallies would ever happen again.

Michigan Democratic Congresswoman Haley Stevens reversed her earlier endorsement of Democratic Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed and backed former Republican Representative Mike Rogers. National politics reporter Sabrina Siddiqui said the rupture followed an outside-group ad blaming higher prices on USAID to Israel, which Stevens called antisemitic and asked El-Sayed to disavow. El-Sayed said he opposed the ad and had no role in it, but accused Stevens of distracting from affordability and cost-of-living issues; his campaign told her to stay away. Stevens said that response prompted her endorsement. El-Sayed minimized the move, saying he cared about policy rather than “the politics of it all,” while Chuck Schumer called it a “despicable betrayal.”

Federal Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed a Trump administration lawsuit seeking to stop Alaska officials from certifying election results if Republican Senate candidate Dan S. Sullivan lost. The government had not presented a workable plan for removing and investigating ballots cast for challenger Dan J. Sullivan, and Alaska officials said the request was inappropriate and impossible. Gleason also ruled that the court lacked authority to order the proposed action. The Justice Department argued voter confusion could invalidate the results and said it would appeal. Authorities are separately investigating whether anyone broke the law while trying to place the second Sullivan on the ballot; both Dan J. Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola deny involvement in a reported spoiler effort.

The U.S. is backing a quick resumption of Russian natural-gas shipments to Europe through Ukrainian pipelines as a possible incentive for President Vladimir Putin to accept a limited energy ceasefire. Envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff are discussing a halt to Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure and Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries and export terminals. Yaroslav Trofimov said the plan could bring Russia substantial revenue and reduce Europe’s energy costs, but would renew dependence on Russian gas and fund the war machine. European officials oppose it, although Europe’s energy bill is already about €100 billion, or $112 billion, higher this year amid the war in Iran.

Cyberattacks hit mobile emergency apps in Ukraine and Russia, producing false nuclear and chemical-threat warnings in Ukraine and false drone-strike alerts in Russia. Officials in both countries quickly said the warnings were not real, but it remains unclear whether hackers caused the incidents or whether they represent a new tactic. Separately, Binance said customers withdrew more than 2% of the assets it manages after hackers stole over $6.3 billion from digital wallets in what the report called history’s largest cyber heist. Binance says it has replaced roughly 95% of the stolen assets with crypto it held and newly purchased assets, and has ended its temporary withdrawal block.

With candidates and backers expected to spend about $12 billion on swing-state advertising, Journal reporters Joshua Chaffin and Anthony DeBarros profiled underfunded congressional challengers. Kentucky Democrat Megan Wingfield, an openly gay first-time candidate in a rural district, pawned power tools, drove I-65 while barely affording gas, and opposed data centers in Bowling Green; she later won her primary and received a $5,000 United Auto Workers donation. New Jersey Republican Damon Galdo, making his third run against powerful Democrat Donald Norcross, could afford one billboard and staged a livestreamed debate with a cardboard Norcross after Norcross refused to debate. Chaffin said a strong showing could help such candidates attract party and donor support in future races.