PRATT COUNTY — A Kansas man will serve more than 21 years in prison for the attempted murder of Ana Oviedo-Baltazar, according to Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach.

On April 2, 49-year-old Samuel Lee Hall entered a Pratt hotel room and attacked his estranged wife with a knife, stabbing her several times while her two minor children slept next to her. An adult child also was assaulted by Hall.

Afterwards, Hall fled from the hotel in his truck, leading law enforcement on a dangerous chase through Pratt. Hall intentionally struck officer vehicles with his truck, before law enforcement disabled the truck. As officers attempted to take Hall into custody, he kicked one of the officers, causing injury.

In addition to attempted murder, Hall also plead guilty to two counts of aggravated child endangerment, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer.

On Oct. 21, District Court Judge Francis Meisenheimer sentenced Hall to serve a total of 261 months in custody. In sentencing Hall, the judge noted Hall was placed on probation for a domestic violence offense against the same victim shortly before the incident.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730135002639.png" alt="Hall photo Pratt Co." />
 <figcaption>Hall photo Pratt Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>PRATT COUNTY — A Kansas man will serve more than 21 years in prison for the attempted murder of Ana Oviedo-Baltazar, according to Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach.On April 2, 49-year-old Samuel Lee Hall entered a Pratt hotel room and attacked his estranged wife with a knife, stabbing her several times while her two minor children slept next to her. An adult child also was assaulted by Hall.Afterwards, Hall fled from the hotel in his truck, leading law enforcement on a dangerous chase through Pratt. Hall intentionally struck officer vehicles with his truck, before law enforcement disabled the truck. As officers attempted to take Hall into custody, he kicked one of the officers, causing injury.In addition to attempted murder, Hall also plead guilty to two counts of aggravated child endangerment, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and aggravated battery of a law enforcement officer.On Oct. 21, District Court Judge Francis Meisenheimer sentenced Hall to serve a total of 261 months in custody. In sentencing Hall, the judge noted Hall was placed on probation for a domestic violence offense against the same victim shortly before the incident.

Prison for violent knife attack on estranged wife at Kan. motel

ATCHISON —A Kansas man wanted in Arizona is in custody.

On October 25, police in Atchison arrested Adrian M. Duran, 28, Atchison, on a State of Arizona warrant for failure to appear in court, according to Police Chief Mike Wilson. He was originally jailed on drug charges, according to Wilson.

Duran is being held without bond, according to online jail records.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730124424659.png" alt="Duran photo Atchison County" />
 <figcaption>Duran photo Atchison County</figcaption>
 </figure>ATCHISON —A Kansas man wanted in Arizona is in custody.On October 25, police in Atchison arrested Adrian M. Duran, 28, Atchison, on a State of Arizona warrant for failure to appear in court, according to Police Chief Mike Wilson. He was originally jailed on drug charges, according to Wilson.Duran is being held without bond, according to online jail records.&nbsp;

Suspect who skipped court in Arizona jailed in Kansas

SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a Kansas man on multiple allegations after a shooting, chase and attempted carjacking.

Just after 6p.m. Sunday, police&nbsp;responded to a shooting call in the 1600 block of S. Hydraulic in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo.

 Before their arrival, officers were informed that the suspect had run from scene. At the scene, officers located a 26-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the upper body. He was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

As officers investigated, they identified and located the suspect, identified as 24-year-old Chandler Wooten, according to the Sedgwick County arrest report, who attempted to evade arrest. 

During the pursuit, the Wooten tried to carjack a vehicle from a 51-year-old man in the 2100 block of S. Pattie. Due to the quick response of officers, the attempted carjacking was prevented, and Wooten was apprehended without further incident. He was found armed with a handgun at the time of his arrest.

Wooten is being held in the Sedgwick County jail on requested charges of Attempted Murder, Attempted Carjacking, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Obstruction, and Possession of Paraphernalia.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730112237256.png" alt="Wooten-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Wooten-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating a Kansas man on multiple allegations after a shooting, chase and attempted carjacking.Just after 6p.m. Sunday, police&nbsp;responded to a shooting call in the 1600 block of S. Hydraulic in Wichita, according to Officer Juan Rebolledo. Before their arrival, officers were informed that the suspect had run from scene. At the scene, officers located a 26-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the upper body. He was transported to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.As officers investigated, they identified and located the suspect, identified as 24-year-old Chandler Wooten, according to the Sedgwick County arrest report, who attempted to evade arrest. During the pursuit, the Wooten tried to carjack a vehicle from a 51-year-old man in the 2100 block of S. Pattie. Due to the quick response of officers, the attempted carjacking was prevented, and Wooten was apprehended without further incident. He was found armed with a handgun at the time of his arrest.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730121193858.png" alt="Just before 11:30p.m. Saturday, police booked Wooten into jail-photo Sedgwick County" />
 <figcaption>Just before 11:30p.m. Saturday, police booked Wooten into jail-photo Sedgwick County</figcaption>
 </figure>Wooten is being held in the Sedgwick County jail on requested charges of Attempted Murder, Attempted Carjacking, Felon in Possession of a Firearm, Obstruction, and Possession of Paraphernalia.

Police: Kan. man ran from shooting, tried to carjack a vehicle

SEDGWICK COUNTY– The Wichita Police Department has arrested a 24-year-old woman from Wichita in connection with a fatal crash that claimed the life of a 43-year-old woman from Hutchinson.

On Monday morning, officers located an occupied stolen vehicle at the Riverwalk Apartments, according to Officer Kris Gupilan.

Officers monitored the vehicle using unmarked cars, and air support was requested from the Kansas Highway Patrol.

Around noon, the vehicle stopped at Walmart, 29th and Rock Road. Officers deployed spike strips to prevent the vehicle from leaving, successfully deflating two tires. 

Despite this, the suspect fled the Walmart parking lot, striking a police vehicle.

Officers did not pursue the vehicle, but KHP air support continued to track it from above. The vehicle proceeded to a business on North Webb Road, where two individuals exited the vehicle and fled on foot. 

One individual was apprehended, while another female suspect stole another vehicle from the business and fled south on Webb, then west on 29th Street, according to Gupilan.

KHP Air maintained surveillance of the stolen vehicle, which, at 29th and Wilderness, collided with a sedan occupied by the 43-year-old woman from Hutchinson.

The woman was pronounced deceased at the scene. Police have not released her name.

The female suspect, a 24-year-old from Wichita, sustained injuries and was transported to a local hospital for evaluation. She will later be booked into jail on appropriate charges.

The Wichita Police Department's accident follow-up detectives will present the details of this case to the district attorney for charging consideration. 

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730153232453.png" alt="Police near the crash investigation -photo courtesy KWCH" />
 <figcaption>Police near the crash investigation -photo courtesy KWCH</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY– The Wichita Police Department has arrested a 24-year-old woman from Wichita in connection with a fatal crash that claimed the life of a 43-year-old woman from Hutchinson.On Monday morning, officers located an occupied stolen vehicle at the Riverwalk Apartments, according to Officer Kris Gupilan.Officers monitored the vehicle using unmarked cars, and air support was requested from the Kansas Highway Patrol.Around noon, the vehicle stopped at Walmart, 29th and Rock Road. Officers deployed spike strips to prevent the vehicle from leaving, successfully deflating two tires. Despite this, the suspect fled the Walmart parking lot, striking a police vehicle.Officers did not pursue the vehicle, but KHP air support continued to track it from above. The vehicle proceeded to a business on North Webb Road, where two individuals exited the vehicle and fled on foot. One individual was apprehended, while another female suspect stole another vehicle from the business and fled south on Webb, then west on 29th Street, according to Gupilan.KHP Air maintained surveillance of the stolen vehicle, which, at 29th and Wilderness, collided with a sedan occupied by the 43-year-old woman from Hutchinson.The woman was pronounced deceased at the scene. Police have not released her name.The female suspect, a 24-year-old from Wichita, sustained injuries and was transported to a local hospital for evaluation. She will later be booked into jail on appropriate charges.The Wichita Police Department's accident follow-up detectives will present the details of this case to the district attorney for charging consideration.

Police: Kansas woman dies after crash with stolen vehicle

SEDGWICK COUNTY —The investigation of a fatal weekend accident in Sedgwick County continues.

