NEW YORK (AP) — Two people have pleaded guilty in a scheme to peddle a diary and other items belonging to President Joe Biden’s daughter to the conservative group Project Veritas for $40,000, prosecutors said Thursday.

The two, both from Florida, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit interstate transportation of stolen property, Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams' office said.

While authorities didn’t identify Biden, the type of property stolen or the organization that paid, the details of the investigation have been public for months.

Ashley Biden stored the diary, tax records, a digital device with family photos and a cellphone in September 2020 in a Delray Beach, Florida, home where one of the defendants was living at the time, prosecutors said in a release.

They said the woman stole the items and got in touch with the other defendant, a man who contacted Project Veritas, which asked for photos of the material and then paid for the two to bring it to New York.

Project Veritas staffers met with the two in New York and dispatched them back to Florida to retrieve more of Ashley Biden’s items from the home, which they did and turned the material over to a local Project Veritas worker who brought it to New York, prosecutors said.

The activist group, which considers itself a news organization, paid the two $20,000 apiece, prosecutors said.

Project Veritas has said it received the diary from “tipsters” who said it had been abandoned in a room. The activist group said it turned the journal over to law enforcement and never did anything illegal.

Founder James O’Keefe has said that Project Veritas ultimately did not publish information from the diary because it could not confirm it belonged to Ashley Biden.

Project Veritas is best known for conducting hidden camera stings that have embarrassed news outlets, labor organizations and Democratic politicians.

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Democrat Mary Peltola won the special election for Alaska's only U.S. House seat on Wednesday, besting a field that included Republican Sarah Palin, who was seeking a political comeback in the state where she was once governor.

Peltola, who is Yup'ik and turned 49 on Wednesday, will become the first Alaska Native to serve in the House and the first woman to hold the seat. She will serve the remaining months of the late Republican U.S. Rep. Don Young's term. Young held the seat for 49 years before his death in March.

"I'm honored and humbled by the support I have received from across Alaska," Peltola said in a statement. "I look forward to continuing Don Young's legacy of bipartisanship, serving all Alaskans and building support for Alaska's interests in DC."

Peltola's victory, coming in Alaska's first statewide ranked choice voting election, is a boon for Democrats, particularly coming off better-than-expected performances in special elections around the country this year following the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade. She will be the first Democrat to hold the seat since the late U.S. Rep. Nick Begich, who was seeking reelection in 1972 when his plane disappeared. Begich was later declared dead and Young in 1973 was elected to the seat.

Peltola ran as a coalition builder while her two Republican opponents — Palin and Begich's grandson, also named Nick Begich — at times went after each other. Palin also railed against the ranked voting system, which was instituted by Alaska voters.

All three are candidates in the November general election, seeking a two-year House term, which would start in January.

The results came 15 days after the Aug. 16 election, in line with the deadline for state elections officials to receive absentee ballots mailed from outside the U.S. Ranked choice tabulations took place Wednesday after no candidate won more than 50% of the first choice votes. Peltola was in the lead heading into the tabulations.

Wednesday's results were a disappointment for Palin, who was looking to make a political comeback 14 years after she was vaulted onto the national stage when John McCain selected her to be his running mate in the 2008 presidential election. In her run for the House seat, she had widespread name recognition and won the endorsement of former President Donald Trump.

After Peltola's victory was announced, Palin slammed the ranked voting process as "crazy, convoluted, confusing."

"Though we're disappointed in this outcome, Alaskans know I'm the last one who'll ever retreat," Palin said in a statement.

During the campaign, critics questioned Palin's commitment to Alaska, citing her decision to resign as governor in July 2009, partway through her term. Palin went on to become a conservative commentator on TV and appeared in reality television programs, among other pursuits.

Palin has insisted her commitment to Alaska never wavered and said ahead of the special election that she had "signed up for the long haul."

Peltola, a former state lawmaker who most recently worked for a commission whose goal is to rebuild salmon resources on the Kuskokwim River, cast herself as a "regular" Alaskan. "I'm not a millionaire. I'm not an international celebrity," she said.

Peltola has said she was hopeful that the new system would allow more moderate candidates to be elected.

During the campaign, she emphasized her support of abortion rights and said she wanted to elevate issues of ocean productivity and food security. Peltola said she got a boost after the June special primary when she won endorsements from Democrats and independents who had been in the race. She said she believed her positive messaging also resonated with voters.

"It's been very attractive to a lot of people to have a message of working together and positivity and holding each other up and unity and as Americans none of us are each other's enemy," she said. "That is just a message that people really need to hear right now."

Alaska voters in 2020 approved an elections process that replaced party primaries with open primaries. Under the new system, ranked voting is used in general elections.

Under ranked voting, ballots are counted in rounds. A candidate can win outright with more than 50% of the vote in the first round. If no one hits that threshold, the candidate with the fewest votes is eliminated. Voters who chose that candidate as their top pick have their votes count for their next choice. Rounds continue until two candidates remain, and whoever has the most votes wins.

In Alaska, voters last backed a Democrat for president in 1964. But the state also has a history of rewarding candidates with an independent streak. The state has more registered unaffiliated voters than registered Republicans or Democrats combined.

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Follow AP coverage of 2022 Midterm Elections: https://apnews.com/hub/2022-midterm-elections

A judge ruled on Tuesday that Couy Griffin is disqualified and barred from elected office due to his participation in the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol.

Griffin, founder of "Cowboys for Trump," was convicted in March of breaching the U.S. Capitol. At the time, he was serving as a county commissioner in New Mexico.

State District Court Judge Francis Mathew said in his ruling that Griffin violated his oath to uphold the Constitution when he engaged in the insurrection.

The ruling was the result of a civil lawsuit brought by three plaintiffs who argued that Griffin should be barred from holding public office because of a clause in the 14th Amendment. According to The Associated Press, the clause says people who engage in an insurrection can be barred from office.

NPR reports that this is the first time someone has been removed from office since the Civil War under that provision.

Griffin was reportedly shocked by the judge's ruling.

"I really did not feel like the state was going to move on me in such a way," he told CNN. "I don't know where I go from here."

WASHINGTON (AP) — A gold judicial collar made of glass beads that belonged to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is being auctioned to benefit a charity, the first time any of the her signature neckwear will be available for purchase.

The piece is part of a collection of about 100 items being sold in an online auction that begins Wednesday. It concludes Sept. 16, just days before the two-year anniversary of the liberal icon's death at 87.

In addition to the collar, the items being auctioned include a pair of Ginsburg's opera glasses, a wooden gavel and artwork that hung in her Washington apartment.

There are quirky items too. Her son, James, said in an interview that in talking about the collection "it's hard not to mention about the cake topper. " The fondant sculpture was commissioned by friends for one of the justice's birthdays and depicts her standing in a judicial robe with her arms outstretched on the bow of a battleship dubbed "The Notorious RBG," the justice's nickname. Ginsburg said it reminds him a little bit of a scene from the movie "Titanic."

