(WASHINGTON) — Investors and consumers will closely watch the release of October inflation data on Thursday, little more than a week after the Federal Reserve intensified its fight to dial back inflation last matched four decades ago.
The Fed last week raised its short-term borrowing rate another 0.75%, marking the latest in a string of jumbo-sized borrowing cost increases imposed by the Fed in recent months as it tries to slash price increases by cooling the economy and choking off demand.
The approach, however, risks tipping the U.S. into a recession and putting millions out of work.
Economists expect that inflation over the year ending in October will fall to 7.9% — a highly elevated reading but one that would mark a slight slowdown from 8.2% year-over-year inflation reported the previous month.
The data release arrives two days after the midterm elections, when Democrats outperformed forecasts of a voter backlash against the party in control of Congress and the White House expected in part due to frustration over sky-high consumer prices.
Polling released days before the elections found that 80% of likely voters considered the economy a top issue in their vote for Congress; while 77% said the same about inflation specifically, an ABC News/Washington Post survey found.
Still, a Republican wave election did not materialize. As of Wednesday, control of the House and Senate had yet to be determined.
Despite persistent inflation, growing evidence suggests that the Fed’s rate hikes have put the brakes on some economic activity.
Mortgage rates reached a 20-year high last month, as the U.S. faces an ongoing slowdown in home sales and housing construction.
Job growth has persisted at a strong rate but has shown signs of moderating.
The U.S. added 261,000 jobs in October, exceeding economist expectations and demonstrating the continued strength of the labor market.
But the hiring in October fell well below the typical jobs added over a given month in 2022. Monthly job growth has averaged 407,000 thus far in 2022 versus 562,000 per month in 2021, the jobs data showed.
While some data points to an economic slowdown, a government report released last month showed significant economic growth over three months ending in September.
U.S. gross domestic product grew 2.6% over that period; by contrast, economic activity shrank a combined 2.2% over the first six months of the year.
Inflation, however, remains a top concern for federal policymakers.
When facing high inflation, policymakers fear what’s referred to as a price-wage spiral, in which a rise in prices prompts workers to demand raises that help them afford goods, which in turn pushes up prices, leading to a self-perpetuating cycle of runaway inflation.
However, the October jobs data was the latest to ease such concerns. Average hourly earnings rose 4.7% over the past year, well below the inflation rate and a decline from 5% year-over-year wage growth the previous month.
(NEW YORK) — A mayor running for re-election died in a car crash on election morning just hours before the polls were set to close and the results were announced, police said.
The incident occurred shortly after 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday when the Louisiana State Police were notified of a crash involving two vehicles on U.S. Highway 190 near LA Highway 741, located approximately 50 miles west of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, according to a statement by the Louisiana State Police following the crash.
A preliminary investigation into the crash revealed that a male driver, of Columbia, Louisiana, was traveling south on LA 741 in his 2015 Ram 2500 pickup truck when he reportedly failed to yield to the 2008 Acura RDX that was carrying 84-year-old Velma Hendrix — the incumbent mayor of Melville, Louisiana — while the vehicle was traveling west on US 190.
“As the Acura approached the intersection, [the driver] failed to yield as he attempted to cross over both westbound lanes of US 190,” said the Louisiana State Police. “The front of the Ram struck the passenger side of the Acura in the westbound lane of travel.”
Hendrix, who was sitting in the rear left passenger seat in the Acura, was not wearing her seatbelt when the pickup truck collided with hers. She was immediately taken to a local area hospital following the crash but ultimately died of her injuries suffered in during the accident.
The driver of the Acura — who was also not wearing a seatbelt — along with three other passengers in the same vehicle, all suffered moderate to critical injuries and were taken to local hospitals for treatment, according to authorities.
The driver of the 2015 Ram 2500 pickup truck was not wearing his seatbelt either, police say, but he was uninjured in the collision.
“[Cook] submitted a breath sample indicating no alcohol in his system and had no signs of impairment,” said the Louisiana State Police. “He was cited for failure to yield from a stop sign and no seat belt. A routine toxicology sample from the driver of the Acura has been submitted to the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab for analysis.”
The crash remains under investigation.
First elected mayor of Melville, Louisiana, in 2018, Hendrix had been running her re-election campaign against challengers Sheila “Sam” Londerno and Caretta Robertson.
The St. Landry Parish Clerk issued a statement following the announcement of Hendrix’s death regarding what would happen next with the election process.