Just after 2:30p.m. Saturday, Sedgwick County Sheriff Deputies were dispatched to an accident at the Air Capital Drop Zone, 7015 S 143rd&nbsp;St. S., according to Sheriff's Lt. Ernie Slay.&nbsp; 

Amanda Gallagher, 37,&nbsp; Wichita,&nbsp; made contact with a grounded and stationary, but still running plane, and received critical injuries.&nbsp; EMS transported Gallagher to Wesley Medical Center.&nbsp; She was later pronounced deceased from her injuries.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-amanda-gallagher-funeral-support">Click here to view</a>&nbsp;an online fundraiser for her family.

Law enforcement notified the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board of the accident.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730074772543.png" alt="Amanda Gallagher photo GoFundMeGoFundMe" />
 <figcaption>Amanda Gallagher photo GoFundMeGoFundMe</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —The investigation of a fatal weekend accident in Sedgwick County continues.Just after 2:30p.m. Saturday, Sedgwick County Sheriff Deputies were dispatched to an accident at the Air Capital Drop Zone, 7015 S 143rd&nbsp;St. S., according to Sheriff's Lt. Ernie Slay.&nbsp; Amanda Gallagher, 37,&nbsp; Wichita,&nbsp; made contact with a grounded and stationary, but still running plane, and received critical injuries.&nbsp; EMS transported Gallagher to Wesley Medical Center.&nbsp; She was later pronounced deceased from her injuries.&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-amanda-gallagher-funeral-support">Click here to view</a>&nbsp;an online fundraiser for her family.Law enforcement notified the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board of the accident.

Sheriff: FAA notified after Kan. woman killed in airplane propellor accident

NEW CASTLE, Del. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;has cast an early ballot in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024">2024 general election.</a>

It’s a bittersweet moment for Biden, who decided to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">end his reelection campaign</a>&nbsp;in July because of growing concerns about his health and Democrats’ worries about his chances of defeating former&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>. Biden voted on Monday at the state of Delaware Department of Elections, not far from his home outside Wilmington, Delaware at an early voting site, where voters were lined up down the street to cast ballots.

Biden chatted with voters as he waited in line to cast his ballot, and helped push an older woman in a wheelchair who was ahead of him. The president waited in line for about 40 minutes before he cast his ballot.

He handed his identification to the election worker, who had him sign a form and announced: “Joseph Biden now voting.”

As the president cast his ballot behind a black drape, some first-time voters were announced and the room erupted in cheers for them.

Outside the polling place, Biden was asked if he thought Democrats - including Vice President Kamala Harris - would win.

For all but a few years since 1970, Biden has either held office or been running for one during election season.

But this year, his hopes lie with a newer generation of Democrats, including three on the Delaware ballot looking to make history.

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/kamala-harris">Harris</a>, whom Biden endorsed after dropping out, is vying to become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to serve as president.

State Sen.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/sarah-mcbride">Sarah McBride</a>&nbsp;is looking to become the first openly transgender member of the U.S. House.

McBride, a longtime friend of the Biden family, had served as an aide in then-President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/obama">Barack Obama</a>&nbsp;‘s administration and on the campaigns in 2006 and 2010 for the president’s late son Beau Biden’s runs for Delaware attorney general. She also worked for former Delaware Gov. Jack Markell.

McBride hopes to succeed Democratic Rep. Lisa&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-senate-harris-black-women-maryland-54c411e0a0f4d3d84de95246b09be304">Blunt Rochester</a>, who wants to become Delaware’s first Black woman to serve in the U.S. Senate. She has served as Delaware’s lone representative in the House since 2017.

On Monday, Biden had breakfast Blunt Rochester. He’s known her family for decades, and campaigned with her father, Theodore “Ted” Blunt, who served on the Wilmington City Council for almost a quarter century, including as president. Biden on Sunday evening formally endorsed Blunt Rochester, cutting a video for her campaign in which he called her&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/LisaBRochester/status/1850673949236937211" target="_blank">“Delaware through and through.”</a>

Blunt Rochester is vying to succeed Sen. Tom Carper, who has held the seat since 2001 in the solidly Democratic state. He is retiring.

Early voting in Delaware began on Saturday.

NEW CASTLE, Del. (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a>&nbsp;has cast an early ballot in the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024">2024 general election.</a><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President Biden in line to vote early in Delaware. <a href="https://t.co/gyt6Zi8UFQ">pic.twitter.com/gyt6Zi8UFQ</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1850934363770274293?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>It’s a bittersweet moment for Biden, who decided to&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/biden-drops-out-2024-election-ddffde72838370032bdcff946cfc2ce6">end his reelection campaign</a>&nbsp;in July because of growing concerns about his health and Democrats’ worries about his chances of defeating former&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">President Donald Trump</a>. Biden voted on Monday at the state of Delaware Department of Elections, not far from his home outside Wilmington, Delaware at an early voting site, where voters were lined up down the street to cast ballots.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">President Biden votes early in Delaware. <a href="https://t.co/iPIZQVNA6q">pic.twitter.com/iPIZQVNA6q</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1850939217255321746?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Biden chatted with voters as he waited in line to cast his ballot, and helped push an older woman in a wheelchair who was ahead of him. The president waited in line for about 40 minutes before he cast his ballot.He handed his identification to the election worker, who had him sign a form and announced: “Joseph Biden now voting.”As the president cast his ballot behind a black drape, some first-time voters were announced and the room erupted in cheers for them.Outside the polling place, Biden was asked if he thought Democrats - including Vice President Kamala Harris - would win.“I think we will,” he said.For all but a few years since 1970, Biden has either held office or been running for one during election season.But this year, his hopes lie with a newer generation of Democrats, including three on the Delaware ballot looking to make history.<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/kamala-harris">Harris</a>, whom Biden endorsed after dropping out, is vying to become the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to serve as president.State Sen.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/sarah-mcbride">Sarah McBride</a>&nbsp;is looking to become the first openly transgender member of the U.S. House.McBride, a longtime friend of the Biden family, had served as an aide in then-President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/obama">Barack Obama</a>&nbsp;‘s administration and on the campaigns in 2006 and 2010 for the president’s late son Beau Biden’s runs for Delaware attorney general. She also worked for former Delaware Gov. Jack Markell.McBride hopes to succeed Democratic Rep. Lisa&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/election-senate-harris-black-women-maryland-54c411e0a0f4d3d84de95246b09be304">Blunt Rochester</a>, who wants to become Delaware’s first Black woman to serve in the U.S. Senate. She has served as Delaware’s lone representative in the House since 2017.On Monday, Biden had breakfast Blunt Rochester. He’s known her family for decades, and campaigned with her father, Theodore “Ted” Blunt, who served on the Wilmington City Council for almost a quarter century, including as president. Biden on Sunday evening formally endorsed Blunt Rochester, cutting a video for her campaign in which he called her&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/LisaBRochester/status/1850673949236937211" target="_blank">“Delaware through and through.”</a>Blunt Rochester is vying to succeed Sen. Tom Carper, who has held the seat since 2001 in the solidly Democratic state. He is retiring.Early voting in Delaware began on Saturday.

🎥President Biden waited in line to vote early in Delaware

SEWARD COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before noon Monday in Seward County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Adriana&nbsp;Rosales, 33, Liberal, was southbound on Western Avenue near the U.S. 54 intersection.

The jeep traveled left of center and the driver failed to navigate a curve. The vehicle traveled&nbsp; off the roadway and rolled onto the roof.

EMS transported&nbsp;Rosales to Southwest Medical Center where she died. She was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

SEWARD COUNTY —One person died in an accident just before noon Monday in Seward County.The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Adriana&nbsp;Rosales, 33, Liberal, was southbound on Western Avenue near the U.S. 54 intersection.The jeep traveled left of center and the driver failed to navigate a curve. The vehicle traveled&nbsp; off the roadway and rolled onto the roof.EMS transported&nbsp;Rosales to Southwest Medical Center where she died. She was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

Kansas woman dies in jeep rollover accident

DICKINSON COUNTY—Law enforcement in Dickinson County are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after a weekend arrest.

Just before 5p.m. Sunday, the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office received a call for service regarding an unknown woman attempting to break into a residence in the 700 Block of Kansas 18 Highway, according to Undersheriff&nbsp;Jeff Vaughan.

 A Deputy responded and made contact with the suspect later identified as 54-year-old Denise Sheffield of Junction City, outside the residence. 

