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Shipping containers sit at Malcolm Transfer Station in Minneapolis on March 21, 2026. A developing trade war with Canada poses economic danger, especially for states on the northern border. (Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer) WASHINGTON — A developing trade war with Canada could bite Republicans ahead of the upcoming midterm elections as voters worry about rising prices and industries in states with competitive races could suffer. Maine’s lobster industry  dodged what officials had warned could be economic havoc Thursday morning when Canada reversed its decision to tax lobster imports at 25%. But states including Ohio, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Michigan and Wisconsin could see effects if Canada follows through on retaliatory tariffs on alcohol, automobiles, dairy, home appliances, steel and other goods. Those products are  among the 629 categories Canada’s Department of Finance announced Tuesday in response to President Donald Trump’s most recent  tariffs on Cana...

The U.S. Department of Justice logo is displayed on a speaker’s podium. (Photo by Seth Tupper/South Dakota Searchlight) WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday sued  Arizona ,  New Mexico ,  Oregon and  Washington over laws that allow immigrants in the country without legal status to pay in-state college tuition in the states where they live. President Donald Trump’s administration has now sued  21 states over such laws , which enable noncitizen students who meet certain requirements access to in-state tuition at public colleges and universities, regardless of their immigration status.  The lawsuits argue that these policies allow students without legal status to pay drastically lower tuition for public education than U.S. citizens from other states. They also come as the administration  aims to curb benefits that could be extended to immigrants more broadly.  “Over 30 years ago, Congress made clear that States cannot put ill...

Ahead of the May 2024 primary, a drop box for mail-in ballots sits outside the Shelby County Courthouse Annex in Shelbyville, Kentucky. (Photo by McKenna Horsley/Kentucky Lantern) WASHINGTON — The U.S. Postal Service took another step Thursday in implementing a Trump administration policy to restrict mail-in voting, even as a high-stakes legal battle plays out and midterm elections approach. The agency published an  FAQ about its new rule that compels states to send their voter rolls to the federal government and only deliver mail ballots to voters who match federal citizenship data. The rule also updates standards for mail ballots that states have said would be difficult to implement before the Nov. 3 elections  that will determine the balance of Congress . The controversial rule, which two dozen Democratic states and voting rights groups are challenging in federal court, increases the federal government’s role in elections and voting.  The states have argued t...

Melanie Folwell, lead organizer for the ballot initiative in Idaho to restore abortion access, speaks to supporters at the Idaho Capitol in July. The nonprofit she leads, Idahoans United for Women and Families, is suing the state over a final segment of ballot language that will also appear in the statewide voter pamphlet. (Photo by Kelcie Moseley-Morris/Stateline) BOISE, Idaho — The group leading the effort to restore abortion access by ballot initiative in Idaho has filed a lawsuit against state officials over proposed language that will appear on the ballot and in a state-issued voter pamphlet. Idahoans United for Women and Families, the nonprofit organization that drafted the initiative — now called Proposition 1 — says the “yes” and “no” statements as prepared by Idaho officials violate the law guiding the initiative process and are confusing and misleading. Attorneys filed the lawsuit to the Idaho Supreme Court late Wednesday night. Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane stress...

A ballot drop box sits outside the library at Virginia Avenue Park in Santa Monica, California, on July 14, 2026. (Photo by Greg LaRose/Louisiana Illuminator) Democrat-led states and voting rights groups re-filed lawsuits Wednesday to block the Trump administration from executing a new regulation to restrict mail-in voting, while a federal judge lifted a nationwide pause on the policy in line with this week’s U.S. Supreme Court decision that handed the administration a procedural win. Democratic officials in 24 states and the District of Columbia launched  a new federal lawsuit challenging a U.S. Postal Service rule establishing federal vote-by-mail standards as unconstitutional and a coalition of voting rights advocates filed a supplemental  complaint against the USPS rule after the Supreme Court  struck down a similar suit as premature. The rule establishes new ballot-design requirements and mandates states collect information from voters and voting-age citizens an...

Helen Aponte, left, is a home care aide for Donna Logan, 81, of Wilmington, Ohio. Aponte spends Monday mornings helping Logan with daily household chores or a trip to the doctor’s office. Ohio and other states have lifted caregiver pay to address a shortage of workers. (Photo by Anne Saker for Stateline) WILMINGTON, Ohio — From her recliner in her tidy townhouse, Donna Logan offers advice to the first baby boomers to hit the big ‘8-0’ this year: Life can be good, especially with someone like Helen Aponte helping with laundry and housekeeping and the drive to the doctor’s office. “I do most things on my own,” said Logan, 81, a native of Wilmington, Ohio. “But having Helen come in once a week gives me confidence.” “I drive her, whatever she needs,” said Aponte, 52. “It makes me happy to help Donna stay in her home.” Logan and Aponte found each other about a year ago through the Council on Aging in Southwest Ohio in rural Clinton County, about 40 miles northeast of Cincinnati. For thre...