By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post

Two incumbents and a former school board member were elected to the Hays USD 489 school board on Tuesday.

Curt Vajnar, the current president of the board, was re-elected, receiving the most votes—2,531.

Vajnar is a former ag teacher at Hays High School. This will be his second four-year term.

Ken Brooks and Craig Pallister tied with 1,948 votes each.&nbsp;

Brooks, an incumbent and the current vice president of the board, will be serving his second four-year term. Brooks is a loss control safety specialist for Insurance Planning.

Pallister is a retired educator who served as principal of Hays Middle School for 21 years. He served four years on the school board, but narrowly lost re-election to the board two years ago behind Jayme Goetz.

Meagan Zampieir-Lillpopp lost her bid for re-election, receiving 1,294 votes. Kelly Ancar rounded out the slate of candidates, receiving 1,603 votes.

All three winning candidates focused their comments on completing the bond projects.&nbsp;

The district opened a new high school building in August. A renovation and addition have been completed at Roosevelt Elementary School.

Work is underway to renovate the former high school building into a middle school. Students will move into that space in January. Work is ongoing on a renovation and expansion of O'Loughlin Elementary School.

Once the current middle school is vacated, work will begin to renovate it into a four-section elementary school.

Vajnar said, "I just want to get the bond issue stuff completed and on budget. ... I just want to make sure we continue on doing a good job educating our youth. That's why I ran, making sure we have a good education system for kids who come through our school system."

Ken Brooks said, "I hope to keep us on track as we finish the bond project, and I am excited about what the next four years are going to bring. I hope I can continue serving as I have."

"I want to thank Curt and Craig, and I also want to thank Meagan [Zampieri-Lillpopp] for four great years of service," Brooks said.

Pallister said he looked forward to rejoining the board and also hoped to work toward finishing the bond projects.

The candidates will begin their new terms in January.

Results will not be final until canvassing at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12. The canvass will be in the county commission meeting room at the Ellis County Administration Building.

The canvass includes consideration of any provisional ballots, as well as any eligible mail-in ballots received within the next three days.

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/27dd42ff-4f55-4a66-8957-7259a3e90c28">See the full election results here.</a>

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762315425781.png" alt="From left: candidates Curt Vajnar, Craig Pallister and Ken Brooks at the Ellis County Administrative Center Tuesday night after learning they won seats on the Hays USD 489 school board. Photo by Cristina Janney/Hays Post" />
 <figcaption>From left: candidates Curt Vajnar, Craig Pallister and Ken Brooks at the Ellis County Administrative Center Tuesday night after learning they won seats on the Hays USD 489 school board. Photo by Cristina Janney/Hays Post</figcaption>
 </figure>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays PostTwo incumbents and a former school board member were elected to the Hays USD 489 school board on Tuesday.Curt Vajnar, the current president of the board, was re-elected, receiving the most votes—2,531.Vajnar is a former ag teacher at Hays High School. This will be his second four-year term.Ken Brooks and Craig Pallister tied with 1,948 votes each.&nbsp;Brooks, an incumbent and the current vice president of the board, will be serving his second four-year term. Brooks is a loss control safety specialist for Insurance Planning.Pallister is a retired educator who served as principal of Hays Middle School for 21 years. He served four years on the school board, but narrowly lost re-election to the board two years ago behind Jayme Goetz.Meagan Zampieir-Lillpopp lost her bid for re-election, receiving 1,294 votes. Kelly Ancar rounded out the slate of candidates, receiving 1,603 votes.All three winning candidates focused their comments on completing the bond projects.&nbsp;The district opened a new high school building in August. A renovation and addition have been completed at Roosevelt Elementary School.Work is underway to renovate the former high school building into a middle school. Students will move into that space in January. Work is ongoing on a renovation and expansion of O'Loughlin Elementary School.Once the current middle school is vacated, work will begin to renovate it into a four-section elementary school.Vajnar said, "I just want to get the bond issue stuff completed and on budget. ... I just want to make sure we continue on doing a good job educating our youth. That's why I ran, making sure we have a good education system for kids who come through our school system."Ken Brooks said, "I hope to keep us on track as we finish the bond project, and I am excited about what the next four years are going to bring. I hope I can continue serving as I have.""I want to thank Curt and Craig, and I also want to thank Meagan [Zampieri-Lillpopp] for four great years of service," Brooks said.Pallister said he looked forward to rejoining the board and also hoped to work toward finishing the bond projects.The candidates will begin their new terms in January.Results will not be final until canvassing at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12. The canvass will be in the county commission meeting room at the Ellis County Administration Building.The canvass includes consideration of any provisional ballots, as well as any eligible mail-in ballots received within the next three days.<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/27dd42ff-4f55-4a66-8957-7259a3e90c28">See the full election results here.</a>

3 veterans elected to Hays USD 489 school board

Voter turnout Register voters-20,483 Voted as of Election Day-4,620 Voter turnout-22.56%

All precincts reporting. W=Winner pending canvass.

Hays City Commission 2 four-year terms; 1 two-year term Reese Barrick-1137 Shaun Musil-1772-W David Vilaysing-1340-W Candace (CJ) Hathaway-467 Sandy Jacobs-1542-W Samuel Allen-165 Justin Choitz-204 Kelly Ancar-744 David Koshiol-1277

See the Hays Post for a story on this race on Wednesday.

Hays USD 489 3 at-large positions Ken Brooks-1948-W Curt C. Vajnar-2531-W Craig Pallister-1948-W Meagan Zampieri-Lillpopp-1294 Kelly Ancar-1603

Ellis City Mayor 1 position Devin D. Henderson-111 Martin V. LaBarge-209-W

Ellis City Treasurer 1 position Amanda M. Shannon-378-W

Ellis City Councilmember 3 at large&nbsp;positions John A. Walz-315-W David R. McDaniel-250-W Kevin LaBarge-275-W

Schoenchen Mayor 1 position Kevin Bieker-32-W

Schoenchen City Councilmember 5&nbsp;Positions Jim Mowry-29-W

Victoria City Mayor 1 position John Schulte-178-W

Victoria Councilmember 3 positions Ryan Lichter-155-W Matthew L Sander-170-W

USD 432-Victoria 3 District at-Large positions Shanna Dinkel-201-W Jacob Hunter-101 Connie Braun-216-W Jeanna Wellbrock-96 Jennifer Berens-188-W

USD 388-Ellis 3 at large positions 1 unexpired term (2 years) NO CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT

Big Creek Improvement District 3 Director&nbsp;positions Duane F. Kuhn-41-W Keith Schmidt-25 Larry Leiker-39-W Casey F Herrman-29-W

Munjor Improvement District 3 Director&nbsp;positions Darold F Younker-20-W

Prairie Acres Improvement District 3&nbsp;Director positions Shane Gregg-14-W Kevin Zimmer-20-W Bradley Stewart-15-W Bill Wierman-1

Suburban Estates Improvement District 3&nbsp;Director positions NO CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOT

Cottonwood Extension District No. 17 2 board positions Donna Maskus-3259-W Dinah Newman-1834-W

Write-in candidates will be calculated starting on Wednesday, and winners will be announced as soon as they become available.

The canvass to certify the official election results will be at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, at the Ellis County Administration Center in the county commission meeting room.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/5/1747092483078.png" alt="" />
 <figcaption></figcaption>
 </figure>Voter turnout Register voters-20,483 Voted as of Election Day-4,620 Voter turnout-22.56%All precincts reporting. W=Winner pending canvass.Hays City Commission 2 four-year terms; 1 two-year term Reese Barrick-1137 Shaun Musil-1772-W David Vilaysing-1340-W Candace (CJ) Hathaway-467 Sandy Jacobs-1542-W Samuel Allen-165 Justin Choitz-204 Kelly Ancar-744 David Koshiol-1277See the Hays Post for a story on this race on Wednesday.Hays USD 489 3 at-large positions Ken Brooks-1948-W Curt C. Vajnar-2531-W Craig Pallister-1948-W Meagan Zampieri-Lillpopp-1294 Kelly Ancar-1603 See the Hays Post for a story on this race on Wednesday.Ellis City Mayor 1 position Devin D. Henderson-111 Martin V. LaBarge-209-WEllis City Treasurer 1 position Amanda M. Shannon-378-WEllis City Councilmember 3 at large&nbsp;positions John A. Walz-315-W David R. McDaniel-250-W Kevin LaBarge-275-W Schoenchen Mayor 1 position Kevin Bieker-32-WSchoenchen City Councilmember 5&nbsp;Positions Jim Mowry-29-W Victoria City Mayor 1 position John Schulte-178-W Victoria Councilmember 3 positions Ryan Lichter-155-W Matthew L Sander-170-WUSD 432-Victoria 3 District at-Large positions Shanna Dinkel-201-W Jacob Hunter-101 Connie Braun-216-W Jeanna Wellbrock-96 Jennifer Berens-188-WUSD 388-Ellis 3 at large positions 1 unexpired term (2 years) NO CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOTBig Creek Improvement District 3 Director&nbsp;positions Duane F. Kuhn-41-W Keith Schmidt-25 Larry Leiker-39-W Casey F Herrman-29-WMunjor Improvement District 3 Director&nbsp;positions Darold F Younker-20-WPrairie Acres Improvement District 3&nbsp;Director positions Shane Gregg-14-W Kevin Zimmer-20-W Bradley Stewart-15-W Bill Wierman-1Suburban Estates Improvement District 3&nbsp;Director positions NO CANDIDATES ON THE BALLOTCottonwood Extension District No. 17 2 board positions Donna Maskus-3259-W Dinah Newman-1834-W Write-in candidates will be calculated starting on Wednesday, and winners will be announced as soon as they become available.The canvass to certify the official election results will be at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, at the Ellis County Administration Center in the county commission meeting room.