“In regards to Mayor Velma D. Hendrix, Mayor of Melville’s untimely passing, the Louisiana Commissioner of Elections, Sherri Hadskey, has informed us of the protocol for Mayor of Melville. Qualifying will be reopened on Wednesday, November 9, 2022 until Monday, November 14, 2022 and the election for Mayor of Melville will be held on December 10, 2022,” St. Landry Parish Clerk said in a statement posted on social media. “In the case of no one else qualifying before Monday, November 14, 2022, the candidates from November 8, 2022 with the highest votes will be declared Mayor of Melville. Prayers and condolences to Mayor Hendrix’s family and friends.”
Following the accident, Louisiana State Police took the opportunity to remind motorists to “slow down and come to a complete stop in order to ensure no cross traffic is present and ALWAYS wear your seat belt, regardless of seating position.”
Said the police: “Simple precautions such as these can often mean the difference between life and death.”
(UVALDE, Texas) — Some Uvalde families spent their days and nights over the past several months rallying, marching, tweeting, camping out and protesting in the hope that their fellow Texans would hear their cries for gun reform and vote for Democrat Beto O’Rourke for Texas governor.
But Tuesday’s election showed their actions in their community weren’t loud enough: Republican Gov. Greg Abbott garnered more than 60% of the vote in Uvalde County and is projected to win the race and be reelected as governor.
While some families told ABC News they were disappointed in local results, they weren’t necessarily surprised. While every American had something important to them on the ballot this midterm election, Uvalde families had something very personal.
On May 24, a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School, a devastating tragedy that unraveled the tight-knit community. From a botched police response to a prolonged investigation, to the suspensions and firings of personnel in their school district, the town went from a dot on the map most Texans couldn’t identify to a household name in the United States.
Some of the victims’ families turned to advocacy as they were fueled by a passion to never let another family go through what they did. They spent night after night demanding answers from their community leaders, tweeting about their grief and rage, and flying to Washington, D.C., to march on Capitol Hill for gun reform.
Some families campaigned for O’Rourke, accompanying him to rallies and participating in a campaign ad where they tearfully pleaded for their fellow Texans to vote for him on behalf of their lost loved ones.
But first, he rallied for them. In the wake of the shooting, O’Rourke established himself as a stalwart supporter of the victims’ families and their cries for gun reform.
While O’Rourke scrambled to make it on a plane to get to Uvalde from New York on May 24, some later scrutinized Abbott and accused him of ulterior motives in quietly engaging with family members of the victims in August, more than two-and-a-half months after the massacre. Like many Uvalde families — and unlike Abbott — O’Rourke called for universal background checks, “red flag” laws and raising the gun purchasing age from 18 to 21.
But, as Tuesday’s projected results showed, that wasn’t the case for the majority of Texas. As Uvaldeans stood outside the Uvalde Leader-News’ office in their picturesque town square on a beautiful autumn evening, they watched a white dry-erase board fill up with handwritten data favoring a Republican victory.
Veronica Mata, the mother to Tess Mata, a Robb Elementary School victim, said she didn’t expect Abbott to win.
“It was real sadness and disappointment. I really thought that everything they saw our kids go through, that Texas was gonna want to make a change,” she told ABC News on a call Wednesday afternoon.
Kimberly Rubio, mother to Lexi Rubio, another young victim of the massacre, said she saw an Abbott win coming.
“I am disappointed but not surprised that Texas reelected Abbott; however, I am appalled that Uvalde turned out for Abbott,” she wrote in a message to ABC News. “This is our community. Friends, neighbors, watched as the tragedy of May 24 unfolded. Uvaldeans stopped to watch 21 funeral processions. They’ve witnessed Abbott stand by and do nothing for the victims’ families. I thought this community would stand with us as we fought for change, accountability. I thought they’d help us pick up the pieces. Instead, this community is adding to our hurt.”
An upside-down “#UvaldeStrong” photo circulated among some of the families’ Twitter profiles, symbolizing their anger toward their own community for their choice of governor.
Faith Mata, Veronica’s eldest daughter and Tess’ older sister, tweeted the day after Election Day, saying: “I hate Texas and especially Uvalde. Can’t believe all these people claimed to be ‘Uvalde Strong.’ Disgusting is what it is. Can’t believe the death of children in your own hometown wasn’t enough for you. Tess & the 20 other lives don’t deserve this. Our fight isn’t over!”
“It makes you think, why wasn’t it enough? Did we not do enough?” Faith told ABC News on a call Wednesday.