The auction also includes other Ginsburg fashion pieces: a white handbag, a shawl, scarves and two sets of fishnet lace gloves. She began wearing gloves in the the late 1990s after undergoing colon cancer treatment. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the Supreme Court's first female justice, suggested them as a way to prevent illness while shaking hands, but Ginsburg liked gloves so much she just kept wearing them.

But it was Ginsburg's collars — which she wore on the bench as an accessory to her black robe — that were her most notable fashion item. She had dozens, her son and daughter-in-law said. The family donated several to the Smithsonian, including a sparkly black one she wore on the bench when she dissented in a case. Speaking at an event in 2020, Ginsburg — who became a pop culture figure in later years — said that at the time she was getting a collar "at least once a week" from fans worldwide.

The auction had initially been planned to include two of Ginsburg's collars. The other, made of fabric, was a gift from her law clerks. Stitched inside is a family motto: "It's not sacrifice, it's family." But the family said in a statement Tuesday that they had decided to keep the collar and permanently loan it to "an appropriate institution where it can be displayed for all to see." The family did not provide additional details.

The auction is the third this year of items owned by the justice, and her son said that it will be the last. In April, some 150 items — including art Ginsburg displayed in her home and office — raised more than $800,000 for Washington National Opera, one of the late justice's passions.

Bonhams, which is conducting the latest auction, estimated the current group of objects as selling for a total of just under $50,000. In January, however, an online auction of her books also conducted by Bonhams brought in $2.3 million, almost 30 times the pre-sale estimate.

Bonhams said it expects the collar to sell for $3,000 to $5,000. In the earlier book auction, however, a copy of the Harvard Law Review from 1957-58 with Ginsburg's annotations sold for more than $100,000, shattering Bonhams' estimate of $2,500 to $3,500.

Proceeds from the current sale will fund an endowment in Ginsburg's honor benefitting SOS Children's Villages, a organization that supports vulnerable children around the world. Ginsburg's daughter-in-law, Patrice Michaels, is on the organization's advisory board. Michaels, a composer and singer, said the gavel being auctioned is one Ginsburg gave her to use while performing a composition she had written about Ginsburg's dissents. The gold beaded collar was also one she chose from Ginsburg's collection.

"I thought it was just literally so beautiful," Michaels said. "The aesthetic of it and the feel of it being as elegant as my mother-in-law was appealed to me very much."

New Hampshire Republicans on Tuesday are selecting their nominee to take on Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan in what could be one of the nation's most competitive Senate races.

The Granite State, as well as Rhode Island and Delaware, are holding their primaries Tuesday — wrapping up 2022's primary calendar and setting the final pieces of the playing field for the eight-week sprint to November's midterm elections.

Here are three takeaways from the results so far:

Trump's style trumps his substance in New Hampshire

Mimicking Trump's brash style and parroting his election denialism again proved more potent in a Republican primary than embracing the policy substance of his tenure in the White House.

That's the lesson from the Republican primary in New Hampshire's 1st District, where 25-year-old political newcomer Karoline Leavitt, a former Trump aide who more closely mimicked the brand of politics that has defined Trump's orbit of political acolytes, defeated Matt Mowers, another former Trump administration official but one who was more cautious on issues like the lie that the 2020 election was stolen from the former president.

Mowers fully embraced aspects of Trump's tenure. His website was full of positions that defined the former President, and Mowers touted the fact that Trump endorsed him in his failed attempt to win the seat in 2020.

Rhetorically and stylistically, however, the two were dramatically different.

Where Mowers had "confidence in New Hampshire elections," Leavitt said she believed "the 2020 election was undoubtedly stolen from President Trump." Where Mowers suggested hearings to determine whether President Joe Biden should be impeached, Leavitt unequivocally said the President should be impeached. And where Mowers said he "supports science" when asked about the newly rolled out coronavirus vaccine, Leavitt said it was "none of your business."

Mowers' restraint effectively opened the door for someone like Leavitt to win over Republican primary voters in New Hampshire, many of them who still support the former President.

As polls showed Leavitt rising in the closing days, outside groups like the House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy-aligned Congressional Leadership Fund and Defending Main Street spent millions on ads looking to help Mowers beat back the challenge from the right. But the money was largely for not -- and now Republicans are saddled with a more complicated nominee in a race against Rep. Chris Pappas, one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the country.

Leavitt is one of the first Gen Z candidates to ever win a primary.

Video below: Outside groups spend millions to try to sway NH primary contests

Rhode Island picks candidates in competitive House race

The field is set for what's expected to be one of New England's most competitive congressional races this fall, after Rhode Island state treasurer Seth Magaziner won the 2nd District's Democratic primary, CNN projected.

He is now set to face Republican Allan Fung, the Cranston mayor, in the district where long-time Rep. Jim Langevin is retiring. Langevin, a Democrat, has won his races without serious competition since 2001, and President Joe Biden won there by 14 percentage points in 2020. But Republicans believe the seat is winnable.

Fung was the Republican candidate for governor in 2014 and 2018, losing twice to former Gov. Gina Raimondo but performing well in the district, which covers the western half of the state.

Magaziner defeated Sarah Morgenthau, who was the director of the Peace Corps Response under former President Barack Obama; David Segal, who once served in the state legislature and ran a failed congressional race in 2010; and Joy Fox, who worked as communications director for Langevin and Raimondo.

McKee hangs on in Rhode Island

One of the least popular governors in the country, Rhode Island's Dan McKee faced four primary challengers as he seeks his first full, elected term in office.

But McKee, who took over as governor last year when Raimondo left the job to join the Biden administration, is no stranger to tough primaries -- he almost lost his bid for renomination as lieutenant governor in 2018.

In the end, though, despite being weighed down by a federal investigation into the controversial awarding of a state contract to a firm with ties to an old ally -- an episode in which McKee has denied any wrongdoing -- he emerged from the packed field, likely benefiting from a split among the anti-incumbent vote.

Both of his closest rivals, former CVS executive Helena Foulkes and Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, ran as reformers with pledges to clean up government. Foulkes, who promised not to run for reelection if she didn't revitalize Rhode Island schools, was endorsed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The race was a bust for progressive favorite Matt Brown, the Bernie Sanders-endorsed former secretary of state, who trailed the leaders four years after losing a primary challenge to Raimondo.

Major credit card companies are reclassifying purchases at gun stores and ammunition shops — a change that could pull back the curtain on gun purchases.

Visa, American Express, and Mastercard will start implementing the plan, separating gun and ammunition purchases from other kinds of shopping for the first time. They had previously been classified as general merchandise.

The move comes as gun sales keep climbing.

"The sales have definitely increased over the last several years compared to probably the last five," said Vincent Vasquez, a gun store manager in Arizona.

The FBI reports having done 78,571,988 background checks for gun purchases in the last two years. That's more than in any two-year stretch since record-keeping started in 1998.

Cyndi Starr is among the many buying a firearm for the first time.