Election results 2025: Final results pending canvas

NEW YORK (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-mayoral-democratic-primary-zohran-mamdani-f87ea9d5b649cea8335ca7df6399c1f0">Zohran Mamdani</a>&nbsp;was elected mayor of New York on Tuesday, capping&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/who-is-zohran-mamdani-mayor-policies-background-81760b3d0fcf5c0cd556ab8de5a0335e">a stunning ascent</a>&nbsp;for the 34-year-old, far-left state lawmaker, who promised to transform city government to restore power to the working class and fight back against a hostile Trump administration.

In a victory for the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-sanders-aoc-nyc-mayor-cuomo-689da72b6214d255019f9acd1df62f74">Democratic party’s progressive wing</a>, Mamdani defeated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/andrew-cuomo">former Gov. Andrew Cuomo</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/curtis-sliwa">Republican Curtis Sliwa</a>. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious — skeptics say unrealistic — campaign promises.

With his commanding win,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-nyc-mayor-election-cuomo-59f6a66cd40d4c2b750fdfd06a4f5da1">the democratic socialist</a>&nbsp;will etch his place in history as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-andrew-cuomo-mayors-race-936dd6bd228dbae7b85ee30f2d8c88e7">the city’s first Muslim mayor</a>, the first of South Asian heritage and the first born in Africa. He will also become New York's youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.

“The conventional wisdom would tell you that I am far from the perfect candidate. I am young, despite my best efforts to grow older. I am Muslim. I am a democratic socialist. And most damning of all, I refuse to apologize for any of this,” Mamdani declared to a roaring crowd at his victory party.

He cast his win as a boon for blue-collar workers struggling to get by. “New York, tonight you have delivered a mandate for change,” he said, vowing to ”wake up each morning with a singular purpose: To make this city better for you than it was the day before.”

More than 2 million New Yorkers cast ballots in the contest, the largest turnout in a mayoral race in more than 50 years, according to the city’s Board of Elections. With roughly 90% of the votes counted, Mamdani held an approximately 9 percentage point lead over Cuomo.

Mamdani’s unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party.

He has already faced scrutiny from national Republicans, including President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>, who have eagerly cast him as a threat and the face of a more radical Democratic Party that is out of step with mainstream America. Trump has repeatedly threatened to cut federal funding to the city — and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zohran-mamdani-new-york-communism-attacks-nyc-mayor-c66707800e55eb4e72b06af5e159a680">even take it over</a>&nbsp;— if Mamdani won.

At his victory party in Brooklyn, Mamdani supporters cheered and embraced, some tearfully, after The Associated Press called the race. Campaign posters flew through the air, as one person hoisted the official flag of New York City and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/bad-bunny">Bad Bunny</a>&nbsp;played from the speakers.

The mood was far more muted at Cuomo’s party at a midtown Manhattan theater. In his concession speech, a defiant Cuomo called his campaign “a caution flag that we are headed down a dangerous, dangerous road" and noted that “almost half of New Yorkers did not vote to support a government agenda that makes promises that we know cannot be met."

Still, he corrected his supporters when they began to boo at the mention of Mamdani's name.

“No, that is not right," he said, offering to help the incoming mayor in any way. “Tonight was their night.”

Mamdani’s grassroots campaign centered on affordability, and his charisma spoiled Cuomo’s attempted political comeback. The former governor, who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/andrew-cuomo-resigns-17161f546bb83c32a337036ecf8d2a34">resigned</a>&nbsp;four years ago following allegations of sexual harassment that he continues to deny, was dogged by his past throughout the race and was criticized for running a negative campaign.

Mamdani will also have to deal with Trump, who not only&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zohran-mamdani-new-york-communism-attacks-nyc-mayor-c66707800e55eb4e72b06af5e159a680">threatened retribution against the city</a>&nbsp;but also suggested he might try to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won. Mamdani&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/uganda-zohran-mamdani-mayor-election-new-york-d41260eeef2438498a3aa04118fbd2df">was born in Uganda</a>, where he spent his early childhood, but was raised in New York City and became a U.S. citizen in 2018.

In his speech, Mamdani addressed Trump head on.

“New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants and as of tonight, led by an immigrant," he said, adding that, "If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him.”

Trump appeared to acknowledge Mamdani’s challenges, posting ”…AND SO IT BEGINS!” on his Truth Social site.

New mayor will pursue an ambitious agenda

Mamdani, who was criticized throughout the campaign for his thin resume, will now have to begin staffing his incoming administration and planning how to accomplish the ambitious but polarizing agenda that drove him to victory.

Among the campaign’s promises are free child care, free city bus service, city-run grocery stores and a new Department of Community Safety that would send mental health care workers to handle certain emergency calls rather than police officers. It is unclear how Mamdani will pay for such initiatives, given Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul’s steadfast opposition to his calls to raise taxes on wealthy people.

His decisions around the leadership of the New York Police Department will also be closely watched. Mamdani was a fierce critic of the department in 2020, calling for “this rogue agency” to be defunded and slamming it as “racist, anti-queer &amp; a major threat to public safety.” He has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mamdani-mayor-nyc-cuomo-trump-b58f8d312f8ed67b01bfb7a3a078387c">since apologized</a>&nbsp;for those comments and has said he will ask the current NYPD commissioner to stay on the job.

Mamdani’s campaign was driven by his optimistic view of the city and his promises to improve the quality of life for its middle and lower classes.

Cuomo, Sliwa and other critics assailed him over his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-andrew-cuomo-israel-11e3f9c7b9ad37dfd356a0177f3a080a">vehement criticism of Israel</a>&nbsp;’s military actions in Gaza. Mamdani, a longtime advocate of Palestinian rights, has accused Israel of committing genocide and said he would honor an arrest warrant the International Criminal Court issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Mamdani won over the city while Cuomo faltered

Mamdani began his campaign as a relatively obscure state lawmaker, little known even within New York City.

Going into the Democratic primary, Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-york-mayor-eric-adams-charges-ff3730a2e870cd219e8fead8899118b1">federal corruption case</a>.

But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos and populist economic platform energized voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name recognition grew.

Mamdani trounced Cuomo in the primary by about 13 points.

The former governor&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/andrew-cuomo-zohran-mamdani-new-york-mayor-b51061b3b88ff52b44ffebbbf952554d">relaunched his campaign as an independent candidate</a>&nbsp;for the general election, vowing to hit the streets with a more energetic approach. However, much of his campaign continued to focus on attacking opponents. In the race’s final stretch, he claimed Mamdani’s election would make Jews feel unsafe.

Meanwhile, supporters&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-sanders-aoc-nyc-mayor-cuomo-689da72b6214d255019f9acd1df62f74">packed Mamdani’s rallies</a>, and he held whimsical events, including a scavenger hunt and a community soccer tournament.

Cuomo also juxtaposed his deep experience in government with Mamdani’s less than five years in the state Legislature. But the former governor also faced his own political baggage, as his opponents dredged up the sexual harassment allegations that led to his resignation, as well as his decisions during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sliwa, the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, also had his moments — mostly in the form of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-cuomo-mamdani-sliwa-mayor-election-b0e465db9066d102c8eaf61695ffdacf">funny quips</a>&nbsp;on the debate stage — but had difficulty gaining traction as a Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic city.