But Faith’s hope is not lost, as she plans to continue to push Abbott to raise the gun purchasing age.
“You can’t really go into the next fight, or the next rally, or the next march if you’re not having hope,” she said.
Where Faith finds hope, she said, is in her sister Tess, and making sure what happened to her never happens to another little girl.
Her mom agreed.
“We’re gonna continue fighting for those kids that are still in school and for those teachers, and, hopefully, we can get some kind of change,” Veronica Mata said.
(NEW YORK) — Nebraska is projected to approve a $15 minimum wage for workers amid a nationwide push for wage hikes that has predominantly taken hold in liberal states like New York, California and Illinois.
The referendum, called Initiative Measure 433, garnered support from 59% of voters in Nebraska, while ballots opposing the measure stood at 41%, according to results reported by ABC News on Wednesday.
The measure will incrementally raise the state’s minimum wage from its current level of $9 per hour to $15 per hour by 2026. Over ensuing years, the minimum wage will move in accordance with inflation.
Nebraska joins at least nine states that have raised their wage floor to $15 per hour, representing a combined 40% of the U.S. workforce, data from the left-leaning National Employment Law Project showed. The majority of those states are liberal.
Battleground or conservative-leaning states have used ballot measures to impose more modest wage hikes in previous years. Voters in Arkansas, Missouri and Arizona brought the wage in their states as high as $12 per hour, according to the nonprofit research firm Ballotpedia.
The nationwide push for minimum wage hikes intensified in 2012, when fast food workers launched a campaign called Fight for $15, aiming to raise wages and unionize the fast food sector. The Service Employees International Union, or SEIU, one of the nation’s largest labor organizations, spent tens of millions of dollars in support of the effort.
The last federal minimum wage hike took place in 2009, when Congress raised the pay floor to its current level of $7.25. As of August, 30 states have raised their minimum wage above the federal level, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
The ballot measure in Nebraska was not the only wage-related referendum put in front of voters on Tuesday. In Washington, D.C., voters are projected to approve a measure that will gradually raise the minimum wage for tipped workers from its current level of $5.05 until it matches the wage floor for non-tipped workers by 2027, according to The New York Times.
In July, the minimum wage in Washington, D.C., for non-tipped workers increased from $15.20 per hour to $16.10 per hour.
(NEW YORK) — Hurricane Nicole made landfall along Florida’s east coast early Thursday as a Category 1 storm.
At least 45 of Florida’s 67 counties are under a state of emergency due to Nicole.
Nicole formed as a subtropical storm in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean on Monday, becoming the 14th named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which ends later this month.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Nov 10, 5:35 AM EST
100,000 without power in Florida after Nicole’s landfall
More than 100,000 customers were without power across Florida early Thursday, shortly after Nicole made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane, according to data collected by PowerOutage.us.
Nov 10, 4:17 AM EST
Nicole weakens back into a tropical storm
Nicole weakened back into a tropical storm shortly after making landfall as a Category 1 hurricane along Florida’s east coast early Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
The storm currently has maximum sustained winds of 70 miles per hour, as it moves inland across the Sunshine State. To be classified as a hurricane, a tropical cyclone must have maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph.
Nevertheless, the National Weather Service warned that “strong winds, dangerous storm surge and waves, and heavy rains continue over a large area.”
A hurricane warning from Boca Raton to the Flagler-Volusia County line in eastern Florida has been changed to a tropical storm warning. A tropical storm warning south of Boca Raton to Hallandale Beach, Florida, has also been discontinued, along with a hurricane watch for Florida’s Lake Okeechobee.
A storm surge warning from North Palm Beach to Jupiter Inlet in eastern Florida has been discontinued. A storm surge watch south of North Palm Beach to Hallandale Beach, Florida, has also been discontinued.
All warnings have been discontinued for the northwestern Bahamas, according to the National Weather Service.
Nov 10, 3:22 AM EST
Nicole makes landfall as Category 1 hurricane in Florida
Nicole made landfall along Florida’s east coast on North Hutchinson Island, just south of Vero Beach, at 3 a.m. local time on Thursday as a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.
It’s the second-latest hurricane landfall on record in the United States.
Nov 10, 1:58 AM EST
38,000 without power in Florida ahead of Nicole’s landfall
More than 38,000 customers in Florida were without power early Thursday, ahead of Hurricane Nicole’s landfall, according to data collected by PowerOutage.us.