Sheffield was uncooperative and raised a fist to hit a deputy. She was quickly handcuffed at that time but continued flailing around and kicked a deputy and also refused to identify herself.

During the investigation, it was learned that Sheffield yelled profanities and threats at the resident who remained inside the house. It was also learned that Sheffield pulled up her dress and exposed herself to the resident who was watching her through a window.

Deputies booked Sheffield into the Dickinson County Detention Facility on requested charges of Attempted Aggravated Burglary, Criminal Trespass, Disorderly Conduct, Criminal Threat, Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer and Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730142045781.png" alt="Sheffield-photo Dickinson Co." />
 <figcaption>Sheffield-photo Dickinson Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>DICKINSON COUNTY—Law enforcement in Dickinson County are investigating a suspect on multiple allegations after a weekend arrest.Just before 5p.m. Sunday, the Dickinson County Sheriff’s Office received a call for service regarding an unknown woman attempting to break into a residence in the 700 Block of Kansas 18 Highway, according to Undersheriff&nbsp;Jeff Vaughan. A Deputy responded and made contact with the suspect later identified as 54-year-old Denise Sheffield of Junction City, outside the residence. Sheffield was uncooperative and raised a fist to hit a deputy. She was quickly handcuffed at that time but continued flailing around and kicked a deputy and also refused to identify herself.During the investigation, it was learned that Sheffield yelled profanities and threats at the resident who remained inside the house. It was also learned that Sheffield pulled up her dress and exposed herself to the resident who was watching her through a window.Deputies booked Sheffield into the Dickinson County Detention Facility on requested charges of Attempted Aggravated Burglary, Criminal Trespass, Disorderly Conduct, Criminal Threat, Battery on a Law Enforcement Officer and Interference with a Law Enforcement Officer.

Kan. home burglary suspect kicked deputy, exposed herself to resident

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">ARIANA FIGUEROA</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ashley-murray/">ASHLEY MURRAY</a>&nbsp;

The closing of the polls and end of mail-in voting kick off a nearly three-month process before the next president of the United States is sworn in on Inauguration Day in January. New guardrails were enacted by Congress in 2022 to more fully protect the presidential transition, following the Jan. 6, 2021 mob attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters and a failed scheme to install fake electors.

But even before that shift to a new chief executive begins, a presidential victor is unlikely to be announced election night or even the following day.

It’s a result that will possibly take days to determine, given tight margins expected in seven swing states. Officials needed four days to count all the votes to determine President Joe Biden the victor of the 2020 presidential election.

In states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, the law does not allow that process to begin for millions of mail-in ballots until Election Day. Other states allow pre-processing of ballots.

Trey Grayson, Kentucky’s former Republican secretary of state, said ballot authentication could be on different timelines across the country after voting ends on Election Day.

“We have 50 states, plus D.C., that pretty much all do it differently,” Grayson, who served as president of the National Association of Secretaries of State, told reporters Friday on a call of bipartisan former state election officials who are working to explain the process to the public.

It could mean “in a very close election that we don’t know on election night who the president is or who controls the House or the Senate, but we should feel confident over the next couple of days, as we work through that, that we’re going to get there,” he said.

Those delays, which former President Donald Trump seized on to spread the baseless lie that the election was stolen from him, are expected again in November, especially as all eyes will be on the battleground states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Additionally, there already are hundreds of pre-election lawsuits, mainly filed by Republicans, ranging from election integrity challenges to accusations of noncitizens allowed to vote in federal elections — something that rarely happens and is already illegal. The legal challenges could further spark delays.

“We will not have a winner on election night most likely and so we need to be able to prepare the public for this,” said Virginia Kase Solomón, the president and CEO of the democracy watchdog group Common Cause, during a Tuesday briefing.

She added that her organization will focus on combating misinformation and disinformation on election night and beyond.

“There is the potential that somebody could claim the win before … all of the votes have been counted,” she said.

In the early morning hours after Election Day in 2020, before results from key states were determined, Trump falsely claimed he won in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duE8tnrSmNc&amp;t=3s" target="_blank">an address at the White House.&nbsp;&nbsp;</a>

On top of that, experts say this year could see election denial erupting in countless courtrooms and meeting rooms in localities and the states, as well as across social media, if doubts are sown about the results.

Recounts could also delay an official election result, and the laws vary from state to state.

For example, in Pennsylvania, if a candidate demands a recount, three voters from each of the over 9,000 precincts have to petition for a recount.

“We’ve never seen that happen actually in Pennsylvania,” Kathy Boockvar, the commonwealth’s former Democratic secretary of state, said on Friday’s call with reporters.

An automatic statewide recount is triggered in Pennsylvania if there’s a difference of a half percent of all votes cast for the winner and loser. The final recount results, by law, are due to the secretary of state by Nov. 26, and results would be announced on Nov. 27, Boockvar said.

The margin in Pennsylvania’s 2020 results for the presidential election was between 1.1% and 1.2%, not enough to trigger the automatic recount, Boockvar said.

State election officials have been preparing for the past year to train poll workers to not only run the voting booths but for possible violence — a precaution put in place after the 2020 election — and have beefed up security around polling locations.

On Friday, Trump posted on X that the election “will be under the closest professional scrutiny and, WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.”

A reporter asked Grayson about the possibility of aggression from poll watchers. The Republican National Committee&nbsp;<a href="https://gop.com/press-release/trump-campaign-and-rnc-unveil-historic-100000-person-strong-election-integrity-program/" target="_blank">announced</a>&nbsp;in April a “historic move to safeguard the integrity of the electoral process,” establishing party-led trainings for poll watchers.

Poll watchers are not a new concept, and Grayson said clear “safeguards” are in place.

“If you’re intimidating, you’re gone. There’s clear laws in every state on that,” he said.

Celestine Jeffreys, the city clerk in Green Bay, Wisconsin, said during a Wednesday roundtable with election workers that the city has an Election Day protocol in place that includes everything from blocking off streets to City Hall to getting rid of shrubbery.

“We have actually removed bushes in front of City Hall” to ensure no one can be concealed behind them, she said.&nbsp;In the second assassination attempt on Trump earlier this year, a gunman hid in bushes outside Trump’s private golf course.

New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said during a Tuesday briefing she is focused on the physical safety of election officials.

During the event with the National Association of Secretaries of State, she said such safety is not only a priority during voting but when officials move to certify the state’s election results in December.

“We have all been spending a lot more time on physical security and making sure that our election officials at all levels are more physically secure this year,” Toulouse Oliver said. “And of course, you know when our electors meet in our states, you know, ensuring for the physical security of that process and those individuals as well.”

On Dec. 17, each state’s electors will meet to vote for the president and vice president. Congress will vote to certify the results on Jan. 6.

“We are thinking a lot more about this in 2024 than we did in 2020, but I think that each one of us… have a playbook in mind for how to handle any unanticipated eventualities in the certification process,” she said.

<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/law-enforcement-officials-prepare-possible-post-election-violence-dc" target="_blank">It’s a security precaution</a>&nbsp;that the U.S. Secret Service is also taking.

For the first time, Congress’ certification of the Electoral College on Jan. 6 has been designated a National Special Security Event, something that is usually reserved for Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.

In 2020, The Associated Press did not call the presidential election for Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://blog.ap.org/behind-the-news/calling-the-2020-presidential-race-state-by-state" target="_blank">until</a>&nbsp;11:26 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 — roughly three-and-a-half days after polls closed. The AP, as well as other media organizations, project election winners after local officials make initial tabulations public.

Those tallies are then&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eac.gov/election-officials/election-results-canvass-and-certification" target="_blank">canvassed, audited and certified</a>, according to each state’s legal timeline. Recounts may also extend the timeline before final certification.

The vote totals reported in Pennsylvania — a state that carried 20 Electoral College votes in 2020 — put Biden over the top for the 270 needed to win the presidency.

Trump refused to concede the race, and instead promised to take his fight to court.

For the next two months, Trump and his surrogates filed&nbsp;<a href="https://electioncases.osu.edu/case-tracker/?sortby=filing_date_desc&amp;keywords=&amp;status=all&amp;state=all&amp;topic=25" target="_blank">just over 60 lawsuits</a>&nbsp;challenging the results in numerous states. Ultimately none of the judges found evidence of widespread voter fraud.

The next step was for Congress to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2014-title3/html/USCODE-2014-title3-chap1-sec15.htm" target="_blank">count</a>&nbsp;each state’s certified slate of electors, which by law, it must do on the Jan. 6 following a presidential election.