He conceded the race about a half hour after the polls closed, wishing Mamdani "good luck because if he does well, we do well.”

But he also issued a warning: “If you try to implement socialism, if you try to render our police weak and impotent, if you forsake the people’s public safety, we will become the mayor-elect and his supporters' worst enemies."

Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz, Philip Marcelo and Jake Offenhartz contributed to this report.

NEW YORK (AP) —&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-mayoral-democratic-primary-zohran-mamdani-f87ea9d5b649cea8335ca7df6399c1f0">Zohran Mamdani</a>&nbsp;was elected mayor of New York on Tuesday, capping&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/who-is-zohran-mamdani-mayor-policies-background-81760b3d0fcf5c0cd556ab8de5a0335e">a stunning ascent</a>&nbsp;for the 34-year-old, far-left state lawmaker, who promised to transform city government to restore power to the working class and fight back against a hostile Trump administration.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">Mamdani: So Donald Trump, since I know you&#39;re watching, I have four words for you: TURN THE VOLUME UP. We will hold landlords to account because the Donald Trumps of our city have grown far to comfortable taking advantage of their tenants. We will put an end to corruption that… <a href="https://t.co/eCXh6VCPQB">pic.twitter.com/eCXh6VCPQB</a>&mdash; Ron Smith (@Ronxyz00) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ronxyz00/status/1985931708416328138?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani: &quot;We can respond to oligarchy and authoritarianism with the strength it fears not the appeasement it craves. After all, if anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him it is the city that gave rise to him...So,… <a href="https://t.co/Vt7pmuIGpd">pic.twitter.com/Vt7pmuIGpd</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1985931014498062675?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani: &quot;We have toppled a political dynasty. I wish Andrew Cuomo only the best in private life but let tonight be the final time I utter his name as we turn the page on a politics that abandons the many and answers only to the few.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/Pf0j4I1TDK">pic.twitter.com/Pf0j4I1TDK</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1985927747638632471?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In a victory for the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-sanders-aoc-nyc-mayor-cuomo-689da72b6214d255019f9acd1df62f74">Democratic party’s progressive wing</a>, Mamdani defeated&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/andrew-cuomo">former Gov. Andrew Cuomo</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/curtis-sliwa">Republican Curtis Sliwa</a>. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious — skeptics say unrealistic — campaign promises.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><a href="https://t.co/cpPF3SPl5g">pic.twitter.com/cpPF3SPl5g</a>&mdash; Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) <a href="https://twitter.com/ZohranKMamdani/status/1985899742044262838?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 5, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>With his commanding win,&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-nyc-mayor-election-cuomo-59f6a66cd40d4c2b750fdfd06a4f5da1">the democratic socialist</a>&nbsp;will etch his place in history as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-andrew-cuomo-mayors-race-936dd6bd228dbae7b85ee30f2d8c88e7">the city’s first Muslim mayor</a>, the first of South Asian heritage and the first born in Africa. He will also become New York's youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.“The conventional wisdom would tell you that I am far from the perfect candidate. I am young, despite my best efforts to grow older. I am Muslim. I am a democratic socialist. And most damning of all, I refuse to apologize for any of this,” Mamdani declared to a roaring crowd at his victory party.He cast his win as a boon for blue-collar workers struggling to get by. “New York, tonight you have delivered a mandate for change,” he said, vowing to ”wake up each morning with a singular purpose: To make this city better for you than it was the day before.”More than 2 million New Yorkers cast ballots in the contest, the largest turnout in a mayoral race in more than 50 years, according to the city’s Board of Elections. With roughly 90% of the votes counted, Mamdani held an approximately 9 percentage point lead over Cuomo.Mamdani’s unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party.He has already faced scrutiny from national Republicans, including President&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">Donald Trump</a>, who have eagerly cast him as a threat and the face of a more radical Democratic Party that is out of step with mainstream America. Trump has repeatedly threatened to cut federal funding to the city — and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zohran-mamdani-new-york-communism-attacks-nyc-mayor-c66707800e55eb4e72b06af5e159a680">even take it over</a>&nbsp;— if Mamdani won.<h2>A commanding win</h2>At his victory party in Brooklyn, Mamdani supporters cheered and embraced, some tearfully, after The Associated Press called the race. Campaign posters flew through the air, as one person hoisted the official flag of New York City and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/bad-bunny">Bad Bunny</a>&nbsp;played from the speakers.The mood was far more muted at Cuomo’s party at a midtown Manhattan theater. In his concession speech, a defiant Cuomo called his campaign “a caution flag that we are headed down a dangerous, dangerous road" and noted that “almost half of New Yorkers did not vote to support a government agenda that makes promises that we know cannot be met."Still, he corrected his supporters when they began to boo at the mention of Mamdani's name.“No, that is not right," he said, offering to help the incoming mayor in any way. “Tonight was their night.”Mamdani’s grassroots campaign centered on affordability, and his charisma spoiled Cuomo’s attempted political comeback. The former governor, who&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/andrew-cuomo-resigns-17161f546bb83c32a337036ecf8d2a34">resigned</a>&nbsp;four years ago following allegations of sexual harassment that he continues to deny, was dogged by his past throughout the race and was criticized for running a negative campaign.Mamdani will also have to deal with Trump, who not only&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/trump-zohran-mamdani-new-york-communism-attacks-nyc-mayor-c66707800e55eb4e72b06af5e159a680">threatened retribution against the city</a>&nbsp;but also suggested he might try to arrest and deport Mamdani if he won. Mamdani&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/uganda-zohran-mamdani-mayor-election-new-york-d41260eeef2438498a3aa04118fbd2df">was born in Uganda</a>, where he spent his early childhood, but was raised in New York City and became a U.S. citizen in 2018.In his speech, Mamdani addressed Trump head on.“New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants and as of tonight, led by an immigrant," he said, adding that, "If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him.”Trump appeared to acknowledge Mamdani’s challenges, posting ”…AND SO IT BEGINS!” on his Truth Social site.<h2>New mayor will pursue an ambitious agenda</h2>Mamdani, who was criticized throughout the campaign for his thin resume, will now have to begin staffing his incoming administration and planning how to accomplish the ambitious but polarizing agenda that drove him to victory.Among the campaign’s promises are free child care, free city bus service, city-run grocery stores and a new Department of Community Safety that would send mental health care workers to handle certain emergency calls rather than police officers. It is unclear how Mamdani will pay for such initiatives, given Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul’s steadfast opposition to his calls to raise taxes on wealthy people.His decisions around the leadership of the New York Police Department will also be closely watched. Mamdani was a fierce critic of the department in 2020, calling for “this rogue agency” to be defunded and slamming it as “racist, anti-queer &amp; a major threat to public safety.” He has&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/mamdani-mayor-nyc-cuomo-trump-b58f8d312f8ed67b01bfb7a3a078387c">since apologized</a>&nbsp;for those comments and has said he will ask the current NYPD commissioner to stay on the job.Mamdani’s campaign was driven by his optimistic view of the city and his promises to improve the quality of life for its middle and lower classes.Cuomo, Sliwa and other critics assailed him over his&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-andrew-cuomo-israel-11e3f9c7b9ad37dfd356a0177f3a080a">vehement criticism of Israel</a>&nbsp;’s military actions in Gaza. Mamdani, a longtime advocate of Palestinian rights, has accused Israel of committing genocide and said he would honor an arrest warrant the International Criminal Court issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.<h2>Mamdani won over the city while Cuomo faltered</h2>Mamdani began his campaign as a relatively obscure state lawmaker, little known even within New York City.Going into the Democratic primary, Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/new-york-mayor-eric-adams-charges-ff3730a2e870cd219e8fead8899118b1">federal corruption case</a>.But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos and populist economic platform energized voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name recognition grew.Mamdani trounced Cuomo in the primary by about 13 points.The former governor&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/andrew-cuomo-zohran-mamdani-new-york-mayor-b51061b3b88ff52b44ffebbbf952554d">relaunched his campaign as an independent candidate</a>&nbsp;for the general election, vowing to hit the streets with a more energetic approach. However, much of his campaign continued to focus on attacking opponents. In the race’s final stretch, he claimed Mamdani’s election would make Jews feel unsafe.Meanwhile, supporters&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/zohran-mamdani-sanders-aoc-nyc-mayor-cuomo-689da72b6214d255019f9acd1df62f74">packed Mamdani’s rallies</a>, and he held whimsical events, including a scavenger hunt and a community soccer tournament.Cuomo also juxtaposed his deep experience in government with Mamdani’s less than five years in the state Legislature. But the former governor also faced his own political baggage, as his opponents dredged up the sexual harassment allegations that led to his resignation, as well as his decisions during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.Sliwa, the creator of the Guardian Angels crime patrol group, also had his moments — mostly in the form of&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/nyc-cuomo-mamdani-sliwa-mayor-election-b0e465db9066d102c8eaf61695ffdacf">funny quips</a>&nbsp;on the debate stage — but had difficulty gaining traction as a Republican in an overwhelmingly Democratic city.He conceded the race about a half hour after the polls closed, wishing Mamdani "good luck because if he does well, we do well.”But he also issued a warning: “If you try to implement socialism, if you try to render our police weak and impotent, if you forsake the people’s public safety, we will become the mayor-elect and his supporters' worst enemies."___Associated Press writers Jennifer Peltz, Philip Marcelo and Jake Offenhartz contributed to this report.