"I came to that decision after months of going back and forth," Starr said. "I would never want to ever harm anybody, never, but I've been close enough to certain violent or potentially violent situations that I had that split second where it's like, 'What's my backup?'"

Gun violence prevention activists hope the new classification for credit card purchases will help differentiate people like Starr from those intending to use a gun to harm people, helping banks see and report suspicious activity.

But, of course, not everyone's on board.

Over the weekend, the NRA said the move was about creating a "national registry of gun owners."

The policy is intended only to separately categorize purchases at gun and ammunition stores, not specifically what was purchased. It's a simple label change advocates hope will help curb gun violence.

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Public health has been top of mind for many the last couple of years, but a public health problem has largely flown under the radar: a growing rate of sexually transmitted diseases and infections.

The number of STD and STI cases among Americans has been rising steadily each year since 2014. Even the pandemic, which trapped millions inside their homes, didn't make a dent in those numbers, and it might have worsened.

These rising numbers have led many health officials to raise an alarm and urge action. Many experts believe one of the causes behind this problem is the lack of knowledge about the basic principles of safe sex, typically taught in sex education classes.

In fact, a Centers for Disease Control survey from 2019 showed that nearly 46% of sexually active high school students did not use a condom the last time they had sex. That's a huge problem considering the fact that out of all new STDs reported to the CDC each year, half were among young people aged 15 to 24.

The numbers show there were 2.4 million cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis in 2020, which is the most recent year of data.

Chlamydia is currently the most common STD in the U.S., with 1.6 million cases reported to the CDC that year. While its numbers saw a slight drop from 2016, the CDC notes that the drops are probably not really because of an actual drop in infections. Since chlamydia is usually asymptomatic, case rates are heavily influenced by screening coverage, which the pandemic worsened.

Although overall cases of STDs and STIs fell in the pandemic's early months, the CDC acknowledges that's likely due to the reduced frequency of in-person health care services, resulting in fewer screenings. STD test and lab supply shortages, the diversion of health workers to pandemic response teams, and lapses in health insurance due to unemployment also contributed. Plus, the pandemic came after years of cuts to public health funding.

As anticipated by many experts, numbers picked up again at the end of 2020, with other diseases like gonorrhea and syphilis surpassing 2019 levels, according to CDC data. Preliminary data from 2021 shows there were more than 2.5 million reported cases of chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis in that year, meaning STDs and STIs continued to increase during the second year of the pandemic too, with no signs of slowing.

The CDC says it's likely, "...we may never know the full impact of the pandemic on STDs. What is clear, however, is the state of STDs did not improve in the United States. Prevention and control efforts remain as important as ever."

But, the country's prevention and control methods need work. Comprehensive sex ed programs would be a start on prevention among the most commonly affected age group, but robust public testing and information campaigns could help all Americans. Public health funding, however, has faced slashes for years, taking a toll on STD screening and prevention efforts.

"Public funding cuts will prevent the public health system, the safety net, of being able to track down people's partners so that your index patient doesn't get reinfected because their partner was also treated appropriately," said Dr. Anna Maya Powell, co-director of the Johns Hopkins HIV Women's Program. "It's easy to say, 'People should take personal responsibility and come in for care,' but I think the picture is much more complex than that."

Only 2.5% of all U.S. health spending— about $3.8 trillion — is spent on public health and prevention programs. Last year, the Biden administration did announce a $1.13 billion investment to strengthen the disease intervention specialists (DIS) workforce at the CDC. Still, much of that funding seems to be for the agency's pandemic response.

Still, there's a reason for some optimism: There has been progressing on STDs and STIs since the HIV/AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and 90s. The STI spread rapidly in the country then, especially among certain groups, like men who have sex with other men.

Years of public information campaigns and research into treatment brought numbers down through the early 2000s and to a stable level by 2013. More recent figures may seem to hint at further progress on the overall HIV cases during the early pandemic, but those figures are also misleading because of the sharp drop in testing.

Plus, many experts have criticized the focus of historic HIV treatment and prevention efforts as largely being focused on treating rich, white, gay men and transgender groups, leaving out many lower-income Americans, people of color and women.

Women generally face a greater burden when it comes to sexual health. Many studies have established that women have a higher biological risk for contracting many STIs and HIV than men, with a higher probability of transmission from men to women.

"Women tend to be more asymptomatic for a lot of a lot of the conditions we're talking about," Dr. Powell said. "Not having symptoms maybe gives people a false sense of security, and then they don't come in to get the routine screening that they might have otherwise if things were open and accessible."

Black women, in particular, suffer higher numbers of both HIV and other STDs like herpes, and many experts say public prevention efforts have failed to address these groups adequately. Overall, inconsistent access to health care and prevention programs across different demographics throughout the country has affected our national battle against STDs and STIs.

"We have had data that shows consistently what we need to be doing in the sexually transmitted infections, those cases in reproductive health," said Dr. Mati Hlatshwayo Davis, director of health for the city of St. Louis, Missouri. "We need to make sure that those policies are as standardized as possible so that they're easily implementable and therefore easy to track data, data that then feeds back into the funding."

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Marcella Dake spent a combined seven months in jail before the Bail Project paid to have her released and the possession and assault charges she was facing ultimately dropped.    

"It made me feel not so good about myself. You know, you're not doing anything. It just felt like I was a bad person because I was in jail," said Dake. "Are you innocent until proven guilty? Because they treat you like a prisoner, you know, and they shouldn't."

Dake’s story is a common one — spending weeks, months or years in jail waiting on a court date because you can’t afford to bail yourself out.  

But over the last several years, bail reform has picked up steam across the country.  

Some courts in New York, Washington D.C. and Illinois have all experimented with reforms — sometimes controversial — that have allowed more defendants to go free while awaiting trial. The reforms have been fiercely debated with opponents claiming they increase crime.   

"Bail reform has to be changed, it’s ridiculous," said Patrick Lynch, the president of the Police Benevolent Association. 

And advocates say it finally takes an unjust burden off the poor and helps prevent pushing people into a tailspin of lost jobs and broken families.

"All Illinoisans will live in a safer more just state with this law on the books," said Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker.

Here in Houston, a federal lawsuit forced Harris County, the largest county in Texas, to take on misdemeanor bail reform in 2017. 

And while the reform was and still is controversial, a new study claims the reforms not only reduced pre-trial jail time for defendants but also increased public safety.   

Paul Heaton from the University of Pennsylvania was the lead author on the study. Heaton focused on those newly released individuals. 

"In no cases, is there any evidence that crime goes up," said Heaton. 

SEE MORE: Amended Autopsy: Black Man Died Due To Sedative, Restraint

A federal judge required county judges to release any individuals charged with misdemeanors who would ordinarily qualify for bail.  

"So what would you expect to see in the data, if it were true that releasing people leads to more crime. We should see higher future contact, right? More charges, you know, more felonies being filed against those folks. And, you know, when you look at the data, it's pretty clear that's just that's not true. That doesn't happen at all," he said. 

