Good morning, it’s Tuesday, Election Day – finally.
Once upon a time, when I was still a member of the Fourth Estate, election night was my super bowl.
It was the one night when political junkies, in all their nerdy, poll-and-statistics obsessed glory, could really shine and revel in their unparalleled knowledge of obscure trivia, laws, lineages, political beefs, and more.
There was nothing that could get my juices flowing like the prospect of cold pizza and the anxiety, jittery anticipation of the moments after the polls closed but before the results started rolling in.
And back when I got my start, some far-flung areas still tallied the results by hand and reported them in person at the local Board of Elections, not online as is the case today – though, let’s be honest, even some of the online reporting in parts of the state that have no excuse whatsoever for their extended delay in posting leaves much to be desired…(IYKYK).
While I am still very much a political animal, I am watching this year’s election cycle wind down – or, more aptly, come to a hysterical head – with an equal mix of anxiety, relief, and dread. The degree of animosity and distrust and discontent is unlike anything I’ve ever seen in my 30-plus years of following politics.
And given all the craziness I have seen, that is really saying something.
I was contemplating forgoing the political thing altogether today and writing about something really fun. For example, it’s World Jellyfish Day, and I have always been fascinated by how something made up of 95% water with no brain, heart, bones, blood, nervous system, or spine could actually be alive.
Also interesting: While there are somewhere between 2,000 and 4,000 known and described species of jellyfish (medusozoans), thousands more are estimated to be undiscovered, living in parts of the ocean that are so deep and/or remote that no human has ever laid eyes on them.
Fun fact: Only about 5% of the ocean (give or take) has ever been explored, which leaves a lot of unvisited locales for yet-unseen types of jellyfish (a “bloom”, “swarm” or “smack” if they’re hanging out in a group together) to hide.
I find watching jellyfish oddly relaxing, and given how anxious I’m feeling – a feeling that will no doubt intensify after the polls close tomorrow – I am deeply grateful for the existence of the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s live jelly cam, which is available 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Pacific time.
Click on that link to see the graceful and hypnotic undulations of Chrysaora quinquecirrha, which are more commonly known as Atlantic sea nettles – carnivorous invertebrates with long, deceptively beautiful – and potentially deadly – trailing arms.
You’re welcome.
Today will be cloudy, but dry, with temperatures in the high 60s. That’s perfect in-person voting weather if you aren’t among the thousands of New Yorkers who have already taken advantage of the nine-day early voting period. If you need assistance locating your poll site, click here.
In the headlines…
At a time when voters have made clear they’re most concerned with the high prices of gas and groceries and a new war in the Middle East, President Trump used his final in-person appearance before Americans head to the polls to talk about the D.C. reflecting pool.
On the eve of a consequential election day, Trump stood in front of the newly opened reflecting pool to discuss – in detail – changes to the pool’s pipe, the grass surrounding the area and granite.
Trump’s approval rating with Hispanics cratered since the start of his second term – and a sizable share of Latinos who voted for him in 2024 now plan to vote against Republican candidates in the midterm elections.
The Supreme Court last night swiftly rejected a request by the Trump administration to require that California set aside 20,000 mail-in ballots that the administration claims have been provided to noncitizens.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report issued its last rating, finding Democrat Abdul El-Sayed favored to win the Michigan Senate race and, with it, the Democrats now favored to win a Senate majority.
Rep. Haley Stevens called it “sexism” Monday to suggest her Jewish fiancé was behind her shock decision to withdraw support for fellow Democrat El-Sayed in the Michigan Senate midterm election.
The shattered alliance in Michigan between El-Sayed and his former primary rival, Stevens, underscored broader tensions in the party over Israel.
A potential midterm blue wave could transform Washington, D.C. into an unlikely NYC outer-borough power playground with Brooklyn Democrats Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries likely sweeping to top leadership positions in Congress.
Trump described the Iran conflict as a “very soft war” Monday, warning that American forces could strike further Iranian targets “in one hour” as he defended military action against the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.
Among the nine people aboard a private jet that plummeted to the ground on Sunday afternoon in Florida were a 20-year-old co-pilot and a Texas family that included two young children.
Audio recordings reveal that the pilot of a plane that crashed in Florida on Sunday said “we’re managing the ice” shortly before declaring “Mayday.”
A child in New York’s North Country died after contracting measles, the first death in the state from the viral disease in 30 years, health officials announced Monday.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the child’s family and loved ones and ask that their privacy be respected during this difficult time,” state health officials said in a statement.