However, in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6, Trump and his private lawyers worked to replace legitimate slates of electors with fake ones, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/collection/january-6th-committee-final-report?path=/GPO/January%206th%20Committee%20Final%20Report%20and%20Supporting%20Materials%20Collection" target="_blank">hundreds</a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67656604/266/2/united-states-v-trump/" target="_blank">pages</a>&nbsp;of records compiled by a special congressional investigation, and by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Trump pressured then-Vice President Mike Pence to block ratification of the Electoral College’s vote at the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress, because the vice president’s role in the certification of electoral votes was not exactly clear in the Electoral Count Act of 1887.

Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 following a “Stop the Steal” rally at The Ellipse park, south of the White House, where Trump told the crowd “We will never concede.”

The mob assaulted police officers, broke windows to climb inside and hurled violent threats aimed at elected officials, including the desire to “hang” Pence. More than 1,500 defendants&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/44-months-jan-6-attack-us-capitol" target="_blank">have been charged</a>&nbsp;by the Department of Justice.

Congress stopped its process of reviewing the state electors in the 2 p.m. Eastern hour as police ushered the lawmakers to safety. The joint session resumed at roughly 11:30 p.m., and Pence called the majority of electoral votes for Biden at nearly 4 a.m. on Jan. 7.

To deter another Jan. 6 insurrection, Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/28/key-u-s-senate-panel-advances-bill-aimed-at-preventing-another-jan-6/" target="_blank">passed</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/JRQ121922.PDF" target="_blank">Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transitional Improvement Act of 2022</a>&nbsp;as part of a massive appropriations bill.

The Electoral Count Reform Act codifies into law that the vice president, who also serves as the president of the U.S. Senate, only ceremoniously reads aloud a roll call of the votes.

Most notably, the provision raises the threshold for lawmakers to make an objection to electors. Previously, only one U.S. House representative and one U.S. senator would need to make an objection to an elector or slate of electors.

But under the new law, it would take one-fifth of members to lodge an objection and under very specific standards — 87 House members and 20 senators.

The Electoral Count Reform Act also identifies that each state’s governor is the official responsible for submitting the state’s official document that identifies the state’s appointed electors, and says that Congress cannot accept that document from any official besides the governor, unless otherwise specified by the state’s law.

Trump and his allies tried to replace legitimate slates of electors in several states with fake electors who would cast ballots for Trump.

The Presidential Transitional Improvement Act provides candidates with funding and resources for transitional planning, even if a candidate has not conceded after the election.

There are already issues with the transition of power. The top Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin,&nbsp;<a href="https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-oversight.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2024-10-23.JBR%20to%20Trump%20and%20Vance%20re%20transition%20MOUs.pdf" target="_blank">sent a Wednesday letter</a>&nbsp;to Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, urging them to sign documents to ensure a peaceful transition of power.

“With fewer than three weeks left until an election in which the American people will select a new President of the United States, I urge you to put the public’s interest in maintaining a properly functioning government above any personal financial or political interests you may perceive in boycotting the official transition law and process,” Raskin wrote.

Denial expected at all levels of government

Experts warn the effort to delay certification of the vote is largely being fought at the local and state levels, and that several groups are gearing up to sow doubt in the election outcome.

Devin Burghart, president of the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights, said on a press call Wednesday that since 2020, “election denial has shifted away from the capital to county election commission meetings, courtrooms, cyber symposiums and countless conspiracies in preparation for a repeat this November.”

“This time, the baseless claim that undocumented immigrants are somehow swamping the polls has fueled the ‘big lie’ machine,” Burghart said.

Boockvar said the noncitizen topic is not new.

“I’d like to level set and remind everyone that it’s been illegal at the federal level since 1996 and you know, when you think back on 2002 the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eac.gov/about/help_america_vote_act.aspx" target="_blank">Help America Vote Act</a>&nbsp;basically required voters to provide ID when they register, which is usually a driver’s license or a Social Security number, and states are checking that data against the DMV database. And these protections are enormously successful,” Boockvar said.

In two high-profile cases, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Republican-led efforts in&nbsp;<a href="https://alabamareflector.com/2024/10/16/federal-judge-blocks-alabama-secretary-of-states-voter-removal-plan/" target="_blank">Alabama</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://virginiamercury.com/briefs/judge-orders-people-removed-from-voter-rolls-to-be-reinstated-gov-youngkin-to-seek-appeal/" target="_blank">Virginia</a>&nbsp;to purge voter rolls after alleging thousands of noncitizens were registered to vote. Both states were ordered to stop the programs and reinstate voters – though Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin promised Friday to appeal and even escalate to the Supreme Court.

In&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/2024/10/22/georgia-supreme-court-delays-ruling-on-controversial-election-board-rules-until-after-nov-5/" target="_blank">Georgia</a>, the state’s Supreme Court delayed new rules until after this election that would have required three poll workers at every precinct to count ballots by hand once the polls closed — essentially delaying unofficial election results.

More than 165 electoral process lawsuits across 37 states have been filed by both parties since 2023 leading up to the 2024 presidential election, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-election-court-lawsuits-influence-voting/" target="_blank">survey</a>&nbsp;by Bloomberg of pre-election cases. The journalists found that more than half the cases have been filed in swing states, and challenge almost every facet of the voting process, from absentee voting, to voter roll management, voter eligibility and vote certification.

Republican and conservative groups have filed roughly 55% of the lawsuits, mostly aimed at narrowing who can vote, and overall most of the cases were filed in August and September, according to the analysis.

Courts threw out dozens of lawsuits claiming voter fraud in 2020.

Mai Ratakonda, senior counsel at States United Democracy Center, said anti-democracy groups have used litigation “to legitimize their efforts to sow doubt in our election system.”