Nov 08, 10:11 PM EST
Latest forecast as Nicole approaches Florida
Hurricane Nicole is approaching Florida as a large Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.
The latest forecast shows Nicole touching down along Florida’s east coast after midnight but before sunrise, with one model estimating landfall between Cocoa Beach and Fort Pierce at 4 a.m. local time, although projections can change.
Hurricane warnings have been issued from West Palm Beach north to Daytona Beach, with tropical storm warnings extending inland from Miami through Tallahassee, and even extending into parts of southern Georgia and coastal South Carolina.
Nov 09, 6:15 PM EST
Nicole strengthens into hurricane
Nicole has strengthened into a hurricane while making landfall on Grand Bahama Island, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The storm has estimated maximum wind speeds of 75 mph.
Nov 09, 1:21 PM EST
Latest forecast
Nicole may strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall overnight near Fort Pierce. Over the next 24 hours, the biggest threats for Florida will be damaging beach erosion, storm surge up to 5 feet, isolated tornadoes and wind gusts around 70 mph.
Hurricane warnings are in effect from West Palm Beach to Daytona Beach. Tropical storm warnings are in effect for much of Florida and extend up to coastal Georgia and South Carolina.
After landfall, Nicole will quickly weaken as it moves across central Florida and the Panhandle, but it’ll bring rain, powerful winds and storm surge.
Three feet to 5 feet of storm surge is expected from West Palm Beach to Jacksonville while Florida’s Big Bend area could see 2 to 4 feet of storm surge.
The heaviest rain — 8 inches — will hit central Florida. Flash flooding is also possible.
As Nicole moves north, the heavy rain will stretch into the Mid-Atlantic and New England. Pennsylvania to Vermont could see 2 to 4 inches of rain. Philadelphia, New York City and Boston could see 2 inches of rain and gusty winds.
-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin
Nov 09, 12:01 PM EST
Nicole makes landfall in Bahamas
Tropical Storm Nicole has made landfall on Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas.
Nov 09, 11:47 AM EST
Disney World parks to close
Disney World parks will close early Wednesday evening and will remain closed through Thursday morning due to the storm.
Nov 09, 11:18 AM EST
Nicole could make landfall twice
Once Nicole makes landfall early Thursday in Martin County as a Category 1 hurricane, the storm is expected to cross the state of Florida, hit the Gulf of Mexico and possibly make landfall again along Florida’s Big Bend, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned.
The major concerns for Nicole are winds, flooding, beach erosion and possible tornadoes, DeSantis said.
He said 15 shelters are open for those urged to evacuate.
The governor said 16,000 linemen have been staged to immediately work on restoring power as soon as the storm passes.
Nov 09, 10:52 AM EST
Florida counties announce evacuation orders
Several of Florida’s 67 counties have announced evacuation orders in anticipation of Tropical Storm Nicole’s arrival.
Flagler County: Evacuation orders go into effect Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. local time for residents and visitors in Zone A, the barrier island from Flagler Beach to Marineland, as well as mobile homes and RVs countywide, according to the Flagler County Emergency Management.
Volusia County: Mandatory evacuations went into effect Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time for residents and visitors east of the Intercostal Waterway, all mobile homes east of Interstate 95, all low-lying areas and other areas prone to flooding as well as all campsites and RV recreational parks, according to the Volusia County Emergency Management.
Palm Beach County: Mandatory evacuations went into effect Tuesday at 7 a.m. local time for Zones A and B, including mobile homes, barrier islands and low-lying areas, according to Palm Beach Mayor Robert Weinroth.
Nov 09, 9:55 AM EST
Nicole close to hurricane strength as it heads for Florida
Tropical Storm Nicole barrelled toward the northwestern Bahamas and eastern Florida on Wednesday morning, with maximum sustained winds near 70 miles per hour — almost as a strong as a hurricane, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.
To be classified as a hurricane, a tropical cyclone must have maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph.
The center of Nicole is forecast to approach the northwestern Bahamas on Wednesday morning, move near or over those islands by midday, then approach the east coast of Florida within the hurricane warning area on Wednesday night. The storm’s center is expected to move across central and northern Florida into southern Georgia on Thursday, then across the Carolinas on Friday.
“Some strengthening is expected today, and Nicole is forecast to become a hurricane near the northwestern Bahamas and remain a hurricane when it reaches the east coast of Florida tonight,” the National Weather Service said in a public advisory on Wednesday morning. “Nicole is expected to weaken while moving across Florida and the southeastern United States Thursday through Friday, and it is likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday night over the Mid-Atlantic states.”