In the first six months following this change, there were 1,500 more people released under the reforms. Following them for three years, Heaton found a 6% decrease in prosecutions that would be expected based on historical trends. Not only that, but things like guilty pleas and time served also dropped.  

Doug Griffith is the president of the Houston Police Union and he’s been an outspoken opponent of bail reform.  

"We completely agree with the fact that you shouldn't be in jail just because you're poor, on misdemeanor charges. Now felony charges are a different animal," said Griffith. 

Griffith points to the substantial rise in homicides in Houston and across the country over the past two years.  

Houston’s homicide rate jumped by 42% and 17% in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Nationwide, the FBI reported a 30% rise in homicides in 2020.  

"As the bond reform for the misdemeanors went about it kind of transitioned and got sucked into the felony bond system, which was not the intent. It's been a disastrous program that's been shoved into Harris County that has cost lives," he said.  

Griffith claims judges in Harris County have been too lenient on repeat offenders, particularly those charged with violent felonies.    

SEE MORE: Curbing People With Mental Illness Away From Jail

"Misdemeanor bail has worked. Now, if you want to ask, has some judge made a mistake? Have they had a chance to push the reset button? Would they do something different? I'm sure that is the case," said Harris County commissioner Rodney Ellis.

Ellis was one of the first public officials in the county to throw his support behind bail reform.  

And while the reform he supported specifically targeted misdemeanor offenders, he says some of the same principles apply for felony cases.  

"If you believe in equal protection under the law, if you and I have the same profile, whether we are accused of a misdemeanor, or felony, the same standards apply to both of us," said Ellis. 

He said the rise in homicides in Houston has nothing to do with bail.  

"I think the big issue is a proliferation of easy access to guns. We spend more time banning books in schools than banning guns, but it's easier to go for the sound bite and blame everything on bail," said Ellis. 

For Marcella Dake, who lost her job and seven months of her freedom because she couldn’t afford bail, she’s still putting the pieces back together. 

"It took my time away. You know, for me pursuing to do better for myself. It took put a stop on my life, you know that hold on all my life," said Dake. 

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Lalo Alcaraz still gets excited when he sees people reacting to one of his political cartoons.

"That never gets old," he said.

A tiny office is where he creates a loud message by using barely any words. 

“I’m just trying to get people to think critically," Alcaraz said.

The thing about political cartoons, he said, is that within seconds people should understand the point.

“I think political cartoons are really accessible, quick format that delivers the truth with a punch,” Alcaraz said.

His work is sometimes controversial. Alcaraz admits he's received hate mail throughout his career. 

“Bluntness. That's what makes my cartoons different. I have a lot of different cartoons I like to be direct," Alcaraz said.

Alcaraz is a Pulitzer Prize-nominated cartoonist whose daily comic strip "La Cucaracha" is the first nationally syndicated Latino political cartoon.

His art has made him an icon in the Mexican-American community.

In the pandemic, his work has carried a new meaning.

“It makes me feel good if someone tells me like, 'that really helped me to talk to my uncle about his dislike of vaccines,'" Alcaraz said. "That’s always a win for me."

He created special cartoons to fight pandemic misinformation as part of the "COVID Latino" project with Arizona State University.

The Latino community’s high reliance on social media for news is a reason why groups like Nielsen say they are at a higher risk for misinformation.

Avaaz, a nonprofit organization, found posts with misinformation in Spanish on Facebook are far less likely to be flagged— compared to posts in English.

“I think we’re all responsible to our communities we can’t expect people to come in and fix things for us and also on the ground level at some point," Alcaraz says.

Facebook has promised to do more to fact-check Spanish posts on its platform.

As the midterm elections near, Alcaraz hopes his messages can be educational.

"You know the information is out there; you have to look at it," he said. "'Use the coco that God gave you.'" That’s an old thing my mom used to say.”

More states could soon join the growing list of places where recreational marijuana is legal.

Arkansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota and South Dakota will vote in the midterms on whether to amend their constitutions to legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 years and older.

Maryland and Missouri are tying recreational marijuana to calls for social justice. The amendments would grant relief to individuals convicted of certain marijuana crimes.

The ballot measures in Arkansas, North Dakota and South Dakota just focus on legalizing the industry without taking into account prior convictions.

Legalizing recreational marijuana has become more popular over the years. According to a 2021 poll by the Pew Research Center, 60% of Americans said recreational and medical marijuana should be legal.

"From 2000 to 2019, the share of Americans saying marijuana should be legal more than doubled,' the Pew Research Center stated.

Currently, recreational marijuana is legal in 19 states and Washington, D.C.

Colorado was the first state to legalize marijuana. Voters in 2012 passed Amendment 64, which amended the state's constitution to legalize cannabis. Other states followed by either passing ballot initiatives or going through their legislatures.

Marijuana is still illegal at the federal level. However, President Joe Biden, this year, softened the government's stance on marijuana. He pardoned all prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana.

"No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana," Biden stated in October.

The president also ordered the attorney general and the secretary of Health and Human Services to review how marijuana is scheduled under federal law.

It's currently classified as a Schedule I drug. It's in the same category as heroin and LSD.

As the U.S. midterm elections approach, voters say they feel heightened concern about impediments to voting, including intimidation at the polls in some places.

A Reuters-Ipsos poll found that of registered voters surveyed, 43% said they felt some concern about threats or violence against voters while voting in-person.

The poll found that around two in every five U.S. voter worried about intimidation at the polls.

In Arizona, which has become a key battleground, officials have asked the federal government to look into a case of voter intimidation.

People in that state were filmed and followed while casting ballots. The complaint says self-appointed monitors called voters "mules," referencing a conspiracy theory related to former President Donald Trump's unfounded claims that he was defeated in the 2020 presidential election because of widespread fraud.

RELATED: Film and book said to play large role in election conspiracy theories

Experts say if a voter shows up at the polls and finds their eligibility is in question, they should stand their ground calmly. If a voter feels they have been targeted by an erroneous challenge, and know they are qualified to vote and have not yet voted, they should calmly insist.

Jonathan Diaz, the senior legal counsel for voting rights at the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center told CNN, “A state cannot just throw out your ballot without notifying you that your vote has been challenged and giving you the chance to prove that you are who you say you are,” he said.

Kathy Boockvar, a former top election official for Pennsylvania told Reuters, "Our country is based on democracy. We should be excited about Election Day."

The ACLU says people with disabilities have faced some of the greatest barriers to voting.

In 2021, the ACLU said there were over 400 anti-voter measures introduced in various U.S. states, citing research from the Brennan Center for Justice.

Those measures included restricting access to absentee voting, removing Election Day registration, and making it harder to vote in-person, during early voting. There have also been reports of authorities making it a crime to assist voters with disabilities.

There are resources for voters who have difficulties or encounter issues.

A hotline run by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law can advise voters on their rights: 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683).

Another run by NALEO Educational Fund has English and Spanish speakers available to help: 888-VE-Y-VOTA (888-839-8682).