“We’ve unfortunately continued to see this trend of filing lawsuits to bolster and legitimize narratives that our elections are insecure and laying the groundwork to contest results later,” Ratakonda told reporters on a press call Wednesday hosted by the organization, whose stated mission is to protect nonpartisan election administration.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/7/1720316487639.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ariana-figueroa/">ARIANA FIGUEROA</a>&nbsp;AND&nbsp;<a href="https://kansasreflector.com/author/ashley-murray/">ASHLEY MURRAY</a>&nbsp;The closing of the polls and end of mail-in voting kick off a nearly three-month process before the next president of the United States is sworn in on Inauguration Day in January. New guardrails were enacted by Congress in 2022 to more fully protect the presidential transition, following the Jan. 6, 2021 mob attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters and a failed scheme to install fake electors.But even before that shift to a new chief executive begins, a presidential victor is unlikely to be announced election night or even the following day.It’s a result that will possibly take days to determine, given tight margins expected in seven swing states. Officials needed four days to count all the votes to determine President Joe Biden the victor of the 2020 presidential election.In states like Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, the law does not allow that process to begin for millions of mail-in ballots until Election Day. Other states allow pre-processing of ballots.Trey Grayson, Kentucky’s former Republican secretary of state, said ballot authentication could be on different timelines across the country after voting ends on Election Day.“We have 50 states, plus D.C., that pretty much all do it differently,” Grayson, who served as president of the National Association of Secretaries of State, told reporters Friday on a call of bipartisan former state election officials who are working to explain the process to the public.It could mean “in a very close election that we don’t know on election night who the president is or who controls the House or the Senate, but we should feel confident over the next couple of days, as we work through that, that we’re going to get there,” he said.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1730046895799.png" alt="-Source: The National Archives and Records Administration" />
 <figcaption>-Source: The National Archives and Records Administration</figcaption>
 </figure><h2>Lawsuits and potential recounts&nbsp;</h2>Those delays, which former President Donald Trump seized on to spread the baseless lie that the election was stolen from him, are expected again in November, especially as all eyes will be on the battleground states — Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.Additionally, there already are hundreds of pre-election lawsuits, mainly filed by Republicans, ranging from election integrity challenges to accusations of noncitizens allowed to vote in federal elections — something that rarely happens and is already illegal. The legal challenges could further spark delays.“We will not have a winner on election night most likely and so we need to be able to prepare the public for this,” said Virginia Kase Solomón, the president and CEO of the democracy watchdog group Common Cause, during a Tuesday briefing.She added that her organization will focus on combating misinformation and disinformation on election night and beyond.“There is the potential that somebody could claim the win before … all of the votes have been counted,” she said.In the early morning hours after Election Day in 2020, before results from key states were determined, Trump falsely claimed he won in&nbsp;<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duE8tnrSmNc&amp;t=3s" target="_blank">an address at the White House.&nbsp;&nbsp;</a>On top of that, experts say this year could see election denial erupting in countless courtrooms and meeting rooms in localities and the states, as well as across social media, if doubts are sown about the results.Recounts could also delay an official election result, and the laws vary from state to state.For example, in Pennsylvania, if a candidate demands a recount, three voters from each of the over 9,000 precincts have to petition for a recount.“We’ve never seen that happen actually in Pennsylvania,” Kathy Boockvar, the commonwealth’s former Democratic secretary of state, said on Friday’s call with reporters.An automatic statewide recount is triggered in Pennsylvania if there’s a difference of a half percent of all votes cast for the winner and loser. The final recount results, by law, are due to the secretary of state by Nov. 26, and results would be announced on Nov. 27, Boockvar said.The margin in Pennsylvania’s 2020 results for the presidential election was between 1.1% and 1.2%, not enough to trigger the automatic recount, Boockvar said.<h2>Taking out the shrubs</h2>State election officials have been preparing for the past year to train poll workers to not only run the voting booths but for possible violence — a precaution put in place after the 2020 election — and have beefed up security around polling locations.On Friday, Trump posted on X that the election “will be under the closest professional scrutiny and, WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.”A reporter asked Grayson about the possibility of aggression from poll watchers. The Republican National Committee&nbsp;<a href="https://gop.com/press-release/trump-campaign-and-rnc-unveil-historic-100000-person-strong-election-integrity-program/" target="_blank">announced</a>&nbsp;in April a “historic move to safeguard the integrity of the electoral process,” establishing party-led trainings for poll watchers.Poll watchers are not a new concept, and Grayson said clear “safeguards” are in place.“If you’re intimidating, you’re gone. There’s clear laws in every state on that,” he said.Celestine Jeffreys, the city clerk in Green Bay, Wisconsin, said during a Wednesday roundtable with election workers that the city has an Election Day protocol in place that includes everything from blocking off streets to City Hall to getting rid of shrubbery.“We have actually removed bushes in front of City Hall” to ensure no one can be concealed behind them, she said.&nbsp;In the second assassination attempt on Trump earlier this year, a gunman hid in bushes outside Trump’s private golf course.New Mexico Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver said during a Tuesday briefing she is focused on the physical safety of election officials.During the event with the National Association of Secretaries of State, she said such safety is not only a priority during voting but when officials move to certify the state’s election results in December.“We have all been spending a lot more time on physical security and making sure that our election officials at all levels are more physically secure this year,” Toulouse Oliver said. “And of course, you know when our electors meet in our states, you know, ensuring for the physical security of that process and those individuals as well.”On Dec. 17, each state’s electors will meet to vote for the president and vice president. Congress will vote to certify the results on Jan. 6.“We are thinking a lot more about this in 2024 than we did in 2020, but I think that each one of us… have a playbook in mind for how to handle any unanticipated eventualities in the certification process,” she said.<a href="https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/law-enforcement-officials-prepare-possible-post-election-violence-dc" target="_blank">It’s a security precaution</a>&nbsp;that the U.S. Secret Service is also taking.For the first time, Congress’ certification of the Electoral College on Jan. 6 has been designated a National Special Security Event, something that is usually reserved for Inauguration Day on Jan. 20.<h2>The 2020 experience</h2>In 2020, The Associated Press did not call the presidential election for Biden&nbsp;<a href="https://blog.ap.org/behind-the-news/calling-the-2020-presidential-race-state-by-state" target="_blank">until</a>&nbsp;11:26 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 7 — roughly three-and-a-half days after polls closed. The AP, as well as other media organizations, project election winners after local officials make initial tabulations public.Those tallies are then&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eac.gov/election-officials/election-results-canvass-and-certification" target="_blank">canvassed, audited and certified</a>, according to each state’s legal timeline. Recounts may also extend the timeline before final certification.The vote totals reported in Pennsylvania — a state that carried 20 Electoral College votes in 2020 — put Biden over the top for the 270 needed to win the presidency.Trump refused to concede the race, and instead promised to take his fight to court.For the next two months, Trump and his surrogates filed&nbsp;<a href="https://electioncases.osu.edu/case-tracker/?sortby=filing_date_desc&amp;keywords=&amp;status=all&amp;state=all&amp;topic=25" target="_blank">just over 60 lawsuits</a>&nbsp;challenging the results in numerous states. Ultimately none of the judges found evidence of widespread voter fraud.The next step was for Congress to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2014-title3/html/USCODE-2014-title3-chap1-sec15.htm" target="_blank">count</a>&nbsp;each state’s certified slate of electors, which by law, it must do on the Jan. 6 following a presidential election.However, in the weeks leading up to Jan. 6, Trump and his private lawyers worked to replace legitimate slates of electors with fake ones, according to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/collection/january-6th-committee-final-report?path=/GPO/January%206th%20Committee%20Final%20Report%20and%20Supporting%20Materials%20Collection" target="_blank">hundreds</a>&nbsp;of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/67656604/266/2/united-states-v-trump/" target="_blank">pages</a>&nbsp;of records compiled by a special congressional investigation, and by the U.S. Department of Justice.Trump pressured then-Vice President Mike Pence to block ratification of the Electoral College’s vote at the Jan. 6 joint session of Congress, because the vice president’s role in the certification of electoral votes was not exactly clear in the Electoral Count Act of 1887.Pence ultimately refused.Thousands of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 following a “Stop the Steal” rally at The Ellipse park, south of the White House, where Trump told the crowd “We will never concede.”The mob assaulted police officers, broke windows to climb inside and hurled violent threats aimed at elected officials, including the desire to “hang” Pence. More than 1,500 defendants&nbsp;<a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-dc/44-months-jan-6-attack-us-capitol" target="_blank">have been charged</a>&nbsp;by the Department of Justice.Congress stopped its process of reviewing the state electors in the 2 p.m. Eastern hour as police ushered the lawmakers to safety. The joint session resumed at roughly 11:30 p.m., and Pence called the majority of electoral votes for Biden at nearly 4 a.m. on Jan. 7.<h2>New law on presidential transition</h2>To deter another Jan. 6 insurrection, Congress&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/2022/09/28/key-u-s-senate-panel-advances-bill-aimed-at-preventing-another-jan-6/" target="_blank">passed</a>&nbsp;the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.appropriations.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/JRQ121922.PDF" target="_blank">Electoral Count Reform and Presidential Transitional Improvement Act of 2022</a>&nbsp;as part of a massive appropriations bill.The Electoral Count Reform Act codifies into law that the vice president, who also serves as the president of the U.S. Senate, only ceremoniously reads aloud a roll call of the votes.Most notably, the provision raises the threshold for lawmakers to make an objection to electors. Previously, only one U.S. House representative and one U.S. senator would need to make an objection to an elector or slate of electors.But under the new law, it would take one-fifth of members to lodge an objection and under very specific standards — 87 House members and 20 senators.The Electoral Count Reform Act also identifies that each state’s governor is the official responsible for submitting the state’s official document that identifies the state’s appointed electors, and says that Congress cannot accept that document from any official besides the governor, unless otherwise specified by the state’s law.Trump and his allies tried to replace legitimate slates of electors in several states with fake electors who would cast ballots for Trump.The Presidential Transitional Improvement Act provides candidates with funding and resources for transitional planning, even if a candidate has not conceded after the election.There are already issues with the transition of power. The top Democrat on the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin,&nbsp;<a href="https://oversightdemocrats.house.gov/sites/evo-subsites/democrats-oversight.house.gov/files/evo-media-document/2024-10-23.JBR%20to%20Trump%20and%20Vance%20re%20transition%20MOUs.pdf" target="_blank">sent a Wednesday letter</a>&nbsp;to Trump and his running mate, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, urging them to sign documents to ensure a peaceful transition of power.“With fewer than three weeks left until an election in which the American people will select a new President of the United States, I urge you to put the public’s interest in maintaining a properly functioning government above any personal financial or political interests you may perceive in boycotting the official transition law and process,” Raskin wrote.<h2>Denial expected at all levels of government</h2>Experts warn the effort to delay certification of the vote is largely being fought at the local and state levels, and that several groups are gearing up to sow doubt in the election outcome.Devin Burghart, president of the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights, said on a press call Wednesday that since 2020, “election denial has shifted away from the capital to county election commission meetings, courtrooms, cyber symposiums and countless conspiracies in preparation for a repeat this November.”“This time, the baseless claim that undocumented immigrants are somehow swamping the polls has fueled the ‘big lie’ machine,” Burghart said.Boockvar said the noncitizen topic is not new.“I’d like to level set and remind everyone that it’s been illegal at the federal level since 1996 and you know, when you think back on 2002 the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eac.gov/about/help_america_vote_act.aspx" target="_blank">Help America Vote Act</a>&nbsp;basically required voters to provide ID when they register, which is usually a driver’s license or a Social Security number, and states are checking that data against the DMV database. And these protections are enormously successful,” Boockvar said.In two high-profile cases, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Republican-led efforts in&nbsp;<a href="https://alabamareflector.com/2024/10/16/federal-judge-blocks-alabama-secretary-of-states-voter-removal-plan/" target="_blank">Alabama</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://virginiamercury.com/briefs/judge-orders-people-removed-from-voter-rolls-to-be-reinstated-gov-youngkin-to-seek-appeal/" target="_blank">Virginia</a>&nbsp;to purge voter rolls after alleging thousands of noncitizens were registered to vote. Both states were ordered to stop the programs and reinstate voters – though Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin promised Friday to appeal and even escalate to the Supreme Court.In&nbsp;<a href="https://georgiarecorder.com/2024/10/22/georgia-supreme-court-delays-ruling-on-controversial-election-board-rules-until-after-nov-5/" target="_blank">Georgia</a>, the state’s Supreme Court delayed new rules until after this election that would have required three poll workers at every precinct to count ballots by hand once the polls closed — essentially delaying unofficial election results.More than 165 electoral process lawsuits across 37 states have been filed by both parties since 2023 leading up to the 2024 presidential election, according to a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2024-election-court-lawsuits-influence-voting/" target="_blank">survey</a>&nbsp;by Bloomberg of pre-election cases. The journalists found that more than half the cases have been filed in swing states, and challenge almost every facet of the voting process, from absentee voting, to voter roll management, voter eligibility and vote certification.Republican and conservative groups have filed roughly 55% of the lawsuits, mostly aimed at narrowing who can vote, and overall most of the cases were filed in August and September, according to the analysis.Courts threw out dozens of lawsuits claiming voter fraud in 2020.Mai Ratakonda, senior counsel at States United Democracy Center, said anti-democracy groups have used litigation “to legitimize their efforts to sow doubt in our election system.”“We’ve unfortunately continued to see this trend of filing lawsuits to bolster and legitimize narratives that our elections are insecure and laying the groundwork to contest results later,” Ratakonda told reporters on a press call Wednesday hosted by the organization, whose stated mission is to protect nonpartisan election administration.