🎥Mamdani's message to Trump after winning New York City mayor's race

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State Men's Soccer was tabbed No. 5 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 rankings, released on Tuesday. The Tigers are among the top-5 nationally for the third-straight week, ranked No. 5 twice and No. 4 once within that span.

Fort Hays State went 2-0 last week and holds the same overall record as the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, University of Charleston, both at 14-0-3 overall. FHSU and Charleston are tied for the national lead in wins and won-lost-tied percentage (.912). Charleston moved up to No. 1 this week from No. 2 after previous No. 1 Cal State-Stanislaus took its first loss of the season to a No. 10 ranked Cal State-Dominguez Hills team this past week.

Surprisingly, Anderson (S.C.) took its first loss of the season at home to a team currently with a sub-.500 record and jumped FHSU to No. 4 in the poll this week after going 1-1 last week, now 9-1-4 overall. Cal State-Stanislaus fell just two spots to No. 3 in the poll after its loss to Cal State-Dominguez Hills.

Fort Hays State remains unbeaten through 17 matches this season. They are 10-0-1 so far in GAC play and have one match remaining in the regular season, a conference contest at Newman University on Thursday evening (Nov. 6) in Wichita.

Fort Hays State clinched the rights to host the GAC Tournament on November 13 and 15 at FHSU Soccer Stadium in Hays by winning the conference regular season title. The Tigers locked up the title with a 4-0 win at Ouachita Baptist last week. It was the fourth conference regular season title in program history, which started in 2011.

This is the longest unbeaten streak to start a season in program history and 17 matches is the longest unbeaten streak in program history regardless of point in time. The previous program record was 16, set by the 2018 team that played in the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers passed the former mark with the 5-0 win at Harding this past Saturday.

Fort Hays State and Rogers State continue as the two teams from the GAC represented in the Top 25. The Hillcats are tied for No. 17 in the latest poll with an overall record of 10-2-4. Rogers State's only two losses this year were to Fort Hays State. Northeastern State is among the receiving votes section of the latest poll.

Fort Hays State and Charleston are the only teams in the top 10 this week that remain unbeaten for the season. There are four total teams in the top 25 without a loss this season. Lincoln (Mo.) has not lost this season, but surprisingly fell out of the top 25 this week after tying nationally ranked Rockhurst.

Fort Hays State is the national leader in total points (151), goal differential (+45), corner kicks per match (8.82), and shutout percentage (.765). The Tigers are tied for the national lead in won-lost-tied percentage (.912) with Charleston (W.Va.). The Tigers rank second nationally total goals (51), total assists (49), assists per match (2.88), and shots per match (19.18), while ranking third in points per match (8.88), save percentage (.870), scoring offense (3.00), and shots on goal per match (8.65).

United Soccer Coaches Top 25 for November 4, 2025 Rank	School	Prev	W-L-T 1	University of Charleston (W.Va.)	2	14-0-3 2	Palm Beach Atlantic University (Fla.)	3	12-1-2 3	California State University Stanislaus	1	13-1-1 4	Anderson University (S.C.)	5	9-1-4 5	Fort Hays State University (Kan.)	4	14-0-3 6	Southern New Hampshire University	6	12-1-2 7	Lynn University (Fla.)	7	11-2-1 8	Midwestern State University (Texas)	9	11-3-3 9	California State University-Dominguez Hills	10	11-2-4 10	Rockhurst University (Mo.)	20	11-3-3 11	Bentley University (Mass.)	11	10-1-3 12	Young Harris College (Ga.)	12	12-1-3 13	Cedarville University (Ohio)	8	10-0-7 14	Colorado State University-Pueblo	RV	8-2-7 15	Gannon University (Pa.)	16	10-2-4 16	Point Loma Nazarene University (Calif.)	14	11-3-1 17	Florida Tech	17	7-2-6 17	Rogers State University (Okla.)	18	10-2-4 19	University of Colorado-Colorado Springs	NR	9-4-4 20	Lander University (S.C.)	RV	8-2-6 21	Post University (Conn.)	NR	7-0-7 22	Bloomsburg University (Pa.)	22	7-2-6 23	Tiffin University (Ohio)	RV	11-2-3 24	California State University-Los Angeles	NR	8-3-5 25	Mississippi College	NR	11-1-4

Receiving Votes:  Northeastern State University, Regis University, Lincoln University (Mo.), Seattle Pacific University, Chowan University, University of West Florida, MSU Denver.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762341783151.png" alt="FHSU Athletics image" />
 <figcaption>FHSU Athletics image</figcaption>
 </figure>FHSU AthleticsKANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State Men's Soccer was tabbed No. 5 in the latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 rankings, released on Tuesday. The Tigers are among the top-5 nationally for the third-straight week, ranked No. 5 twice and No. 4 once within that span.Fort Hays State went 2-0 last week and holds the same overall record as the No. 1 ranked team in the nation, University of Charleston, both at 14-0-3 overall. FHSU and Charleston are tied for the national lead in wins and won-lost-tied percentage (.912). Charleston moved up to No. 1 this week from No. 2 after previous No. 1 Cal State-Stanislaus took its first loss of the season to a No. 10 ranked Cal State-Dominguez Hills team this past week.Surprisingly, Anderson (S.C.) took its first loss of the season at home to a team currently with a sub-.500 record and jumped FHSU to No. 4 in the poll this week after going 1-1 last week, now 9-1-4 overall. Cal State-Stanislaus fell just two spots to No. 3 in the poll after its loss to Cal State-Dominguez Hills.Fort Hays State remains unbeaten through 17 matches this season. They are 10-0-1 so far in GAC play and have one match remaining in the regular season, a conference contest at Newman University on Thursday evening (Nov. 6) in Wichita.Fort Hays State clinched the rights to host the GAC Tournament on November 13 and 15 at FHSU Soccer Stadium in Hays by winning the conference regular season title. The Tigers locked up the title with a 4-0 win at Ouachita Baptist last week. It was the fourth conference regular season title in program history, which started in 2011.This is the longest unbeaten streak to start a season in program history and 17 matches is the longest unbeaten streak in program history regardless of point in time. The previous program record was 16, set by the 2018 team that played in the national semifinals of the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers passed the former mark with the 5-0 win at Harding this past Saturday.Fort Hays State and Rogers State continue as the two teams from the GAC represented in the Top 25. The Hillcats are tied for No. 17 in the latest poll with an overall record of 10-2-4. Rogers State's only two losses this year were to Fort Hays State. Northeastern State is among the receiving votes section of the latest poll.Fort Hays State and Charleston are the only teams in the top 10 this week that remain unbeaten for the season. There are four total teams in the top 25 without a loss this season. Lincoln (Mo.) has not lost this season, but surprisingly fell out of the top 25 this week after tying nationally ranked Rockhurst.Fort Hays State is the national leader in total points (151), goal differential (+45), corner kicks per match (8.82), and shutout percentage (.765). The Tigers are tied for the national lead in won-lost-tied percentage (.912) with Charleston (W.Va.). The Tigers rank second nationally total goals (51), total assists (49), assists per match (2.88), and shots per match (19.18), while ranking third in points per match (8.88), save percentage (.870), scoring offense (3.00), and shots on goal per match (8.65).United Soccer Coaches Top 25 for November 4, 2025 Rank	School	Prev	W-L-T 1	University of Charleston (W.Va.)	2	14-0-3 2	Palm Beach Atlantic University (Fla.)	3	12-1-2 3	California State University Stanislaus	1	13-1-1 4	Anderson University (S.C.)	5	9-1-4 5	Fort Hays State University (Kan.)	4	14-0-3 6	Southern New Hampshire University	6	12-1-2 7	Lynn University (Fla.)	7	11-2-1 8	Midwestern State University (Texas)	9	11-3-3 9	California State University-Dominguez Hills	10	11-2-4 10	Rockhurst University (Mo.)	20	11-3-3 11	Bentley University (Mass.)	11	10-1-3 12	Young Harris College (Ga.)	12	12-1-3 13	Cedarville University (Ohio)	8	10-0-7 14	Colorado State University-Pueblo	RV	8-2-7 15	Gannon University (Pa.)	16	10-2-4 16	Point Loma Nazarene University (Calif.)	14	11-3-1 17	Florida Tech	17	7-2-6 17	Rogers State University (Okla.)	18	10-2-4 19	University of Colorado-Colorado Springs	NR	9-4-4 20	Lander University (S.C.)	RV	8-2-6 21	Post University (Conn.)	NR	7-0-7 22	Bloomsburg University (Pa.)	22	7-2-6 23	Tiffin University (Ohio)	RV	11-2-3 24	California State University-Los Angeles	NR	8-3-5 25	Mississippi College	NR	11-1-4Receiving Votes: Northeastern State University, Regis University, Lincoln University (Mo.), Seattle Pacific University, Chowan University, University of West Florida, MSU Denver.