The Arab American Institute has a hotline that has Arabic and English speakers at: 844-YALLA-US (844-925-5287).

Another hotline run by APIA Vote and Asian Americans Advancing Justice-AAJC is speakers of Mandarin, Cantonese, Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, and English: 888-API-VOTE (888-274-8683).

The Brennan Center says the Freedom to Vote Act is a package of voting reforms that ensure a minimum national standard for voting access for Americans.

More information on the Freedom to Vote Act can be found at the Brennan Center for Justice website.

CINCINNATI — The race for Ohio's 1st Congressional District is coming down to the wire as Nov. 8's election day looms closer.

Ohio's 1st Congressional District is made up of the eastern majority of Hamilton County as well as Warren County.

Republican incumbent Steve Chabot is going head-to-head with Democratic candidate Greg Landsman.

RELATED | Your Ohio Midterm Election Guide

The issues listed below are the topics prioritized by Chabot and Landsman on their respective campaign websites.

Here's a breakdown of each candidate, as well as the issues they've campaigned on:

Backgrounds

Steve Chabot

Steve Chabot is serving Ohio's 1st Congressional District in his 12th term. From Cincinnati, he previously served as a city councilman and Hamilton County commissioner for nearly five years before being elected to Congress in 1994.

Chabot serves on the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the U.S. House.

Greg Landsman

Greg Landsman is a former public school teacher in his fifth year as a Cincinnati councilman. Landsman was born in Greater Cincinnati, and after earning a Master's Degree he went on to work for former Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland. As a councilman, Landsman established City Hall's first-ever Office of Ethics and Good Government and the Balanced Development Scorecard.

Issues

Steve Chabot

Revitalizing the Economy: Chabot wants federal agencies to look for alternatives to ease the burden on small businesses so they can grow and create jobs

Health Care: Chabot supports the repeal of Obamacare and replacing it with market-based reforms that will give families more options at a lower cost. The legislation he supports to replace Obamacare is also guaranteed to cover those with pre-existing conditions.

Energy: He believes America needs to increase domestic oil production, and Chabot is a strong proponent of the Keystone XL pipeline. He has also introduced legislation to stop price-gouging and anti-competitive behavior by OPEC nations by subjecting them to antitrust laws and prohibiting them from withholding supply with the intent of creating a shortage or raising prices.

Government Spending: Chabot is a supporter of a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution.

Protecting Social Security: Chabot is a longtime supporter of the Social Security Preservation Act, which says that money paid into Social Security can only be used for Social Security and no other government programs.

Veterans: He vows to be a strong supporter of legislation and funding efforts to ensure veterans have access to medical care, education and financial services.

School Security: Chabot help pass legislation that reauthorized the COPS Secure Our Schools grant program for 10 years. The legislation more than doubles the funding available for important security measures, including metal detectors, improvements in identifying and treating mental health issues, the installation of improved communications systems and security training for school employees and students.

Cybersecurity: As part of the House Small Business Committee, Chabot has focused on steps small businesses can take to prevent and combat cyberattacks. Alongside Ranking Member Nydia Velasquez, Chabot introduced bipartisan legislation to help give small businesses the tools and resources they need to defend themselves against cyberattacks, both foreign and domestic.

Greg Landsman

Lowering Costs for Families: Landsman has called for the suspension of the state and federal gas taxes, as well as for lowering the costs of prescription drugs. He also promises to hold big corporations accountable for price gouging.

Jobs & the Economy: He supports the bipartisan COMPETES Act that works to bring the supply chain back home. Landsman also supports strengthening worker protections, including making it harder for employers to bust unions before they have a chance to organize and update labor laws. He also supports raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour and to expand high-quality and affordable childcare.

Reproductive Health & Rights: Landsman believes that it's not the place of the government to dictate the decisions that Americans make about their own bodies. He opposes any effort to undermine privacy between women and their doctors, and he supports the codification of Roe v. Wade. Landsman also wants to address the racial discrepancies in maternal mortality.

Education: Landsman promises to fight for more equitable access to education. He also plans to vote to lessen the burden of college on students and their parents.

Infrastructure: Landsman supports the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and plans continued investment in projects to improve crumbling roads and bridges as well as expanding digital infrastructure to ensure broadband internet for everyone.

Public Safety: Landsman supports improving public safety by building trust between communities and public safety officers and police.

Gun Safety: Landsman has been named a Gun Sense candidate by Moms Demand Action, and he supports requiring universal background checks on all gun sales. He also supports banning the sale of assault weapons.

Voting Rights: Landsman supports the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Act, which would restore and strengthen the Voting Rights Act of 1965. He also supports expanding voter registration and access, strengthening ethics requirements, outlawing voter purges, increasing election security and establishing independent redistricting nationwide.

Health Care: He promises to push for lower healthcare premiums and work to eliminate surprise billing. Landsman also supports bipartisan legislation that holds Big Pharma accountable and allowing Medicaid to negotiate for lower prescription drug prices.

Veterans: Landsman promises to fight to make sure veterans suffering from toxic exposure in Iraq and Afghanistan get the support and medical attention they deserve. He also said it's "inexcusable" that any veteran lacks access to health care for physical and mental health.

Environment: Landsman is endorsed by the League of Conservation Voters. He promises to fight to protect access to clean air and water, and he'll hold polluters accountable for damages that disproportionately impact marginalized communities.

Equality: If elected to Congress, Landsman will support the Equality Act to ensure that no one can be discriminated against due to sexual orientation or gender. He also wants to codify marriage equality into federal law.

Foreign Policy: As a member of Congress, Landsman will advocate for Israel's right to self-determination and work to build bridges between the U.S., Israel and other regions to achieve sustainable peace in the region. He also supports the Abraham Accords effort started by former President Trump and continued by President Biden. Lastly, Landsman supports delivering military and humanitarian aid to those in Ukraine.

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INDIANA — ABC News projects Todd Young has won reelection.

Young defeated Democratic challenger Thomas McDermott Jr., the longest-serving mayor in the history of Hammond, Ind., to serve his second term in the U.S. Senate. With 68% of precincts reporting, Young has 59% of the vote.

The Republican incumbent previously served as a representative for Indiana's 9th congressional district before he was elected to the Senate in 2018. He succeeded Dan Coats.

Young was considered a clear front-runner throughout the race, mostly ignoring McDermott's campaign. Like many of his incumbent colleagues, Young had a large fundraising advantage over McDermott. He spent most of his campaign talking about inflation and rising gas prices.

His campaign raised about $14.9 million in contributions through Oct. 19, according to Federal Election Commission filings, while McDermott’s campaign had collected $1.27 million.

He did not get an endorsement from former President Donald Trump. He voted to acquit Trump in his Senate impeachment trials, though he did vote to uphold President Joe Biden's election win.

Young is on the Senate committees on finance; foreign relations; commerce, science and transportation; and small business and entrepreneurship. He was in the Marine Corps before attending law school and starting his political career.