Final results may lag in deadlocked presidential contest, anxious election officials warn

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating alleged aggravated child endangerment in Manhattan.

According to the Riley County Police Department activity report, a 19-year-old woman and a 25-year-old woman left a 1-year-old boy&nbsp; unattended at a residence. 

Police arrested Madyson Green, 19 and&nbsp;Alisia Green, 25, both of Manhattan on requested charges of aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp; They both remain in custody on bonds of $6,000 each, according to the RCPD.

RILEY COUNTY —Law enforcement are investigating alleged aggravated child endangerment in Manhattan.According to the Riley County Police Department activity report, a 19-year-old woman and a 25-year-old woman left a 1-year-old boy&nbsp; unattended at a residence. Police arrested Madyson Green, 19 and&nbsp;Alisia Green, 25, both of Manhattan on requested charges of aggravated child endangerment.&nbsp; They both remain in custody on bonds of $6,000 each, according to the RCPD.

Police: 2 Kansas women left a 1-year-old home alone

COWLEY COUNTY —One person died in an accident just after 4:30a.m. Sunday in Cowley County.

According to Sheriff Dave Faletti, a 2025 Toyota Tundra driven by 42-year-old Douglass Dee Caldwel of Ponca City, Oklahoma, was eastbound on U.S. 160.

The driver did not negotiate a curve near 61st Road and the pickup entered the north ditch and rolled.&nbsp; Deputies found Caldwell lying in the ditch. Winfield Fire/EMS transported him to William Newton Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced deceased, according to Faletti. There were no other occupants in the vehicle. 

COWLEY COUNTY —One person died in an accident just after 4:30a.m. Sunday in Cowley County.According to Sheriff Dave Faletti, a 2025 Toyota Tundra driven by 42-year-old Douglass Dee Caldwel of Ponca City, Oklahoma, was eastbound on U.S. 160.The driver did not negotiate a curve near 61st Road and the pickup entered the north ditch and rolled.&nbsp; Deputies found Caldwell lying in the ditch. Winfield Fire/EMS transported him to William Newton Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced deceased, according to Faletti. There were no other occupants in the vehicle.

Man dies after pickup rollover crash on Kansas highway

SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man convicted of kidnapping three children and sexually assaulting two of them last year is going to prison for the rest of his adult life.

On Friday Judge Tyler Rosch sentenced 23-year-old Manasseh to life in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.

On Aug. 2, a jury convicted Ward of kidnapping, four counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, three counts of aggravated sodomy, attempted rape, aggravated assault and interference with law enforcement, according to theDistrict Attorney's office.

In June, a judge ruled&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=246512">&nbsp;Ward</a>&nbsp; was competent to stand trial for charges.

Just before 4p.m. January 4, 2023, a teenage girl reported being kidnapped by a man driving a blue vehicle in the 6600 block of East Boston in Wichita, according to Officer Chad Ditch.

The man later identified as Ward attempted to sexually assault the girl in the car. Ward let the child go and she reported the incident to a family member.

Just before 9a.m. January 5, two elementary-aged children, a boy and girl, left their home on foot in the 900 block of South Drury to head to Clark Elementary School at 650 S Apache in Wichita.

A man in a blue vehicle kidnapped the children. The suspect put both kids in his vehicle and then drove away. A short time later he dropped the boy victim off and left with the girl..

While gathering information officers were patrolling the area and located the suspect vehicle and attempted to stop it. &nbsp;A brief foot pursuit occurred and officers took Ward into custody in the 6600 block of East Boston.&nbsp; In September, police arrested Ward in connection with the alleged crimes.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2023/1/1673003077182.png" alt="Ward photo Sedgwick Co." />
 <figcaption>Ward photo Sedgwick Co.</figcaption>
 </figure>SEDGWICK COUNTY —A Kansas man convicted of kidnapping three children and sexually assaulting two of them last year is going to prison for the rest of his adult life.On Friday Judge Tyler Rosch sentenced 23-year-old Manasseh to life in prison, according to the Sedgwick County District Attorney's office.On Aug. 2, a jury convicted Ward of kidnapping, four counts of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, three counts of aggravated sodomy, attempted rape, aggravated assault and interference with law enforcement, according to theDistrict Attorney's office.In June, a judge ruled&nbsp;<a href="https://ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/InmateSearch/Details.aspx?Id=246512">&nbsp;Ward</a>&nbsp; was competent to stand trial for charges.Just before 4p.m. January 4, 2023, a teenage girl reported being kidnapped by a man driving a blue vehicle in the 6600 block of East Boston in Wichita, according to Officer Chad Ditch.The man later identified as Ward attempted to sexually assault the girl in the car. Ward let the child go and she reported the incident to a family member.Just before 9a.m. January 5, two elementary-aged children, a boy and girl, left their home on foot in the 900 block of South Drury to head to Clark Elementary School at 650 S Apache in Wichita.A man in a blue vehicle kidnapped the children. The suspect put both kids in his vehicle and then drove away. A short time later he dropped the boy victim off and left with the girl..While gathering information officers were patrolling the area and located the suspect vehicle and attempted to stop it. &nbsp;A brief foot pursuit occurred and officers took Ward into custody in the 6600 block of East Boston.&nbsp; In September, police arrested Ward in connection with the alleged crimes.

Prison for sex crimes near Kansas elementary school

BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/natanyafriedheim/">NATANYA FRIEDHEIM</a>

Physician David Mehr addressed a dozen voters gathered Saturday morning at the Columbia headquarters of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the coalition behind a proposed amendment would enshrine the right to abortion in Missouri’s constitution.