⚽ Tiger men No. 5 in latest United Soccer Coaches Top 25 rankings

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">WASHINGTON (AP)—President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;caused some confusion earlier Tuesday when he appeared to threaten SNAP benefits unless Democrats voted to reopen the government — despite court orders mandating that the administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-government-shutdown-court-order-b354aa0b596dcb8bfc6dc59a3382e811">keep the nation’s largest food program running</a>.

Press secretary Karoline Levitt said Tuesday the administration continues to pay out&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-how-it-works-cards-e061c2af0f3cc997b69a24296238783c">SNAP</a>&nbsp;funding using contingency funding, which is what two separate judges ordered on Monday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-food-lines-snap-6b55e2c21c0198f3309f3a45a55f33b6">had planned to freeze SNAP payments</a>&nbsp;starting Nov. 1 because of a lapse in funds during the government shutdown.

In a social media post Tuesday morning, Trump said SNAP benefits had been handed out “haphazardly” under his predecessor.

SNAP benefits “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!” Trump added.

The government says the emergency fund it will use has enough to cover about half the normal benefits. Leavitt said Trump “does not want to have to tap into this fund in the future,” which is what he meant by his social media post earlier in the day.

WASHINGTON (AP) —President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the federal government will stop administering the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — seemingly going against what his administration indicated just Monday, when it said it will partially fund the food aid program for almost 42 million Americans.

Two judges had ordered them to do so using government contingency funds.

In a social media post Tuesday, Trump said SNAP benefits had been handed out “haphazardly” under his predecessor and said the aid needed to be just for those in need.

<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/donald-trump">WASHINGTON (AP)—President Donald Trump</a>&nbsp;caused some confusion earlier Tuesday when he appeared to threaten SNAP benefits unless Democrats voted to reopen the government — despite court orders mandating that the administration&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-government-shutdown-court-order-b354aa0b596dcb8bfc6dc59a3382e811">keep the nation’s largest food program running</a>.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PressSec</a>: &quot;We are digging into a contingency fund that is supposed to be for emergencies, catastrophes, for war... The best way to get the full amount of SNAP benefits to those beneficiaries is for Democrats to reopen the government.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/tcicftrOYI">pic.twitter.com/tcicftrOYI</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1985780097089994860?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Press secretary Karoline Levitt said Tuesday the administration continues to pay out&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-how-it-works-cards-e061c2af0f3cc997b69a24296238783c">SNAP</a>&nbsp;funding using contingency funding, which is what two separate judges ordered on Monday. The U.S. Department of Agriculture&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-food-lines-snap-6b55e2c21c0198f3309f3a45a55f33b6">had planned to freeze SNAP payments</a>&nbsp;starting Nov. 1 because of a lapse in funds during the government shutdown.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">&quot;SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office... will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!&quot; - President Donald J. Trump <a href="https://t.co/VvPP6DU2qH">pic.twitter.com/VvPP6DU2qH</a>&mdash; The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1985741263472042069?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In a social media post Tuesday morning, Trump said SNAP benefits had been handed out “haphazardly” under his predecessor.SNAP benefits “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!” Trump added.The government says the emergency fund it will use has enough to cover about half the normal benefits. Leavitt said Trump “does not want to have to tap into this fund in the future,” which is what he meant by his social media post earlier in the day.------------------------WASHINGTON (AP) —President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the federal government will stop administering the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — seemingly going against what his administration indicated just Monday, when it said it will partially fund the food aid program for almost 42 million Americans.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">.<a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PressSec</a>: &quot;We are digging into a contingency fund that is supposed to be for emergencies, catastrophes, for war... The best way to get the full amount of SNAP benefits to those beneficiaries is for Democrats to reopen the government.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/tcicftrOYI">pic.twitter.com/tcicftrOYI</a>&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1985780097089994860?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Two judges had ordered them to do so using government contingency funds.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">&quot;SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term in office... will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!&quot; - President Donald J. Trump <a href="https://t.co/VvPP6DU2qH">pic.twitter.com/VvPP6DU2qH</a>&mdash; The White House (@WhiteHouse) <a href="https://twitter.com/WhiteHouse/status/1985741263472042069?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>In a social media post Tuesday, Trump said SNAP benefits had been handed out “haphazardly” under his predecessor and said the aid needed to be just for those in need.SNAP benefits “will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government, which they can easily do, and not before!” Trump added.

🎥White House walks back President Trump’s threat to SNAP

By&nbsp;LAAH TUCKER American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109

NATOMA — In celebrating Veterans Day, men and women of the United States Armed forces, past and present service, will be honored during the 16th annual Veterans Day Musical Salute in Natoma on Monday, November 11.

 Natoma-Paradise-Waldo Unified School District #399 will join the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109 and American Legion Post 109 in a morning program in Natoma, 610 N. Third Street. 

“Every Hero Has a Story” at 9 a.m. Veterans are invited to share memorabilia; Veteran-Student panel discussion at 9:30 a.m. with Post 109 Commander William Workman; Veterans Patriotic Musical Salute at 10:15 a.m. presented by Pre-K through 12th grade students directed by Talley Hickman; Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen essay winners.

Special guests will include local, district, and state elected officials. 

Fort Dodge Soldiers Home Christmas gift drive will be highlighted with donation boxes available. 

Auxiliary Unit 109 will host a lunch for veterans at the American Legion Post 109 Hall, 520 North 1st Street.

Veterans and their families are invited to participate in “Every Hero Has a Story" by sharing veterans’ photographs, uniforms, artifacts, and memorabilia. 

Junior high and high school students will participate in a panel discussion with veterans describing first hand stories of intrigue and sacrifice as soldiers in defending freedom.

 The American Legion Post 109 will present Colors. Voices, percussion, and band in Pre-K, elementary, junior high through high school will present a repertoire of traditional and contemporary patriotic songs and hymns. The program will include Voice of Democracy and Patriot's Pen essay winners. Special guests will give tribute. Elementary students will gift each veteran with hand-crafted cards and an invitation to join them for lunch.

Since 1919, the American Legion veterans have been supported by the American Legion Auxiliary. 

The legacy of women continues in Natoma Unit 109 by serving veterans, their families, children, youth and community through a myriad of annual projects. In the spirit of freedom, the annual Veterans Day Salute brings together the community in gratitude to veterans. 

American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109 supports “Be The One” national advocacy program in awareness, treatment and prevention of veterans’ suicide rate of 22 deaths per day. 

The current emphasis is collecting items for the veterans living in the Ft. Dodge Soldiers Home. In December, both women and men veterans can shop free of charge in a safe, festive Christmas environment.