There are several additional elections for state legislators, mayors and council members in Indiana. Hoosiers in the Tri-State are also electing Indiana's representative for the 6th congressional district. Greg Pence, the older brother of former Vice President Mike Pence, has represented the district since 2018.

FIND THE LATEST MIDTERM ELECTION RESULTS FROM OHIO, KENTUCKY AND INDIANA HERE.

Voters in four states approved ballot measures that will change their state constitutions to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude as punishment for crime, while those in a fifth state rejected the move.

The measures approved Tuesday curtail the use of prison labor in Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont.

In Louisiana, a former slave-holding state, voters rejected a ballot question known as Amendment 7 that asked whether they supported a constitutional amendment to prohibit the use of involuntary servitude in the criminal justice system. Ahead of Election Day, state Rep. Edmond Jordan, a Democrat from Baton Rouge and author of the amendment, reportedly asked voters to reject the measure because its wording on the ballot differed from his proposal.

Jordan did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday morning.

The four approved initiatives won't force immediate changes in the states’ prisons, but they may invite legal challenges over the practice of coercing prisoners to work under threat of sanctions or loss of privileges if they refuse the work.

The results were celebrated among anti-slavery advocates, including those pushing to further amend the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits enslavement and involuntary servitude except as a form of criminal punishment. More than 150 years after enslaved Africans and their descendants were released from bondage through ratification of the 13th Amendment, the slavery exception continues to permit the exploitation of labor by incarcerated individuals.

“Voters in Oregon and other states have come together across party lines to say that this stain must be removed from state constitutions,” Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat, told The Associated Press.

“Now, it is time for all Americans to come together and say that it must be struck from the U.S. Constitution. There should be no exceptions to a ban on slavery,” he said.

Coinciding with the creation of the Juneteenth federal holiday last year, Merkley and Rep. Nikema Williams, D-Georgia, reintroduced legislation to revise the 13th Amendment to end the slavery exception. If it wins approval in Congress, the constitutional amendment must be ratified by three-fourths of U.S. states.

After Tuesday’s vote, more than a dozen states still have constitutions that include language permitting slavery and involuntary servitude for prisoners. Several other states have no constitutional language for or against the use of forced prison labor.

Voters in Colorado became the first to approve removal of slavery exception language from the state constitution in 2018, followed by Nebraska and Utah two years later.

The movement to end or regulate the use of prison labor has existed for decades, since the time when former Confederate states sought ways to maintain the use of chattel slavery after the Civil War. Southern states used racist laws, referred to as “Black codes,” to criminalize, imprison and re-enslave Black Americans over benign behavior.

Today, prison labor is a multibillion-dollar practice. By comparison, workers can make pennies on the dollar. And prisoners who refuse to work can be denied privileges such as phone calls and visits with family, as well as face solitary confinement, all punishments that are eerily similar to those used during antebellum slavery.

“The 13th Amendment didn’t actually abolish slavery — what it did was make it invisible,” Bianca Tylek, an anti-slavery advocate and the executive director of the criminal justice advocacy group Worth Rises, told the AP in an interview ahead of Election Day.

She said passage of the ballot initiatives, especially in red states like Alabama, “is a great signal for what’s possible at the federal level.”

“There is a big opportunity here, in this moment,” Tylek said.

As midterm results continue to come in, here's the balance of power status in the House and Senate

Updated: 2:55 AM EST Nov 11, 2022

Almost 48 hours after the final polls closed on Election Night, control of Congress is still yet to be determined.The battle for the Senate has come down to three races, though if Democrats pull out victories in Nevada and Arizona, Georgia's Dec. 6 runoff could be a victory lap.Meanwhile, neither party has reached the magic number of 218 in the 435-seat U.S. House of Representatives.If the red wave that the GOP envisioned came to fruition, control of the House would probably be determined by now. But, because of strong showings by Democrats in states like Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania, the campaign for House majority has come down to a handful of races.Having said that, Republicans are inching closer to that 218-seat threshold with several key flips.Full election interactive maps PGlmcmFtZSBjbGFzcz0iYXAtZW1iZWQiIHRpdGxlPSJMaXZlIGVsZWN0aW9uIHJlc3VsdHMgdmlhIHRoZSBBc3NvY2lhdGVkIFByZXNzIiBzcmM9Imh0dHBzOi8vaW50ZXJhY3RpdmVzLmFwLm9yZy9lbGVjdGlvbi1yZXN1bHRzL2N1c3RvbWVycy9sYXlvdXRzL29yZ2FuaXphdGlvbi1sYXlvdXRzL3B1Ymxpc2hlZC82NjU5Ny83Mzc3Lmh0bWwiIHdpZHRoPSIxMDAlIiBmcmFtZWJvcmRlcj0iMCIgc2Nyb2xsaW5nPSJubyIgbWFyZ2luaGVpZ2h0PSIwIj48L2lmcmFtZT48c2NyaXB0IGRlZmVyIHNyYz0iaHR0cHM6Ly9pbnRlcmFjdGl2ZXMuYXAub3JnL2VsZWN0aW9uLXJlc3VsdHMvYXNzZXRzL21pY3Jvc2l0ZS9yZXNpemVDbGllbnQuanMiPjwvc2NyaXB0Pg==App users, tap here for results What's left to be decidedControl of the HouseIn the House, Republicans were within a dozen seats of the 218 needed to take control, while Democrats kept seats in districts from Virginia to Pennsylvania to Kansas and many West Coast contests were still too early to call. In a particularly symbolic victory for the GOP, Sean Patrick Maloney of New York, the House Democratic campaign chief, lost his bid for a sixth term.Democrats did better than history suggested they would. The party in power almost always suffers losses in the president’s first midterm elections, though even if the GOP ultimately wins the House, it won't be by a margin as large as during other midterm cycles. Democrats gained a net of 41 House seats under then-President Donald Trump in 2018, President Barack Obama saw the GOP gain 63 in 2010 and Republicans gained 54 seats during President Bill Clinton's first midterm.Control of Congress will decide how the next two years of President Joe Biden's term play out, and whether he is able to achieve more of his agenda or will see it blocked by a new GOP majority. Republicans are likely to launch a spate of investigations into Biden, his family and his administration if they take power, while a GOP takeover of the Senate would hobble the president’s ability to appoint judges.Video above: Cindy Axne concedes race in Iowa's 3rd Congressional District Control of the SenateEither party could secure a Senate majority with wins in both Nevada and Arizona — where the races were too early to call. But there was a strong possibility that, for the second time in two years, the Senate majority could come down to a runoff in Georgia next month, with Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker failing to earn enough votes to win outright.In the fight for Senate control, Pennsylvania was a bright spot for Democrats. Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who suffered a stroke five months ago, flipped a Republican-controlled Senate seat, topping Trump-endorsed Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz.Video above: Fetterman defeats Oz in Pennsylvania Senate race as Braddock residents reactBoth Republican and Democratic incumbents maintained key Senate seats. In Wisconsin, Republican Sen. Ron Johnson prevailed over Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes, while in New Hampshire, Democratic Sen. Maggie Hassan beat Don Bolduc.Races we're still watchingArizona SenateDemocratic incumbent Sen. Mark KellyRepublican Blake MastersNevada SenateDemocratic incumbent Sen. Catherine Cortez MastoRepublican Adam LaxaltArizona GovernorRepublican Kari LakeDemocrat Katie HobbsColorado Third Congressional DistrictRepublican incumbent Rep. Lauren BoebertDemocrat Adam FrischCalifornia Third Congressional DistrictRepublican Kevin KileyDemocrat Kermit JonesAlaska First Congressional DistrictDemocratic incumbent Mary PeltolaRepublican Sarah PalinKey election stories How the Georgia Senate runoff will workMcCarthy's command of GOP weakened by election failures Trump urged to delay 2024 launch after GOP's uneven election EXCLUSIVE: State hit by largest sustained Election Day cyberattack warns ‘it’s only going to get worse’ Fetterman triumphs over Oz in Pennsylvania's US Senate raceRecord-setting number of female governors to make history in 2023 EXPLAINER: Why did Arizona have voting slowdowns? Fact Check: Video shows Wisconsin poll worker, not 'cheating' in Philly Democrat Maxwell Frost becomes 1st member of Gen Z to win House seat Voters approve recreational marijuana in Maryland, Missouri Slavery rejected in some, not all, states where on ballot The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Friday, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts insisted that Twitter reveal its process for verifying users who pay for a subscription.

