Texas Democrats arrive in Illinois to block vote back home on redrawn House maps sought by Trump

Texas Democrats have left the state in an attempt to prevent the state House from holding a vote Monday on new congressional maps that Republicans hope will net them several additional U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterm elections. The dramatic move Sunday could expose Democrats to fines and other penalties. Democrats have cast the decision to leave the state as a last-ditch effort to stop Republicans from pushing through a rare mid-decade redrawing of the congressional map. Republican Gov. Greg Abbott called a special session of the Legislature that started last month to take up the redistricting effort that President Donald Trump has urged.

Texas Democrats fleeing state to block redistricting vote follows strategy that's had mixed results

Texas Democrats have fled the state in an effort to keep Republicans from approving a new U.S. House map that could boost their slim congressional majority next year. The Sunday walkout is the minority party’s way of preventing Republicans in charge from having enough votes for maps that would add five new Republican-leaning congressional districts. Though such theatrics are uncommon, both parties have used walkouts to deny quorum in state legislatures from Oregon to New Hampshire. In some places, walking off the job, whether for a day or weeks at a time, has led to punishments including fines, civil arrest warrants or being booted from the ballot.

Israeli minister prays at flashpoint holy site as officials say 33 aid-seekers killed in Gaza

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — A far-right Israeli minister has visited and prayed at Jerusalem’s most sensitive holy site, sparking regional condemnation. The visit by Itamar Ben-Gvir threatens to escalate tensions and complicate international efforts to halt Israel’s nearly two-year military offensive in Gaza. Palestinian leaders, along with Jordan and Saudi Arabia, have condemned the visit as incitement. The visit followed Hamas' release of videos showing emaciated Israeli hostages that have caused an uproar in Israel. Meanwhile, hospitals in Gaza say 33 more Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire while seeking food aid. Israel faces global criticism over famine-like conditions in the besieged strip.

Boeing workers who build fighter jets go on strike

NEW YORK (AP) — The union representing Boeing employees who build fighter jets says they have begun a strike after about 3,200 workers at facilities in St. Louis and other locations voted to reject a modified four-year labor agreement. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers union said the strike began at midnight. The union says its workers deserve nothing less than a contract that keeps their families secure and recognizes their unmatched expertise. Boeing says the company is disappointed its employees rejected an offer that featured 40% average wage growth and resolved issues about work schedules.

Popular 1980s actor Loni Anderson of the hit TV series 'WKRP in Cincinnati' has died

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Loni Anderson, who played a struggling radio station’s empowered receptionist Jennifer on the hit TV comedy “WKRP in Cincinnati,” has died. It was just days before her 80th birthday. Her longtime publicist says Anderson died at a Los Angeles hospital following a prolonged illness. “WKRP in Cincinnati” aired from 1978 through 1982 and was set in a lagging Ohio radio station trying to reinvent itself with rock music. As the station’s receptionist, Jennifer's efficiency often kept the station running in the face of others’ incompetence.

The Justice Department seeks voter and election information from at least 19 states, AP finds

NEW YORK (AP) — The Justice Department is ramping up an effort to get election data from the states. According to an Associated Press tally, the department's voting section has requested copies of voter registration lists from state election administrators in at least 15 states. And department lawyers have contacted officials in at least seven states to propose a meeting about forging an information-sharing agreement related to instances of voting or election fraud. The unusually expansive outreach has raised alarm among some election officials. That's because states have the constitutional authority to run elections and because federal law protects the sharing of individual data with the government.

Former US soldier suspected of killing 4 in Montana remains at large

Authorities say a former US soldier suspected of killing four people at a Montana bar is still at large and believed to be armed. The shooting occurred on Friday morning at The Owl Bar in Anaconda, Montana. Officials say they believe 45-year-old military veteran Michael Paul Brown committed the shooting with a rifle. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen on Sunday warned residents that Brown could return to the area. Investigators are considering all possible options for Brown's whereabouts. Brown served in the Army and Montana National Guard and has struggled with mental illness for years, family members say.

The UN says 68 African migrants were killed when a boat capsized off Yemen

CAIRO (AP) — The U.N.'s migration agency reports that at least 68 African migrants have died and 74 others are missing after their boat capsized off Yemen. The mishap took place on Sunday. Abdusattor Esoev, head of the International Organization for Migration in Yemen, says the boat carried 154 Ethiopian migrants and capsized near Yemen’s Abyan province. Twelve migrants survived the shipwreck. The bodies of 54 migrants washed ashore in the district of Khanfar, and 14 others were found dead and taken to a hospital morgue in Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan on Yemen’s southern coast.

Men charged in Tennessee case involving 4 dead family members of abandoned infant

TIPTONVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee authorities have arrested two men they say are connected to the case of four murdered family members who were related to an abandoned infant. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation charged Tanaka Brown and Giovonte Thomas with accessory after the fact to first-degree murder. Authorities allege both men “assisted” 28-year-old Austin Robert Drummond in the murders, but did not specify how. Authorities have left many unanswered questions, including how the four relatives were killed and how the family's baby ended up in a car seat in a yard in the Tigrett area. Law enforcement officers are still searching for Drummond.

Ukrainian drone attack sets Russian oil depot on fire as Zelenskyy announces prisoner exchange

Russian officials say a Ukrainian drone attack on an oil depot near Russia’s Black Sea resort of Sochi has sparked a major fire. More than 120 firefighters have been working to extinguish the blaze. Russia’s civil aviation authority temporarily stopped flights at Sochi’s airport. Meanwhile, in southern Ukraine, a Russian missile strike hit a residential area in Mykolaiv, wounding seven people. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to exchange 1,200 prisoners following negotiations in Istanbul. There was no immediate comment from Russia.