 For information on specific needs for donations, or Veterans lunch at Post 109 Hall, call Linda Crawford, 785-885-8090.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762278743936.png" alt=" " />
 <figcaption> </figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;LAAH TUCKER American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109NATOMA — In celebrating Veterans Day, men and women of the United States Armed forces, past and present service, will be honored during the 16th annual Veterans Day Musical Salute in Natoma on Monday, November 11. Natoma-Paradise-Waldo Unified School District #399 will join the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109 and American Legion Post 109 in a morning program in Natoma, 610 N. Third Street. “Every Hero Has a Story” at 9 a.m. Veterans are invited to share memorabilia; Veteran-Student panel discussion at 9:30 a.m. with Post 109 Commander William Workman; Veterans Patriotic Musical Salute at 10:15 a.m. presented by Pre-K through 12th grade students directed by Talley Hickman; Voice of Democracy and Patriot’s Pen essay winners.Special guests will include local, district, and state elected officials. Fort Dodge Soldiers Home Christmas gift drive will be highlighted with donation boxes available. Auxiliary Unit 109 will host a lunch for veterans at the American Legion Post 109 Hall, 520 North 1st Street.Veterans and their families are invited to participate in “Every Hero Has a Story" by sharing veterans’ photographs, uniforms, artifacts, and memorabilia. Junior high and high school students will participate in a panel discussion with veterans describing first hand stories of intrigue and sacrifice as soldiers in defending freedom. The American Legion Post 109 will present Colors. Voices, percussion, and band in Pre-K, elementary, junior high through high school will present a repertoire of traditional and contemporary patriotic songs and hymns. The program will include Voice of Democracy and Patriot's Pen essay winners. Special guests will give tribute. Elementary students will gift each veteran with hand-crafted cards and an invitation to join them for lunch.Since 1919, the American Legion veterans have been supported by the American Legion Auxiliary. The legacy of women continues in Natoma Unit 109 by serving veterans, their families, children, youth and community through a myriad of annual projects. In the spirit of freedom, the annual Veterans Day Salute brings together the community in gratitude to veterans. American Legion Auxiliary Unit 109 supports “Be The One” national advocacy program in awareness, treatment and prevention of veterans’ suicide rate of 22 deaths per day. The current emphasis is collecting items for the veterans living in the Ft. Dodge Soldiers Home. In December, both women and men veterans can shop free of charge in a safe, festive Christmas environment. For information on specific needs for donations, or Veterans lunch at Post 109 Hall, call Linda Crawford, 785-885-8090.

16th annual Veterans Day Salute to veterans in Natoma

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/522d9bc7-8664-49c5-aba6-3242dc805e2a">FIND FOOD PANTRIES IN ELLIS COUNTY HERE</a>

<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/f164f668-bb65-4763-88e9-50c2e763d898">The White House announced on Monday that it will allow the USDA to use all of the SNAP contingency funds to pay part of food benefits for November.</a>

In October, the USDA announced a pause in benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, due to the government shutdown.

Both SNAP recipients and community food pantries have been preparing for a pause in benefits.

Theresa Hill, executive director of the Community Assistance Center in Hays, said the pantry is well-stocked at this time. The annual Trick-or-Treat So Others Can Eat in October is one of the pantry's largest donation drives of the year.

Hill said the center also receives more food donations during the holidays.

However, Hill and others said that pressure on local pantries has already been on the rise due to the increasing cost of food.

Macey Pfeifer, First Call for Help director, said she saw an increase in food, rent and utility requests in October ahead of the benefit lapse.

"I think there had been talk about pausing SNAP in early to mid-October, and I think that really scared people," Pfeifer said. "Our food was flying off the shelves at the beginning of he month and mid-month."

She said First Call restocked its food pantry three times in October.

"It's been a huge expense," she said. "Thankfully, we have had great donors and people bringing stuff in to us, too."

Pfeifer said First Call for Help has also received a couple of grants this year that have helped keep the pantry full.

As of last week, Pfeifer said the pantry was well-stocked, but the agency always welcomes donations. She said the pantry has had a high demand for canned vegetables, canned beans, soup and boxes of cereal.

The Hays Post asked Pfeifer what it means for a family to miss a month's worth of food assistance.

"I think they probably won't be eating unless they come to a food bank," she said. "We have a lot of families here who rely on SNAP benefits, and I think it's a very scary time for them because they really do count on that money.

"It's not that they don't work. There are a lot of people who receive SNAP who are employed. Maybe they are minimum wage [earners] or are single moms or single dads.

"It probably means that they are going to eat less or they'll have to miss a meal here or there," she said.

Pfeifer said a family came in a couple of weeks ago seeking rental assistance. She said the parents were missing meals to feed their kids. That family had discussed moving one of their children to live with a different family member because they couldn't afford to feed them.

To access resources through First Call for Help, you must live in Ellis County. You must present an ID on your first visit. You can use a driver's license or a government-issued ID card. No proof of income is required for assistance with food or hygiene items. You can access resources every 30 days.

Pfeifer said she thought the community as a whole would see more evictions and people needing more help with other bills, in addition to food, because people will be using that money for food.

Renee Michaud, director of the St. Joseph's Food Pantry in Hays, said she was unsure how the delays in SNAP benefits would affect the food pantry.

"It is hard to know how that impact will come, even if it will come at all," she said, "but we will do the best we can to meet the need that comes. Hopefully, the government shutdown won't last that much longer."

Michaud said she has seen a slight increase—about 10%—in food needs due to other factors, including inflation.

"We made it through COVID. I'm sure we'll find a way to make it through this, too," she said.

St. Joseph's Food Pantry is open from 9 a.m. to noon on the first and third Saturdays of the month. To qualify for assistance, you need to be a resident of Ellis County, but you do not need to show proof of income.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762203445904.jpeg" alt="Volunteers sort food in October at the Community Assistance Center in Hays during the Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat Food Drive. Photo by Tony Guerrero/Hays Post" />
 <figcaption>Volunteers sort food in October at the Community Assistance Center in Hays during the Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat Food Drive. Photo by Tony Guerrero/Hays Post</figcaption>
 </figure><a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/522d9bc7-8664-49c5-aba6-3242dc805e2a">FIND FOOD PANTRIES IN ELLIS COUNTY HERE</a>By CRISTINA JANNEY Hays Post<a href="https://hayspost.com/posts/f164f668-bb65-4763-88e9-50c2e763d898">The White House announced on Monday that it will allow the USDA to use all of the SNAP contingency funds to pay part of food benefits for November.</a>In October, the USDA announced a pause in benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, due to the government shutdown.Both SNAP recipients and community food pantries have been preparing for a pause in benefits.Theresa Hill, executive director of the Community Assistance Center in Hays, said the pantry is well-stocked at this time. The annual Trick-or-Treat So Others Can Eat in October is one of the pantry's largest donation drives of the year.Hill said the center also receives more food donations during the holidays.However, Hill and others said that pressure on local pantries has already been on the rise due to the increasing cost of food.Macey Pfeifer, First Call for Help director, said she saw an increase in food, rent and utility requests in October ahead of the benefit lapse."I think there had been talk about pausing SNAP in early to mid-October, and I think that really scared people," Pfeifer said. "Our food was flying off the shelves at the beginning of he month and mid-month."She said First Call restocked its food pantry three times in October."It's been a huge expense," she said. "Thankfully, we have had great donors and people bringing stuff in to us, too."Pfeifer said First Call for Help has also received a couple of grants this year that have helped keep the pantry full.As of last week, Pfeifer said the pantry was well-stocked, but the agency always welcomes donations. She said the pantry has had a high demand for canned vegetables, canned beans, soup and boxes of cereal.The Hays Post asked Pfeifer what it means for a family to miss a month's worth of food assistance."I think they probably won't be eating unless they come to a food bank," she said. "We have a lot of families here who rely on SNAP benefits, and I think it's a very scary time for them because they really do count on that money."It's not that they don't work. There are a lot of people who receive SNAP who are employed. Maybe they are minimum wage [earners] or are single moms or single dads."It probably means that they are going to eat less or they'll have to miss a meal here or there," she said.Pfeifer said a family came in a couple of weeks ago seeking rental assistance. She said the parents were missing meals to feed their kids. That family had discussed moving one of their children to live with a different family member because they couldn't afford to feed them.To access resources through First Call for Help, you must live in Ellis County. You must present an ID on your first visit. You can use a driver's license or a government-issued ID card. No proof of income is required for assistance with food or hygiene items. You can access resources every 30 days.Pfeifer said she thought the community as a whole would see more evictions and people needing more help with other bills, in addition to food, because people will be using that money for food.Renee Michaud, director of the St. Joseph's Food Pantry in Hays, said she was unsure how the delays in SNAP benefits would affect the food pantry."It is hard to know how that impact will come, even if it will come at all," she said, "but we will do the best we can to meet the need that comes. Hopefully, the government shutdown won't last that much longer."Michaud said she has seen a slight increase—about 10%—in food needs due to other factors, including inflation."We made it through COVID. I'm sure we'll find a way to make it through this, too," she said.St. Joseph's Food Pantry is open from 9 a.m. to noon on the first and third Saturdays of the month. To qualify for assistance, you need to be a resident of Ellis County, but you do not need to show proof of income.