A Washington Post reporter, with Markey's permission, set up a fake account impersonating the Senator under the username @realedmarkey.

After paying the subscription fee the account received a blue verification mark, The Hill reported.

In a letter from Markey to Twitter's new CEO, Elon Musk, the Senator heavily criticized the platform's process and launch of the new feature which allows users to pay for a blue check mark that is meant to verify their authenticity.

Twitter appeared to have paused the program shortly after the Washington Post ran the test.

Sen. Markey wrote in a letter, “Allowing an imposter to impersonate a U.S. Senator on Twitter is a serious matter that you need to address promptly.”

Markey asked Musk to respond to his inquiry by Nov. 25 regarding how an impersonation was allowed.

CNBC and other outlets said that Twitter did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the matter.

A record $392 million settlement has been reached between search giant Google and 40 U.S. states.

A coalition of states attorneys general announced the settlement calling it the largest multi-state privacy settlement in United States history.

The lawsuit claimed that Google misled customers about its location tracking services since 2014.

The company will now be required to be more transparent about location-related features and the ability to turn it on and off in the setting.

Google will now face limits on using tracking and storage of some location information, CNN reported.

There are two searing scenes of Nancy Pelosi confronting the violent extremism that spilled into the open late in her storied political career. In one, she's uncharacteristically shaken in a TV interview as she recounts the brutal attack on her husband.

In the other, the House speaker rips open a package of beef jerky with her teeth during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection, while on the phone with Mike Pence, instructing the Republican vice president how to stay safe from the mob that came for them both. "Don’t let anybody know where you are,” she said.

That Pelosi, composed and in command at a time of chaos, tart but proper at every turn, is the one whom lawmakers have obeyed, tangled with, respected and feared for two decades.

She is the most powerful woman in American politics and one of the most consequential legislative leaders. Now, at 82, in the face of political loss and personal trauma, she is closing her era.

Pelosi announced Thursday she would not seek a Democratic leadership position in the Congress that convenes in January, when Republicans take control. Pelosi will remain in Congress.

“Never would I have thought that I would go from homemaker to House speaker,” she allowed. On her future, she told reporters: "I like to dance, I like to sing. There’s a life out there, right?”

Polarizing and combative, Pelosi nevertheless forged compromises with Republicans on historic legislation, on health care, roads, student debt relief, climate change and more.

Even former Republican Speaker Newt Gingrich, a self-described “partisan conservative who thinks that most of her positions are insane,” said Pelosi had a “remarkable” run.

“Totally dominant,” Gingrich said of her. “She’s clearly one of the strongest speakers in history. She has shown enormous perseverance and discipline."

Bono, who worked with Pelosi over the years on combating AIDS, said in a statement to the AP after a performance Thursday night in Scotland: “When the story of the end of AIDS is written, Nancy Pelosi’s name will stand out in boldface.”

“I am honored to have learned so much from her grit and grace, and to call her a friend,” he added.

Many fellow Democrats, at one point or another, earned her look of icy disapproval, not just the other side.

“Politics is tough,” she said in 2015, “but intraparty? Oh, brother.”

Pelosi prevailed — for nearly 20 years as House Democratic leader including nearly eight as speaker in two stints — with hard-nosed sentiments like these:

“Whoever votes against the speaker will pay a price.” — to Democrats who resisted her push for a select committee on climate change early in her speakership.

“Nobody’s walking out of here saying anything, if they want to keep an intact neck.” — to negotiators trying to work out a 2007 House-Senate compromise to restrain pork, according to the notes of John A. Lawrence, her then-chief of staff and author of a new insider book on her speakership, “Arc of Power."

Sometimes, she could snap her lawmakers into line without a word.

A flick of her hand silenced Democrats who cheered when the House first passed articles of impeachment against Donald Trump, for Pelosi was a stickler for decorum. But not always.

She ripped her copy of Trump's 2020 State of the Union speech, on the dais behind him, on camera. The theatrical protest raised questions about whether Pelosi, in that moment, had become what she despised in Trump.

“He has shredded the truth in his speech, shredded the Constitution in his conduct — I shredded the address,” she said crisply. “Thank you all very much.”

Republicans pilloried her as “Darth Nancy” back in 2006 and the villainization got uglier, complete with gun imagery, as the years passed.

“She was, she is, the personification of the San Francisco liberal,” Lawrence said. “It was made to order for them."

But "there was a viciousness. The fact that she fit that bill so perfectly — a smart, attractive, effective woman ... they knew they could caricature and stigmatize things about her, her appearance and style, in a way that was a very effective dog whistle of misogyny.”

She would never publicly attribute the attacks to the fact she's a woman, Lawrence said. “She would say, ‘They did it because I’m effective.'" Then “pretend to flick dust” off her immaculate jacket.

“Darth Nancy” was a quaint, faraway insult by the time the pro-Trump mob came looking for her that Jan. 6. Their sign at the Capitol said, “Pelosi is Satan.”

Rifling through her desk, they found a pair of boxing gloves. Pink ones.

Pelosi honed the art of aiming high, then disappointing one faction of her party or another without losing core support. Rare is the major achievement that was as far left as the party's left wing wanted.

But many are the achievements. She settled for an “Obamacare” bill, for example, that did not give everyone the option of government health insurance, but did, over time, expand access to health care.

She crushed toes along the way.

“Her instincts are to find a path and if you happen to be standing in the hole, she’s going to treat you like a running back," said political scientist Cal Jillson at Southern Methodist University. "If she can go through you, fine. If not, you’re headed to the medicine tent.”