Meanwhile, physicians greeted volunteers in St. Louis County, and still more gathered in Kansas City, as part of the coalition’s final get-out-the-vote campaign before the Nov. 5 election.

“I’ve cared for women my entire life,” Mehr told the group of volunteers in Columbia. “It’s important that we keep this decision between a woman and her doctor.”

Mehr works at University of Missouri Health Care but spoke as an individual and not on behalf of the hospital.

An hour later, he was navigating a thicket in a northwest Columbia neighborhood, looking for the right door to knock on. By the end of the day, he and his canvassing partner had knocked on 44 doors.

Like other states with abortion bans, Missouri’s state law carves out exceptions “in cases of medical emergency.” Medical professionals who perform abortions deemed unnecessary can be found guilty of a Class B felony and have their license revoked or suspended.

“There’s no definition of what a medical emergency might be,” said Betsy Wickstrom, a high-risk obstetrician who works in Kansas City. “So if my patient is bleeding and her cervix is open, there’s still cardiac activity, how much do I need to let her bleed?”

Wickstrom preferred not to disclose her hospital affiliation. Her reluctance was shared by doctors who gathered in St. Louis on Saturday and reflects a broader trend of doctors keeping their workplaces hidden when talking about abortion, identified in a 2023 study.

Last month, a group of 800 medical professionals from Missouri, including 500 physicians, signed a letter supporting the abortion-rights amendment, which appears on the ballot as Amendment 3.

No doctor in any state has been criminally prosecuted for performing an abortion during a medical emergency, according to an article published last month by the Association of American Medical Colleges. However, doctors across the country have warned that lack of clarity about what constitutes a medical emergency compromises their ability to offer emergency abortions.

In August, a group of OB-GYN medical residents in Missouri anonymously published an article in the Journal of Graduate Medical Education describing their shock and fear entering the profession in a state with a strict abortion ban.

“Because the text of the law reads so punitively, it has struck fear into clinicians and caused life-saving care to be unnecessarily delayed or blatantly refused,” the authors wrote.

Since abortion became illegal in Missouri in 2022, the state has seen a more than 25% drop in applications for OB-GYN medical residencies, according to a May report by the Association of American Medical Colleges.

In a widely publicized case from 2022, two hospitals, including one in Missouri, turned away Missouri resident Mylissa Farmer when she sought care after her water broke at just 18 weeks of pregnancy. Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid found the two hospitals — Freeman Hospital West in Joplin and the University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kansas — violated federal law when they denied Farmer care.

Numerous other examples of women being denied emergency medical care have appeared in news media since the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ended the constitutional right to an abortion.

Health care professionals opposed to abortion argue that media reports promote an exaggerated narrative that abortion bans jeopardize women’s access to emergency care.

“All state laws allow for maternal fetal separations to be done (through whatever means necessary) in order to save the life of the mother,” Christina Francis, an OB-GYN and CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life OB-GYNs, wrote in testimony for a U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing in September.

Decisions in medicine are rarely black-and-white. When a woman’s water breaks early enough that the fetus’ viability is remote, abortion is the standard of care, said Wickstrom. When a woman is closer to 20 weeks, factors like bleeding, signs of infection and how much amniotic fluid is in the uterus are considered.

Some women want to wait, and a doctor guides the patient through that choice.

“Of course we do that, because the point is choice. The point is that it is her body to determine for herself what’s right for her, and we come alongside her and support her and guide her through what is right for her,” Wickstrom said.

If a woman does not want to continue the nonviable pregnancy, the fetus has a heartbeat and her condition is not considered an emergency, she has to leave the state for an abortion, Wickstrom said. In Kansas City and St. Louis, women can get to clinics that offer abortion care in Kansas and Illinois more easily than those in mid-Missouri.

Wickstrom brings her metal water bottle to work at a hospital in Kansas City. She keeps it on display when she talks to patients so they can see the stickers adorning it: Just above a cutout of Taylor Swift is a sticker that reads “ABORTION RESOURCES,” followed by a list of phone numbers and website URLs.

Wickstrom said she struggles to speak frankly with women who have high-risk pregnancies about their options.

“You’ve got to dance around it a lot more,” she said, “because the waters are muddy.”

This story originally appeared in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/elections/ballot-initiatives/doctors-gather-across-missouri-to-canvass-for-amendment-3/article_bad37842-93aa-11ef-a493-9b41a7d95124.html#tncms-source=Top%20Story" target="_blank">Columbia Missourian</a>. It can be republished in print or online.&nbsp;

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/9/1725887984419.png" alt=" Supporters of a proposed ballot measure to legalize abortion up until the point of fetal viability gathered at a rally hosted by Missourians for Constitutional Freedom on Feb. 6 in Kansas City (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent)." />
 <figcaption> Supporters of a proposed ballot measure to legalize abortion up until the point of fetal viability gathered at a rally hosted by Missourians for Constitutional Freedom on Feb. 6 in Kansas City (Anna Spoerre/Missouri Independent).</figcaption>
 </figure>BY:&nbsp;<a href="https://missouriindependent.com/author/natanyafriedheim/">NATANYA FRIEDHEIM</a>Physician David Mehr addressed a dozen voters gathered Saturday morning at the Columbia headquarters of Missourians for Constitutional Freedom, the coalition behind a proposed amendment would enshrine the right to abortion in Missouri’s constitution.Meanwhile, physicians greeted volunteers in St. Louis County, and still more gathered in Kansas City, as part of the coalition’s final get-out-the-vote campaign before the Nov. 5 election.“I’ve cared for women my entire life,” Mehr told the group of volunteers in Columbia. “It’s important that we keep this decision between a woman and her doctor.”Mehr works at University of Missouri Health Care but spoke as an individual and not on behalf of the hospital.An hour later, he was navigating a thicket in a northwest Columbia neighborhood, looking for the right door to knock on. By the end of the day, he and his canvassing partner had knocked on 44 doors.Like other states with abortion bans, Missouri’s state law carves out exceptions “in cases of medical emergency.” Medical professionals who perform abortions deemed unnecessary can be found guilty of a Class B felony and have their license revoked or suspended.“There’s no definition of what a medical emergency might be,” said Betsy Wickstrom, a high-risk obstetrician who works in Kansas City. “So if my patient is bleeding and her cervix is open, there’s still cardiac activity, how much do I need to let her bleed?”Wickstrom preferred not to disclose her hospital affiliation. Her reluctance was shared by doctors who gathered in St. Louis on Saturday and reflects a broader trend of doctors keeping their workplaces hidden when talking about abortion, identified in a 2023 study.Last month, a group of 800 medical professionals from Missouri, including 500 physicians, signed a letter supporting the abortion-rights amendment, which appears on the ballot as Amendment 3.No doctor in any state has been criminally prosecuted for performing an abortion during a medical emergency, according to an article published last month by the Association of American Medical Colleges. However, doctors across the country have warned that lack of clarity about what constitutes a medical emergency compromises their ability to offer emergency abortions.In August, a group of OB-GYN medical residents in Missouri anonymously published an article in the Journal of Graduate Medical Education describing their shock and fear entering the profession in a state with a strict abortion ban.“Because the text of the law reads so punitively, it has struck fear into clinicians and caused life-saving care to be unnecessarily delayed or blatantly refused,” the authors wrote.Since abortion became illegal in Missouri in 2022, the state has seen a more than 25% drop in applications for OB-GYN medical residencies, according to a May report by the Association of American Medical Colleges.In a widely publicized case from 2022, two hospitals, including one in Missouri, turned away Missouri resident Mylissa Farmer when she sought care after her water broke at just 18 weeks of pregnancy. Last year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid found the two hospitals — Freeman Hospital West in Joplin and the University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kansas — violated federal law when they denied Farmer care.Numerous other examples of women being denied emergency medical care have appeared in news media since the Supreme Court’s decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ended the constitutional right to an abortion.Health care professionals opposed to abortion argue that media reports promote an exaggerated narrative that abortion bans jeopardize women’s access to emergency care.“All state laws allow for maternal fetal separations to be done (through whatever means necessary) in order to save the life of the mother,” Christina Francis, an OB-GYN and CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life OB-GYNs, wrote in testimony for a U.S. Senate Finance Committee hearing in September.Decisions in medicine are rarely black-and-white. When a woman’s water breaks early enough that the fetus’ viability is remote, abortion is the standard of care, said Wickstrom. When a woman is closer to 20 weeks, factors like bleeding, signs of infection and how much amniotic fluid is in the uterus are considered.Some women want to wait, and a doctor guides the patient through that choice.“Of course we do that, because the point is choice. The point is that it is her body to determine for herself what’s right for her, and we come alongside her and support her and guide her through what is right for her,” Wickstrom said.If a woman does not want to continue the nonviable pregnancy, the fetus has a heartbeat and her condition is not considered an emergency, she has to leave the state for an abortion, Wickstrom said. In Kansas City and St. Louis, women can get to clinics that offer abortion care in Kansas and Illinois more easily than those in mid-Missouri.Wickstrom brings her metal water bottle to work at a hospital in Kansas City. She keeps it on display when she talks to patients so they can see the stickers adorning it: Just above a cutout of Taylor Swift is a sticker that reads “ABORTION RESOURCES,” followed by a list of phone numbers and website URLs.Wickstrom said she struggles to speak frankly with women who have high-risk pregnancies about their options.“You’ve got to dance around it a lot more,” she said, “because the waters are muddy.”This story originally appeared in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.columbiamissourian.com/news/elections/ballot-initiatives/doctors-gather-across-missouri-to-canvass-for-amendment-3/article_bad37842-93aa-11ef-a493-9b41a7d95124.html#tncms-source=Top%20Story" target="_blank">Columbia Missourian</a>. It can be republished in print or online.&nbsp;

