It’s a bittersweet moment in Washington: While Democrats celebrate historic election victories, the government shutdown is stretching into its 36th day — now the longest in US history.
Here’s what else you need to know to get up to speed and on with your day.
Democrats secured significant wins against Republicans in key races across the US on Tuesday. A major theme among Democratic candidates was countering President Donald Trump’s agenda, with campaigns centered on protecting democracy, cost-of-living issues and more. Here are the results:
📍 New York
CNN projects Democrat Zohran Mamdani will win New York City’s mayoral race, beating former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent. New York’s Board of Elections said more than two million votes were cast — the most since 1969. It’s a major victory for progressive Democrats and an even bigger moment for Mamdani, who will be New York City’s first Muslim and South Asian mayor. The 34-year-old millennial will also be the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century.
📍 New Jersey
CNN projects Mikie Sherrill will win the New Jersey governor’s race, making her the first female Democratic governor in the state’s history. Sherrill campaigned heavily against President Trump and his policies, often comparing him to her Republican opponent, Jack Ciattarelli. Her win will maintain Democratic control of the seat one year after Trump made gains in the state.
📍 Virginia
CNN projects Democrat Abigail Spanberger will become Virginia’s first female governor, flipping the top office in the state from Republican leadership. Spanberger was first elected to Congress in 2018, when she flipped control of a longtime Republican-held seat. She defeated Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, who would have been the first Black female governor in US history.
📍 California
CNN projects California voters will approve the Democrat-led redistricting measure Proposition 50, which will boost the party’s efforts to counter Republican gerrymandering in other states. The measure will allow Democrats to redraw congressional lines with new ones that will make five US House seats more favorable for their party. California Gov. Gavin Newsom celebrated the victory on Tuesday, saying the Democratic Party is “in its ascendancy.”
A UPS plane crashed shortly after takeoff near the Louisville, Kentucky, airport on Tuesday, leaving a fiery trail of destruction and a massive plume of smoke that stretched for miles. At least seven people were killed, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said, warning the toll could rise. The blaze is now contained, but a shelter-in-place order remains in effect for the area around the airport. Three crew members were on board the MD-11 aircraft and are presumed dead. The National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation into the crash, the FAA said. A 28-member NTSB team is expected to arrive in Kentucky today to begin examining the wreckage.
Video of UPS plane crash near Louisville airport
The Supreme Court will hear arguments today on a blockbuster case that will decide whether President Trump’s sweeping emergency tariffs are legal. The battle to stop Trump’s tariffs is being waged by a group of small businesses who say the president’s moves are driving costs — and uncertainty — to intolerable levels. Trump said the stakes of the case are high when it comes to his economic agenda, although he has avoided directly criticizing the companies involved in the litigation. The case will specifically determine the fate of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs announced in April, as well as the duties he has imposed on imports from China, Mexico and Canada.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday gave state awards to the developers of the nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile and the Poseidon underwater torpedo. Notably, neither weapon is new: Putin unveiled both in 2018. Analysts say Russia is using previously announced missile technology to send new nuclear threats to the West and to discourage the US from supporting Ukraine. Russia’s repeated emphasis on its long-range capabilities “indicates that the intended target would be the United States, not a regional adversary that Russia could strike with much cheaper shorter-range systems,” the Center for Strategic and International Studies said in a report published Tuesday. The report also noted Trump’s plan to build a “Golden Dome” missile defense system to shield the US from foreign attacks.
Three Chinese astronauts have been forced to extend their six-month stay in space over concerns their return ship may have been hit by debris. Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie were due to return to Earth today — and had even handed over the keys to the Chinese space station to a new crew –– but their journey home was postponed due to a suspected impact on their Shenzhou-20 spaceship, China’s National Space Administration said. The agency did not specify how long it might take to check the ship, which blasted off from the country in April. This comes as the international space race is intensifying, with the US aiming to return astronauts to the moon as early as 2027. China aims to land its astronauts on the lunar surface by 2030.
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And finally…
There’s a lot of noise and frustration with the state of airlines and flying right now, but the numbers may tell a different story. CNN’s Harry Enten digs into the data to reveal some surprising good news about the aviation industry.