As of early Wednesday, Nicole was already spreading gusty winds and rain showers into Florida, where it is later expected to make landfall between the southeastern cities of West Palm Beach and Melbourne as either a tropical storm or a Category 1 hurricane. Its tropical storm-force winds currently extend outward up to 460 miles, especially to the north of the center. In the early morning hours, a National Ocean Service station at the Lake Worth Pier, just south of West Palm Beach, reported sustained winds of 44 mph and a wind gust of 55 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Because Nicole is so close to hurricane strength, the National Weather Service has issued hurricane and storm surge warnings along Florida’s east coast from Daytona Beach to West Palm Beach. Meanwhile, Miami is under a tropical storm watch and tropical storm warnings have been issued for Florida’s west coast as well as from Jacksonville up through Savannah, Georgia, to Charleston, South Carolina.
Storm surge will be the highest on the eastern coastlines of Florida and Georgia, from the border down to West Palm Beach, where water could rise as much as 5 feet above normal tide levels. Some storm surge is also possible on Florida’s west coast from Sarasota to Tampa, where water could rise as much as 3 feet and up to 4 feet in the Big Bend area and Apalachicola. Storm surge will be felt all the way to Charleston, South Carolina, where water could rise up to 4 feet.
The areas that will see the heaviest rainfall will be right where the storm touches down on Florida’s east coast, with the potential for up to 8 inches of localized rain. Heavy rain will track north and inland, into Georgia, the Appalachian Mountains from Tennessee and North Carolina to Pennsylvania and into western New York where more than 4 inches of rain is possible.
Nov 09, 5:04 AM EST
Biden approves Florida emergency declaration
President Joe Biden on Tuesday night approved an emergency declaration for Florida due to conditions resulting from Tropical Storm Nicole, according to the White House.
In anticipation of the storm’s arrival, Biden ordered federal assistance to supplement state and local response efforts, the White House said.
The emergency declaration authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts. Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize and provide at its discretion equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency, according to the White House.
(MEXICO CITY, Mexico) — Three American tourists died from carbon monoxide poisoning while staying at an Airbnb rental in Mexico City last month, officials said.
The three were staying at a rental in a residential complex in the La Rosita neighborhood when they were found dead on Oct. 30, according to the Attorney General’s Office of Mexico City, which investigated the deaths.
Security guards at the complex detected an intense gas smell in the apartment and poisoning by gas inhalation was initially suspected, the attorney general’s office said in a statement this week. Blood tests determined that the three Americans — two men and a woman — died of carbon monoxide poisoning, the office said.
Investigators discovered a failure in the apartment’s gas boiler, which released a gas smell as well as carbon monoxide, a colorless and odorless gas, a spokesperson for the attorney general’s office told ABC News.
One of the victims was found dead in the bathroom and is believed to have been attempting to take a shower, which could have activated the boiler, the spokesperson said.
An Airbnb spokesperson confirmed that the three Americans were staying at a space listed on its platform.
“This is a terrible tragedy and our thoughts are with the families and loved ones as they face this heavy loss,” an Airbnb spokesperson said in a statement to ABC News. “Our priority now is to provide support to those affected while the authorities investigate what happened and we are available to cooperate with the investigation in any way we can.”
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico said it was “closely monitoring” the investigation into the deaths of three U.S. citizens in the country.
“We stand ready to provide all appropriate consular assistance,” it said in a statement earlier this week. “Out of respect for the privacy of the families, we have nothing further to add at this time.”
The victims have not been publicly identified by local authorities or the U.S. Embassy.
The three deaths come after another American died from carbon monoxide poisoning while staying in a vacation rental in Mexico City late last month, the victim’s family told ABC San Diego station KGTV. The woman’s two siblings were also hospitalized due to carbon monoxide poisoning, their family told the station.
Three American tourists who were found dead at a Bahamas resort in May also died of carbon monoxide poisoning, officials said.
(NEW YORK) — A New York appellate court has declined, at least for now, to stay a judge’s order appointing an independent monitor to oversee former President Donald Trump’s family real estate firm.
Trump and the New York Attorney General’s office were supposed to begin submitting candidates for the monitor job this week.
The decision, issued Wednesday, said the Appellate Division’s First Department would reconsider the matter at a later time.
“The application for an interim stay is denied pending determination of the motion by a full bench,” the decision said.