Ellis County food pantries readying for food needs in light of SNAP delays

WASHINGTON (AP) — Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84.

Cheney died Monday night due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, according to a statement from his family.

“For decades, Dick Cheney served our nation, including as White House Chief of Staff, Wyoming’s Congressman, Secretary of Defense, and Vice President of the United States,” the statement said. "“Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing. We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man.”

The quietly forceful Cheney served father and son presidents, leading the armed forces as defense chief during the Persian Gulf War under President George H.W. Bush before returning to public life as vice president under Bush’s son, George W. Bush.

Cheney was, in effect, the chief operating officer of the younger Bush’s presidency. He had a hand, often a commanding one, in implementing decisions most important to the president and some of surpassing interest to himself — all while living with decades of heart disease and, post-administration, a heart transplant. Cheney consistently defended the extraordinary tools of surveillance, detention and inquisition employed in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Years after leaving office, he became a target of President Donald Trump, especially after daughter Liz Cheney became the leading Republican critic and examiner of Trump’s desperate attempts to stay in power after his election defeat and his actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol.

“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who was a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” Cheney said in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-donald-trump-presidential-wyoming-election-2020-33ab8e7df6a6fe46661130a410487b97">a television ad for his daughter</a>. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He is a coward.”

In a twist the Democrats of his era could never have imagined, Dick Cheney said last year he was voting for their candidate, Kamala Harris, for president against Trump.

A survivor of five heart attacks, Cheney long thought he was living on borrowed time and declared in 2013 he now awoke each morning “with a smile on my face, thankful for the gift of another day,” an odd image for a figure who always seemed to be manning the ramparts.

His vice presidency defined by the age of terrorism, Cheney disclosed that he had had the wireless function of his defibrillator turned off years earlier out of fear terrorists would remotely send his heart a fatal shock.

In his time in office, no longer was the vice presidency merely a ceremonial afterthought. Instead, Cheney made it a network of back channels from which to influence policy on Iraq, terrorism, presidential powers, energy and other cornerstones of a conservative agenda.

Fixed with a seemingly permanent half-smile -- detractors called it a smirk -- Cheney joked about his outsize reputation as a stealthy manipulator.

“Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole?” he asked. “It’s a nice way to operate, actually.”

A hard-liner on Iraq who was increasingly isolated as other hawks left government, Cheney was proved wrong on point after point in the Iraq War, without ever losing the conviction that he was essentially right.

He alleged links between the 2001 attacks against the United States and prewar Iraq that didn’t exist. He said U.S. troops would be welcomed as liberators; they weren’t.

He declared the Iraqi insurgency in its last throes in May 2005, back when 1,661 U.S. service members had been killed, not even half the toll by war’s end.

For admirers, he kept the faith in a shaky time, resolute even as the nation turned against the war and the leaders waging it.

But well into Bush’s second term, Cheney’s clout waned, checked by courts or shifting political realities.

Courts ruled against efforts he championed to broaden presidential authority and accord special harsh treatment to suspected terrorists. His hawkish positions on Iran and North Korea were not fully embraced by Bush.

Cheney operated much of the time from undisclosed locations in the months after the 2001 attacks, kept apart from Bush to ensure one or the other would survive any follow-up assault on the country’s leadership.

With Bush out of town on that fateful day, Cheney was a steady presence in the White House, at least until Secret Service agents lifted him off his feet and carried him away, in a scene the vice president later described to comical effect.

From the beginning, Cheney and Bush struck an odd bargain, unspoken but well understood. Shelving any ambitions he might have had to succeed Bush, Cheney was accorded power comparable in some ways to the presidency itself.

“He is constituted in a way to be the ultimate No. 2 guy,” Dave Gribbin, a friend who grew up with Cheney in Casper, Wyoming, and worked with him in Washington, once said. “He is congenitally discreet. He is remarkably loyal.”

As Cheney put it: “I made the decision when I signed on with the president that the only agenda I would have would be his agenda, that I was not going to be like most vice presidents — and that was angling, trying to figure out how I was going to be elected president when his term was over with.”

His penchant for secrecy and backstage maneuvering had a price. He came to be seen as a thin-skinned Machiavelli orchestrating a bungled response to criticism of the Iraq war. And when he shot a hunting companion in the torso, neck and face with an errant shotgun blast in 2006, he and his coterie were slow to disclose that extraordinary turn of events.

The vice president called it “one of the worst days of my life.” The victim, his friend Harry Whittington, recovered and quickly forgave him. Comedians were relentless about it for months. Whittington died in 2023.

When Bush began his presidential quest, he sought help from Cheney, a Washington insider who had retreated to the oil business. Cheney led the team to find a vice presidential candidate.

Bush decided the best choice was the man picked to help with the choosing.

Together, the pair faced a protracted 2000 postelection battle before they could claim victory. A series of recounts and court challenges — a tempest that brewed from Florida to the nation’s highest court — left the nation in limbo for weeks.

Cheney took charge of the presidential transition before victory was clear and helped give the administration a smooth launch despite the lost time. In office, disputes among departments vying for a bigger piece of Bush’s constrained budget came to his desk and often were settled there.

On Capitol Hill, Cheney lobbied for the president’s programs in halls he had walked as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-liz-cheney-congress-0353d3d0aa0fd093285c8f890cad6bde">a deeply conservative member of Congress</a>&nbsp;and the No. 2 Republican House leader.

Jokes abounded about how Cheney was the real No. 1 in town; Bush didn’t seem to mind and cracked a few himself. But such comments became less apt later in Bush’s presidency as he clearly came into his own.

Cheney retired to Jackson Hole, not far from where Liz Cheney a few years later bought a home, establishing Wyoming residency before she won his old House seat in 2016. The fates of father and daughter grew closer, too, as the Cheney family became one of Trump’s favorite targets.

Dick Cheney rallied to his daughter’s defense in 2022 as she juggled her lead role on the committee investigating Jan. 6 with trying to get reelected in deeply conservative Wyoming.

Liz Cheney’s vote for Trump’s impeachment after the insurrection earned her praise from many Democrats and political observers outside Congress. But that praise and her father’s support didn’t keep her from losing badly in the Republican primary, a dramatic fall after her quick rise to the No. 3 job in the House GOP leadership.

Politics first lured Dick Cheney to Washington in 1968, when he was a congressional fellow. He became a protégé of Rep. Donald Rumsfeld, R-Ill,, serving under him in two agencies and in Gerald Ford’s White House before he was elevated to chief of staff, the youngest ever, at age 34.

Cheney held the post for 14 months, then returned to Casper, where he had been raised, and ran for the state’s single congressional seat.

In that first race for the House, Cheney suffered a mild heart attack, prompting him to crack he was forming a group called “Cardiacs for Cheney.” He still managed a decisive victory and went on to win five more terms.

In 1989, Cheney became defense secretary under the first President Bush and led the Pentagon during the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War that drove Iraq’s troops from Kuwait. Between the two Bush administrations, Cheney led Dallas-based Halliburton Corp., a large engineering and construction company for the oil industry.

Cheney was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, son of a longtime Agriculture Department worker. Senior class president and football co-captain in Casper, he went to Yale on a full scholarship for a year but left with failing grades.

He moved back to Wyoming, eventually enrolled at the University of Wyoming and renewed a relationship with high school sweetheart Lynne Anne Vincent, marrying her in 1964. He is survived by his wife, by Liz and by a second daughter, Mary.