Pelosi faced none of the questions about sharpness that dog Biden, 80 on Sunday. She still races around Congress, in high heels, at a pace people half her age can find hard to match.

But concern had grown in the ranks about the crowd of older Democratic leaders still in charge.

Leon Panetta, former chief of staff to President Bill Clinton, said Pelosi “probably could have spent more time building a stronger bench in terms of leadership in the House and trying to make sure that others could follow in her path.”

Her fundraising prowess was one key to success.

“This is why the Democrats had more money than God," said Republican Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan. "She was magic, and I don’t think she lost a vote.”

AP Congressional Correspondent Lisa Mascaro contributed to this report.

NEW YORK (AP) — A day after Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced she would step aside, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York launched a history-making bid Friday to become the first Black person to helm a major political party in Congress as leader of the House Democrats.

In a letter to colleagues, Jeffries gave a nod to the "legendary figures" before him: Pelosi, the first female speaker in U.S. history, and her leadership team. He encouraged his fellow House members to embrace a "once-in-a-generation opportunity" to unleash their "full potential as a team." And he pledged to draw on the diverse Democratic caucus as it works to govern in a divided Congress and win back the majority after House Republicans narrowly seized control in the midterm elections.

"The House Democratic Caucus is the most authentic representation of the gorgeous mosaic of the American people," Jeffries wrote.

"I write to humbly ask for your support for the position of House Democratic Leader as we once again prepare to meet the moment."

Along with Pelosi, the other top two House Democrats — Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland, the majority leader, and Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, the whip — also announced their intentions to step down from leadership. All three are in their 80s.

A new generation wasted no time preparing to take their place. Along with Jeffries, Reps. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts and Pete Aguilar of California — who have worked together as a lower-rung leadership team — swiftly wrote to colleagues with their bids for the second- and third-ranking positions in House Democratic leadership. Jeffries and Clark are in their 50s, while Aguilar is in his 40s.

The trio has been working together for years, preparing for just this moment, seeking to engineer a smooth transition when Pelosi, Hoyer and Clyburn decided to leave.

Pelosi heartily backed the potential new leaders.

"It is with pride, gratitude and confidence in their abilities that I salute Chairman Hakeem Jeffries, Assistant Speaker Katherine Clark and Vice Chairman Pete Aguilar for being ready and willing to assume this awesome responsibility," Pelosi said Friday in a statement.

House Democrats will meet behind closed doors as a caucus in two weeks, after the Thanksgiving holiday, to select their members. So far, Jeffries, Clark and Aguilar have no stated challengers.

The Brooklyn-born Jeffries has long been seen as a charismatic new leader, known for his sharp but careful style, first in New York politics and then when he entered the national stage upon winning election to Congress in 2012.

A former corporate lawyer and state assemblyman, Jeffries has represented Brooklyn and parts of Queens for a decade and quickly rose through the ranks in Congress, serving as the party's 5th-highest-ranking member as chair of the House Democratic Caucus.

"You could sense there was some purpose in him," said the Rev. Al Sharpton, the civil rights leader, recalling the quiet and pensive young lawmaker he first met decades go.

"He always seemed like a guy that was headed somewhere but was willing to pace himself to get there," Sharpton said. "You meet a lot of people that are ambitious, that would do anything. You never got that impression from Hakeem."

While Jeffries has been part of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, he's seen as a more moderate, business-friendly lawmaker who is sometimes at odds with the House's furthest-left members.

But his appeal rests in his political skill at a transformative time as the Pelosi and her team make way for a new era.

Carl Heastie, a Democratic state lawmaker who became the first Black person to serve as the speaker of the New York State Assembly, bonded with Jeffries on the campaign trail two decades ago over a love of hip-hop.

"Hakeem had that 'it' factor," Heastie said. "He stands out in the room."

If Jeffries is chosen to serve as the minority leader, the Democrats will be led in both chambers of Congress by men from Brooklyn — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Brooklyn native, lives in a neighborhood near where Jeffries lives with his wife and two sons.

His district includes the Black cultural hub of the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, home to Jackie Robinson and once represented by Shirley Chisholm, the first Black woman elected to Congress.

The job of minority leader puts Jeffries in line to become speaker if Democrats regain House control.

"Another glass ceiling broken," said Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., about his colleague's rise. "I look forward to be able to call him speaker."

Jeffries first won election to the House in 2012, replacing Democrat Edolphus Towns, who decided to retire instead of facing what was expected to be a tough primary challenge from Jeffries.

Growing up in Brooklyn's Crown Heights neighborhood, Jeffries attended New York City public schools before graduating from the State University of New York at Binghamton, where he studied political science. He received a master's in public policy from Georgetown University and a law degree from New York University.

He clerked for a federal judge and worked for several years at a New York City law firm and later as a corporate lawyer for CBS.

His first runs for public office were strong back-to-back but unsuccessful attempts to unseat longtime Democratic state Assemblyman Roger Green starting in 2000.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, who was Green's campaign manager, said Jeffries was then "an up-and-coming insurgent" who "wanted to make his mark in central Brooklyn — and in fact, he did."

When the seat opened in 2006, Jeffries won. He served six years in Albany, working on criminal justice and civil rights legislation.

He sponsored a law that stopped the New York Police Department from keeping a database of personal details of every person stopped and questioned under the department's controversial stop-and-frisk tactic, even if the people were released and not charged with a crime.

He continued that work in Congress. After the 2014 chokehold death in New York of Eric Garner, a Black man whose gasps of "I can't breathe!" became part a national rallying cry against police brutality, Jeffries sought to pass legislation that would make the chokehold maneuver a federal crime.

James, who rose up through the same Brooklyn Democratic political circles as Jeffries and worked with him on affordable housing issues when she was on the City Council, said she reached out to Jeffries on Thursday night.

"I texted him and urged him not to forget the residents of public housing we served," James said. "And he answered back and said, 'Never.'"

___

Mascaro reported from Washington.

As Benjamin Netanyahu prepares to serve as Israel's prime minister again, he is calling a meeting between former U.S. President Donald Trump and rapper "Ye," formerly known as Kanye West, "wrong and misplaced."

"Ye" allegedly brought far-right activist Nick Fuentes along with him on the meeting, with the circumstances around how the three came to meet still unclear.

Netanyahu called the meeting with Kanye a "mistake," and said, "I condemned Kanye West's antisemitic statements. President Trump's decision to dine with this person I think is wrong and misplaced. He shouldn't do that. I think he made a mistake. I hope it's not repeated."

Netanyahu added that Trump "has been a tremendous supporter of Israel … and the Jewish people."

He said he is "unabashedly appreciative" of Trump's policy actions regarding Israel while he was in the White House.

Donald Trump approved a move to formally recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem while he was president.

As Axios reported, Trump also recognized Israel's sovereignty over the Golan Heights, while withdrawing the U.S. from the Iran nuclear deal.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won election in Israel to return as prime minister this year. He was the country's longest serving prime minister since Israel achieved independence.