Judge Arthur Engoron of State Supreme Court in Manhattan said the attorney general’s investigators had made a “comprehensive demonstration of persistent fraud” within the Trump Organization in a $250 million civil lawsuit.
Trump’s attorneys said the monitor was the state’s attempt to “seize control” of his business but the judge said the monitor’s job is to be narrow, overseeing the production of Trump’s statements of financial condition and their dissemination to third parties.
As part of the lawsuit, the attorney general’s office said past statements were misleading, inflated Trump’s net worth and duped lenders and insurance companies into giving Trump better terms than he deserved.
Trump has denied wrongdoing and has called the lawsuit politically motivated.
New York Attorney General Letitia James, a Democrat, was reelected Tuesday for a second term.
(WASHINGTON) — Despite expectations that inflation and crime would be the foremost issues during the midterms, voters signaled support for protecting abortion rights in several states.
In California, Michigan and Vermont, voters overwhelmingly chose to enshrine abortion rights in their state constitutions, according to ABC News projections.
Meanwhile, in Kentucky, voters rejected a proposed constitutional amendment that would have stated there is no right to an abortion.
Results are still incoming for a proposal by the Montana legislature to change the state constitution to define all fetuses “born alive” as legal persons, including those born prematurely or who survive an abortion.
The results come more than four months after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, giving states full power to regulate abortion.
Abortion rights advocates told ABC News the outcomes of the ballot initiatives show that when the question of abortion access is posed to voters, they are in favor of protecting rights.
In Kentucky, voters said “no” to an amendment to the state’s constitution that would have specified the right to abortion does not exist, nor is the government required to allocate funding for abortion.
Even though a trigger ban went into effect in the state immediately following the Supreme Court’s reversal of Roe, the amendment was defeated 51% to 49%, according to ABC News projections.
The result is similar to what happened in Kansas, where voters in a right-leaning state rejected removing the right to abortion from the state constitution in August despite polling suggesting the opposite would occur.
“I’m ecstatic, but I’m also not surprised,” Tamarra Wieder, Kentucky state director for Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, told ABC News. “I mean, this campaign has been working for 18 months, and we’ve been on the ground talking to voters, and we knew that Kentuckians did not support this ban.”
Abortion proponents said the amendment’s rejection was evidence that it’s not just Democratic voters who support protecting abortion access but Republican voters as well.
“This transcended political ideologies or religious identities,” Wieder said. “Most people knew somebody in Kentucky that this was directly impacting, and they showed up because they know that abortion is health care and Kentuckians deserve better.”
Samuel Crankshaw, communications associate of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky agreed and said voters may vote for a conservative candidate while still holding abortion rights views.
“Even in a state like Kentucky, the majority of people still support access to abortion care and the majority of the people here still believe that every person should be able to determine their own future and make their own decisions about their body,” he told ABC News. “That’s across party lines. We saw people who don’t support abortion access getting elected last night at the same time that Kentuckians still were voting ‘no’ on permanent abortion bans placed in the state constitution.”
Legal challenges continue against the trigger ban and oral arguments and begin next week in Kentucky’s Supreme Court, something the amendment would have prevented.
There is a pathway in our constitution that we believe allows abortion access through with strong privacy protections,” Wieder said. “And so, with our legal pathway, we’re able to move forward with the two cases next week.”
In Michigan, voters voted in favor of a constitutional amendment that would add protections for reproductive rights, ABC News projects.
The amendment defines reproductive freedom as “the right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters relating to pregnancy, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management and infertility care.”
The amendment’s passing represented success for Gretchen Whitmer, who won a second term as governor, according to ABC News projections. Whitmer campaigned on abortion rights and said the proposal restored protections that Roe provided when it was the law of the land.
“I think we are so overwhelmed and so grateful for the voters of Michigan,” Merissa Kovach, the legislative director of the ACLU of Michigan, told ABC News. “They did the work to get [the amendment] qualified for the ballot, they showed up and passed it and it’s such a historic victory that’s going to protect reproductive health care for generations in Michigan, and that our constitution is now going to clearly include the right to reproductive freedom for everyone.”
The recently passed amendment also prevents a 1931 abortion ban — which was declared unconstitutional by a judge — from being enforced. The law, which remained on the books even after it was invalidated by Roe in 1973, prohibited abortion except if the mother’s life is in danger.
According to the ACLU, a petition to get the proposed amendment qualified for the ballot received more than 750,000 signatures.