Doctors gather across Missouri to canvass for abortion amendment

LOS ANGELES (AP) — McDonald’s announced Sunday that Quarter Pounders will again be on its menu at hundreds of its restaurants after testing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-e-coli-outbreak-quarter-pounder-a1ec3dc14636f5e713b15b32aedcd524">ruled out beef patties</a>&nbsp;as the source of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-e-coli-outbreak-sick-onions-d4a37726f2669016decedcf9f928a9d9">outbreak of E. coli poisoning</a>&nbsp;tied to the popular burgers that killed one person and sickened at least 75 others across 13 states.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to believe that slivered onions from a single supplier are the likely source of contamination, McDonald's said in a statement. It said it will resume selling the Quarter Pounder at affected restaurants —- without slivered onions — in the coming week.

As of Friday, the outbreak had expanded to at least 75 people sick in 13 states, federal health officials said. A total of 22 people had been hospitalized, and two developed a dangerous kidney disease complication, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. One person has died in Colorado.

Early information analyzed by the FDA showed that uncooked slivered onions used on the burgers “are a likely source of contamination,” the agency said.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-outbreak-e-coli-onions-2bc3fc2d4198d9a5bad52c0028316165">McDonald’s has confirmed</a>&nbsp;that Taylor Farms, a California-based produce company, was the supplier of the fresh onions used in the restaurants involved in the outbreak, and that they had come from a facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

McDonald’s pulled the Quarter Pounder burger from menus in several states — mostly in the Midwest and Mountain states — when the outbreak was announced Tuesday. McDonald’s said Friday that slivered onions from the Colorado Springs facility were distributed to approximately 900 of its restaurants, including some in transportation hubs like airports.

The company said it removed slivered onions sourced from that facility from its supply chain on Tuesday. McDonald's said it has decided to stop sourcing onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility “indefinitely.”

The 900 McDonald's restaurants that normally received slivered onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility will resume sales of Quarter Pounders without slivered onions, McDonald's said.

Testing by the Colorado Department of Agriculture ruled out beef patties as the source of the outbreak, McDonald's said.

The department of agriculture received multiple lots of fresh and frozen beef patties collected from various Colorado McDonald’s locations associated with the E. coli investigation. All samples were found to be negative for E. coli, the department said.

Taylor Farms said Friday that it had preemptively recalled yellow onions sent to its customers from its Colorado facility and continues to work with the CDC and the FDA as they investigate.

While it remains unclear if the recalled onions were the source of the outbreak, several other fast-food restaurants — including Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC and Burger King — pulled onions from some menus in certain areas this week.

Colorado had the most illnesses reported as of Friday, with 26 cases. At least 13 people were sickened in Montana, 11 in Nebraska, 5 each in New Mexico and Utah, 4 each in Missouri and Wyoming, two in Michigan and one each in Iowa, Kansas, Oregon, Wisconsin and Washington, the CDC reported.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729872051879.png" alt="CDC image" />
 <figcaption>CDC image</figcaption>
 </figure>LOS ANGELES (AP) — McDonald’s announced Sunday that Quarter Pounders will again be on its menu at hundreds of its restaurants after testing&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-e-coli-outbreak-quarter-pounder-a1ec3dc14636f5e713b15b32aedcd524">ruled out beef patties</a>&nbsp;as the source of the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-e-coli-outbreak-sick-onions-d4a37726f2669016decedcf9f928a9d9">outbreak of E. coli poisoning</a>&nbsp;tied to the popular burgers that killed one person and sickened at least 75 others across 13 states.The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to believe that slivered onions from a single supplier are the likely source of contamination, McDonald's said in a statement. It said it will resume selling the Quarter Pounder at affected restaurants —- without slivered onions — in the coming week.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/10/1729882011911.png" alt="CDC image" />
 <figcaption>CDC image</figcaption>
 </figure>As of Friday, the outbreak had expanded to at least 75 people sick in 13 states, federal health officials said. A total of 22 people had been hospitalized, and two developed a dangerous kidney disease complication, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. One person has died in Colorado.Early information analyzed by the FDA showed that uncooked slivered onions used on the burgers “are a likely source of contamination,” the agency said.&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mcdonalds-outbreak-e-coli-onions-2bc3fc2d4198d9a5bad52c0028316165">McDonald’s has confirmed</a>&nbsp;that Taylor Farms, a California-based produce company, was the supplier of the fresh onions used in the restaurants involved in the outbreak, and that they had come from a facility in Colorado Springs, Colorado.McDonald’s pulled the Quarter Pounder burger from menus in several states — mostly in the Midwest and Mountain states — when the outbreak was announced Tuesday. McDonald’s said Friday that slivered onions from the Colorado Springs facility were distributed to approximately 900 of its restaurants, including some in transportation hubs like airports.The company said it removed slivered onions sourced from that facility from its supply chain on Tuesday. McDonald's said it has decided to stop sourcing onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility “indefinitely.”The 900 McDonald's restaurants that normally received slivered onions from Taylor Farms’ Colorado Springs facility will resume sales of Quarter Pounders without slivered onions, McDonald's said.Testing by the Colorado Department of Agriculture ruled out beef patties as the source of the outbreak, McDonald's said.The department of agriculture received multiple lots of fresh and frozen beef patties collected from various Colorado McDonald’s locations associated with the E. coli investigation. All samples were found to be negative for E. coli, the department said.Taylor Farms said Friday that it had preemptively recalled yellow onions sent to its customers from its Colorado facility and continues to work with the CDC and the FDA as they investigate.While it remains unclear if the recalled onions were the source of the outbreak, several other fast-food restaurants — including Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC and Burger King — pulled onions from some menus in certain areas this week.Colorado had the most illnesses reported as of Friday, with 26 cases. At least 13 people were sickened in Montana, 11 in Nebraska, 5 each in New Mexico and Utah, 4 each in Missouri and Wyoming, two in Michigan and one each in Iowa, Kansas, Oregon, Wisconsin and Washington, the CDC reported.McDonald’s said Friday it didn’t pull the Quarter Pounder from any additional restaurants and noted that some cases in states outside the original region were tied to travel.The CDC said some people who got sick reported traveling to other states before their symptoms started. At least three people said they ate at McDonald’s during their travel. Illnesses were reported between Sept. 27 and Oct. 11.The outbreak involves infections&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/e-coli-mcdonalds-outbreak-bacteria-quarter-pounder-080847096a6b7062b4fb17037393fc99">with E. coli 0157:H7, a type of bacteria</a>&nbsp;that produces a dangerous toxin. It causes about 74,000 infections in the U.S. annually, leading to more than 2,000 hospitalizations and 61 deaths each year, according to CDC.Symptoms of E. coli poisoning can occur quickly, within a day or two of eating contaminated food. They typically include fever, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea and signs of dehydration — little or no peeing, increased thirst and dizziness. The infection is especially dangerous for children younger than 5, people who are elderly, pregnant or who have weakened immune systems.—-