So far this year, 178 measles cases have been recorded in New York, according to the state Health Department. The vast majority — 170 cases — were outside New York City. Fifteen cases have been reported in Lewis County.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman spent Monday making their closing arguments to voters, with both campaigns focused on turnout as the race entered its final hours before Election Day.
Democratic incumbent Hochul has conspicuously avoided outlining a detailed agenda for what she wants to accomplish over the next four years if she’s reelected.
If they win today, Hochul and Adrienne Adams would make up the first all-female gubernatorial ticket in New York history, and Adams, the former City Council speaker, would become the state’s first Black woman elected lieutenant governor.
As Hochul and Blakeman compete to be New York’s next governor, two of the state’s minor parties are battling it out for third place.
Vice President JD Vance visited New York’s 21st Congressional District on Monday to campaign for candidate Anthony Constantino and other Republicans.
The seat is one of the reddest targets for the Democratic Party as it grows more confident about competing in Trump strongholds. Vance trumpeted Republican-led tax cuts and warned the audience that “crazy” would come to the district if Democrats flipped it.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s pointed response to Vance’s touting of what he claimed are the Trump administration’s achievements for New York has gone viral online.
Blakeman boldly predicted New York Republicans would come from behind to claim victory in the midterm elections — insisting incumbent opponent Hochul would pay big on election day for “making people miserable.”
Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the relationship between Hochul and Mamdani “pretty unprecedented.”
The mother of a Cornell University student who died by suicide has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that two students spread false accusations about her child, a 19-year-old sophomore, and that the university failed to intervene.
The state has opened applications for the regular Home Energy Assistance Program, which can help provide up to $1,086 to low- and middle-income households for help with heating costs.
Early voting in New York skyrocketed nearly 70% compared to four years ago — and more than doubled in some crucial upstate counties, data released Monday shows.
Early voting in New York City dipped by about 6% compared to last year’s surge. The drop was due to lackluster turnout among early voters between the ages of 18 and 24, since 15,000 fewer young people showed up to vote early.
Mamdani announced Monday that he’ll sue President Trump’s administration if ICE agents don’t stop their “illegal” use of municipal property across New York City.
The legal threat, leveled in a letter to Department of Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, comes after Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were spotted using municipal parking lots in Queens and the Bronx to stage operations.
Mamdani debuted an hair-raising new look over the weekend — ditching his signature beard in favor of a striking mustache. A City Hall spokesperson confirmed the makeover was to honor “Movember,” the global charity event raising awareness for men’s health.
Mamdani was slammed by a tenants’ advocate for hosting a Halloween-themed event about scary landlords — while ignoring complaints about horrible conditions at New York City Housing Authority apartment complexes under his purview.
The mayor was a no-show at the Monday funeral for nine homeless New Yorkers who froze to death during last winter’s deep freeze that proved to be his first big test at City Hall.
The Big Apple dropped a record $10.3 billion on healthcare last year — mostly for its own government workers — helping New York earn the dubious distinction of spending more on the services than any state except Alaska.
Four school buses were found vandalized with swastikas and other antisemitic vitriol outside a Brooklyn yeshiva Monday morning, cops said.
NYPD officers shot a man in the Bronx on Monday afternoon after he fired at them, police said.
NYPD detectives say they’re seeking information from the city’s public school system after a 15-year-old Bronx student was shot and killed last week on his way to class at the DreamYard Preparatory School.
A New York City marathon runner died after collapsing in Central Park two miles from the finish line. Rachel Apa, 24, was taking part in her first marathon in honor of her late grandfather, who battled Parkinson’s before his death in 2022.
An influencer accused of criminal assault for pelting an officer with a snowball during a viral Washington Square Park snowball fight earlier this year will have his case dismissed for community service.
Mayor John DeFrancesco has fired Richard Mooney 10 months after appointing him as Rensselaer’s director of operations. DeFrancesco refused to discuss his reasoning, calling it “personnel stuff” that he doesn’t believe “needs to be aired in public.”
Facing a financial quagmire, Schenectady city council members on Monday evening were expected to vote on a 2027 budget that heavily relies on an unguaranteed surge in state aid to blunt a colossal tax increase.
After fewer than five hours of deliberations, a Schenectady County jury convicted Raymond Wright Jr. on Monday of murdering his on-again, off-again girlfriend, Samantha Humphrey, when they were both 14 years old.
Albany Med Health System President and CEO Daniel T. Pickett’s 30-day paid leave period expired Monday, with many questions still unanswered about how the system will address the fallout from a public allegation of sexual assault made against him.
Photo credit: George Fazio.