“It goes to show [voters care about] issues of bodily autonomy and the right of people to be able to make those personal and private health care decisions without political interference,” Kovach said. “It’s so personal and touches every facet of our life, that I think it would be foolish now for anyone to discount the importance of it.”
(NEW YORK) — Tropical Storm Nicole is forecast to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane as it approaches Florida’s east coast.
The storm is expected to make landfall in the Sunshine State between the southeastern cities of Fort Pierce and Melbourne late Wednesday or early Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
Nicole formed as a subtropical storm in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean on Monday, becoming the 14th named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which ends later this month.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Nov 09, 6:15 PM EST
Nicole strengthens into hurricane
Nicole has strengthened into a hurricane while making landfall on Grand Bahama Island, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The storm has estimated maximum wind speeds of 75 mph.
Nov 09, 1:21 PM EST
Latest forecast
Nicole may strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall overnight near Fort Pierce. Over the next 24 hours, the biggest threats for Florida will be damaging beach erosion, storm surge up to 5 feet, isolated tornadoes and wind gusts around 70 mph.
Hurricane warnings are in effect from West Palm Beach to Daytona Beach. Tropical storm warnings are in effect for much of Florida and extend up to coastal Georgia and South Carolina.
After landfall, Nicole will quickly weaken as it moves across central Florida and the Panhandle, but it’ll bring rain, powerful winds and storm surge.
Three feet to 5 feet of storm surge is expected from West Palm Beach to Jacksonville while Florida’s Big Bend area could see 2 to 4 feet of storm surge.
The heaviest rain — 8 inches — will hit central Florida. Flash flooding is also possible.
As Nicole moves north, the heavy rain will stretch into the Mid-Atlantic and New England. Pennsylvania to Vermont could see 2 to 4 inches of rain. Philadelphia, New York City and Boston could see 2 inches of rain and gusty winds.
-ABC News’ Melissa Griffin
Nov 09, 12:01 PM EST
Nicole makes landfall in Bahamas
Tropical Storm Nicole has made landfall on Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas.
Nov 09, 11:47 AM EST
Disney World parks to close
Disney World parks will close early Wednesday evening and will remain closed through Thursday morning due to the storm.
Nov 09, 11:18 AM EST
Nicole could make landfall twice
Once Nicole makes landfall early Thursday in Martin County as a Category 1 hurricane, the storm is expected to cross the state of Florida, hit the Gulf of Mexico and possibly make landfall again along Florida’s Big Bend, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned.
The major concerns for Nicole are winds, flooding, beach erosion and possible tornadoes, DeSantis said.
He said 15 shelters are open for those urged to evacuate.
The governor said 16,000 linemen have been staged to immediately work on restoring power as soon as the storm passes.
Nov 09, 10:52 AM EST
Florida counties announce evacuation orders
Several of Florida’s 67 counties have announced evacuation orders in anticipation of Tropical Storm Nicole’s arrival.
Flagler County: Evacuation orders go into effect Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. local time for residents and visitors in Zone A, the barrier island from Flagler Beach to Marineland, as well as mobile homes and RVs countywide, according to the Flagler County Emergency Management.
Volusia County: Mandatory evacuations went into effect Wednesday at 10 a.m. local time for residents and visitors east of the Intercostal Waterway, all mobile homes east of Interstate 95, all low-lying areas and other areas prone to flooding as well as all campsites and RV recreational parks, according to the Volusia County Emergency Management.
Palm Beach County: Mandatory evacuations went into effect Tuesday at 7 a.m. local time for Zones A and B, including mobile homes, barrier islands and low-lying areas, according to Palm Beach Mayor Robert Weinroth.
Nov 09, 9:55 AM EST
Nicole close to hurricane strength as it heads for Florida
Tropical Storm Nicole barrelled toward the northwestern Bahamas and eastern Florida on Wednesday morning, with maximum sustained winds near 70 miles per hour — almost as a strong as a hurricane, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service.
To be classified as a hurricane, a tropical cyclone must have maximum sustained winds of at least 74 mph.
The center of Nicole is forecast to approach the northwestern Bahamas on Wednesday morning, move near or over those islands by midday, then approach the east coast of Florida within the hurricane warning area on Wednesday night. The storm’s center is expected to move across central and northern Florida into southern Georgia on Thursday, then across the Carolinas on Friday.
“Some strengthening is expected today, and Nicole is forecast to become a hurricane near the northwestern Bahamas and remain a hurricane when it reaches the east coast of Florida tonight,” the National Weather Service said in a public advisory on Wednesday morning. “Nicole is expected to weaken while moving across Florida and the southeastern United States Thursday through Friday, and it is likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday night over the Mid-Atlantic states.”
As of early Wednesday, Nicole was already spreading gusty winds and rain showers into Florida, where it is later expected to make landfall between the southeastern cities of West Palm Beach and Melbourne as either a tropical storm or a Category 1 hurricane. Its tropical storm-force winds currently extend outward up to 460 miles, especially to the north of the center. In the early morning hours, a National Ocean Service station at the Lake Worth Pier, just south of West Palm Beach, reported sustained winds of 44 mph and a wind gust of 55 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
Because Nicole is so close to hurricane strength, the National Weather Service has issued hurricane and storm surge warnings along Florida’s east coast from Daytona Beach to West Palm Beach. Meanwhile, Miami is under a tropical storm watch and tropical storm warnings have been issued for Florida’s west coast as well as from Jacksonville up through Savannah, Georgia, to Charleston, South Carolina.
Storm surge will be the highest on the eastern coastlines of Florida and Georgia, from the border down to West Palm Beach, where water could rise as much as 5 feet above normal tide levels. Some storm surge is also possible on Florida’s west coast from Sarasota to Tampa, where water could rise as much as 3 feet and up to 4 feet in the Big Bend area and Apalachicola. Storm surge will be felt all the way to Charleston, South Carolina, where water could rise up to 4 feet.
The areas that will see the heaviest rainfall will be right where the storm touches down on Florida’s east coast, with the potential for up to 8 inches of localized rain. Heavy rain will track north and inland, into Georgia, the Appalachian Mountains from Tennessee and North Carolina to Pennsylvania and into western New York where more than 4 inches of rain is possible.
Nov 09, 5:04 AM EST
Biden approves Florida emergency declaration
President Joe Biden on Tuesday night approved an emergency declaration for Florida due to conditions resulting from Tropical Storm Nicole, according to the White House.
In anticipation of the storm’s arrival, Biden ordered federal assistance to supplement state and local response efforts, the White House said.
The emergency declaration authorizes the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts. Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize and provide at its discretion equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency, according to the White House.
(WASHINGTON) — Republican Sen. Ron Johnson will win reelection in Wisconsin, fending off a serious challenge from Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, ABC News projects.
Johnson was viewed by race observers and assessments like FiveThirtyEight as one of the most vulnerable GOP lawmakers on the ballot this cycle after the battleground state flipped for Joe Biden in 2020.
“Truth has prevailed over lies and the politics of personal destruction,” he said in a statement on Wednesday morning. “I want to thank my family and everyone who supported me and worked so hard to save this U.S. Senate seat. I will do everything I can to help make things better for Wisconsinites and to heal and unify our country.”
Johnson, like others in his party, focused heavily on crime and the economy while on the campaign trail, pushing to label Barnes as a far-left politician who was soft on public safety and wanted to “abolish” some federal law enforcement, charges which Barnes denied.
“Are you better off or worse off since Democrats took control?” Johnson asked during the last debate.
“The dispiriting nature of attempting to cut or use the code words of ‘reallocate,’ ‘over bloated budgets’ — my opponent says that it pains him to see a fully funded police budget. I mean, that type of rhetoric,” Johnson said. “Those types of policies are very dispiriting for police.”
Barnes, while supportive of redirecting police funding, has insisted that he doesn’t support defunding the police.
The Democrat also argued Johnson’s statements were hypocritical given Johnson’s reaction to the Jan. 6 attack at the U.S. Capitol. Johnson claimed he strongly denounced the violence, despite once saying “it didn’t seem like an insurrection to me.”
Also under scrutiny in the race were Johnson’s comments about Social Security. The senator’s proposed making funding for Social Security and Medicare discretionary, rather than mandatory.
Johnson said wanted to financially rescue the entitlement programs, while Democrats have argued that could lead to their elimination entirely. Biden repeatedly lambasted Johnson’s plan on the campaign trail as he pitched the election as a choice between Democrats and extremist “MAGA Republicans.”
“I never said I wanted to cut or put Social Security on the chopping block,” Johnson said during the final debate with Barnes.
The Senate is currently split 50-50, with Democrats in control because Vice President Kamala Harris cannot break ties. ABC News has not yet projected control of the upper chamber after Tuesday’s midterm elections.