Associated Press writer Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyoming, contributed to this report.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762256723989.png" alt="Dick Cheney on the day George W. Bush named him his running mate -image courtesy CSPAN" />
 <figcaption>Dick Cheney on the day George W. Bush named him his running mate -image courtesy CSPAN</figcaption>
 </figure>WASHINGTON (AP) — Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84.<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Former Vice President Dick Cheney has died. Learn more about his life and career by searching his 452 C-SPAN appearances: <a href="https://t.co/W9mUZ8ZLLV">https://t.co/W9mUZ8ZLLV</a> RIP. <a href="https://t.co/5Crk46Nmvx">pic.twitter.com/5Crk46Nmvx</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1985675222196842811?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>Cheney died Monday night due to complications of pneumonia and cardiac and vascular disease, according to a statement from his family.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762260671709.png" alt="hen-U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney and her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, in Cody July 30, 2022. photo by Dewey Vanderhoff" />
 <figcaption>hen-U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney and her father, former Vice President Dick Cheney, in Cody July 30, 2022. photo by Dewey Vanderhoff</figcaption>
 </figure>“For decades, Dick Cheney served our nation, including as White House Chief of Staff, Wyoming’s Congressman, Secretary of Defense, and Vice President of the United States,” the statement said. "“Dick Cheney was a great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing. We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man.”<div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">From 2015, former Vice President Dick Cheney Bust unveiled in the U.S. Capitol.<a href="https://t.co/KH66WI1Erl">pic.twitter.com/KH66WI1Erl</a>&mdash; CSPAN (@cspan) <a href="https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1985711296885735499?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div><div><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">Dick Cheney, the hard-charging conservative who became one of the most powerful and polarizing vice presidents in U.S. history and a leading advocate for the invasion of Iraq, has died at age 84. <a href="https://t.co/UPjyG10bdd">pic.twitter.com/UPjyG10bdd</a>&mdash; The Associated Press (@AP) <a href="https://twitter.com/AP/status/1985687559104532655?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>The quietly forceful Cheney served father and son presidents, leading the armed forces as defense chief during the Persian Gulf War under President George H.W. Bush before returning to public life as vice president under Bush’s son, George W. Bush.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762257618045.png" alt="Dick Cheney during an appearance on CSPAN in 2018" />
 <figcaption>Dick Cheney during an appearance on CSPAN in 2018</figcaption>
 </figure>Cheney was, in effect, the chief operating officer of the younger Bush’s presidency. He had a hand, often a commanding one, in implementing decisions most important to the president and some of surpassing interest to himself — all while living with decades of heart disease and, post-administration, a heart transplant. Cheney consistently defended the extraordinary tools of surveillance, detention and inquisition employed in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.Years after leaving office, he became a target of President Donald Trump, especially after daughter Liz Cheney became the leading Republican critic and examiner of Trump’s desperate attempts to stay in power after his election defeat and his actions in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol.“In our nation’s 246-year history, there has never been an individual who was a greater threat to our republic than Donald Trump,” Cheney said in&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/2022-midterm-elections-donald-trump-presidential-wyoming-election-2020-33ab8e7df6a6fe46661130a410487b97">a television ad for his daughter</a>. “He tried to steal the last election using lies and violence to keep himself in power after the voters had rejected him. He is a coward.”In a twist the Democrats of his era could never have imagined, Dick Cheney said last year he was voting for their candidate, Kamala Harris, for president against Trump.A survivor of five heart attacks, Cheney long thought he was living on borrowed time and declared in 2013 he now awoke each morning “with a smile on my face, thankful for the gift of another day,” an odd image for a figure who always seemed to be manning the ramparts.His vice presidency defined by the age of terrorism, Cheney disclosed that he had had the wireless function of his defibrillator turned off years earlier out of fear terrorists would remotely send his heart a fatal shock.In his time in office, no longer was the vice presidency merely a ceremonial afterthought. Instead, Cheney made it a network of back channels from which to influence policy on Iraq, terrorism, presidential powers, energy and other cornerstones of a conservative agenda.Fixed with a seemingly permanent half-smile -- detractors called it a smirk -- Cheney joked about his outsize reputation as a stealthy manipulator.“Am I the evil genius in the corner that nobody ever sees come out of his hole?” he asked. “It’s a nice way to operate, actually.”A hard-liner on Iraq who was increasingly isolated as other hawks left government, Cheney was proved wrong on point after point in the Iraq War, without ever losing the conviction that he was essentially right.He alleged links between the 2001 attacks against the United States and prewar Iraq that didn’t exist. He said U.S. troops would be welcomed as liberators; they weren’t.He declared the Iraqi insurgency in its last throes in May 2005, back when 1,661 U.S. service members had been killed, not even half the toll by war’s end.For admirers, he kept the faith in a shaky time, resolute even as the nation turned against the war and the leaders waging it.But well into Bush’s second term, Cheney’s clout waned, checked by courts or shifting political realities.Courts ruled against efforts he championed to broaden presidential authority and accord special harsh treatment to suspected terrorists. His hawkish positions on Iran and North Korea were not fully embraced by Bush.Cheney operated much of the time from undisclosed locations in the months after the 2001 attacks, kept apart from Bush to ensure one or the other would survive any follow-up assault on the country’s leadership.With Bush out of town on that fateful day, Cheney was a steady presence in the White House, at least until Secret Service agents lifted him off his feet and carried him away, in a scene the vice president later described to comical effect.From the beginning, Cheney and Bush struck an odd bargain, unspoken but well understood. Shelving any ambitions he might have had to succeed Bush, Cheney was accorded power comparable in some ways to the presidency itself.That bargain largely held up.“He is constituted in a way to be the ultimate No. 2 guy,” Dave Gribbin, a friend who grew up with Cheney in Casper, Wyoming, and worked with him in Washington, once said. “He is congenitally discreet. He is remarkably loyal.”As Cheney put it: “I made the decision when I signed on with the president that the only agenda I would have would be his agenda, that I was not going to be like most vice presidents — and that was angling, trying to figure out how I was going to be elected president when his term was over with.”His penchant for secrecy and backstage maneuvering had a price. He came to be seen as a thin-skinned Machiavelli orchestrating a bungled response to criticism of the Iraq war. And when he shot a hunting companion in the torso, neck and face with an errant shotgun blast in 2006, he and his coterie were slow to disclose that extraordinary turn of events.The vice president called it “one of the worst days of my life.” The victim, his friend Harry Whittington, recovered and quickly forgave him. Comedians were relentless about it for months. Whittington died in 2023.When Bush began his presidential quest, he sought help from Cheney, a Washington insider who had retreated to the oil business. Cheney led the team to find a vice presidential candidate.Bush decided the best choice was the man picked to help with the choosing.Together, the pair faced a protracted 2000 postelection battle before they could claim victory. A series of recounts and court challenges — a tempest that brewed from Florida to the nation’s highest court — left the nation in limbo for weeks.Cheney took charge of the presidential transition before victory was clear and helped give the administration a smooth launch despite the lost time. In office, disputes among departments vying for a bigger piece of Bush’s constrained budget came to his desk and often were settled there.On Capitol Hill, Cheney lobbied for the president’s programs in halls he had walked as&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-liz-cheney-congress-0353d3d0aa0fd093285c8f890cad6bde">a deeply conservative member of Congress</a>&nbsp;and the No. 2 Republican House leader.Jokes abounded about how Cheney was the real No. 1 in town; Bush didn’t seem to mind and cracked a few himself. But such comments became less apt later in Bush’s presidency as he clearly came into his own.Cheney retired to Jackson Hole, not far from where Liz Cheney a few years later bought a home, establishing Wyoming residency before she won his old House seat in 2016. The fates of father and daughter grew closer, too, as the Cheney family became one of Trump’s favorite targets.Dick Cheney rallied to his daughter’s defense in 2022 as she juggled her lead role on the committee investigating Jan. 6 with trying to get reelected in deeply conservative Wyoming.Liz Cheney’s vote for Trump’s impeachment after the insurrection earned her praise from many Democrats and political observers outside Congress. But that praise and her father’s support didn’t keep her from losing badly in the Republican primary, a dramatic fall after her quick rise to the No. 3 job in the House GOP leadership.Politics first lured Dick Cheney to Washington in 1968, when he was a congressional fellow. He became a protégé of Rep. Donald Rumsfeld, R-Ill,, serving under him in two agencies and in Gerald Ford’s White House before he was elevated to chief of staff, the youngest ever, at age 34.Cheney held the post for 14 months, then returned to Casper, where he had been raised, and ran for the state’s single congressional seat.In that first race for the House, Cheney suffered a mild heart attack, prompting him to crack he was forming a group called “Cardiacs for Cheney.” He still managed a decisive victory and went on to win five more terms.In 1989, Cheney became defense secretary under the first President Bush and led the Pentagon during the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War that drove Iraq’s troops from Kuwait. Between the two Bush administrations, Cheney led Dallas-based Halliburton Corp., a large engineering and construction company for the oil industry.Cheney was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, son of a longtime Agriculture Department worker. Senior class president and football co-captain in Casper, he went to Yale on a full scholarship for a year but left with failing grades.He moved back to Wyoming, eventually enrolled at the University of Wyoming and renewed a relationship with high school sweetheart Lynne Anne Vincent, marrying her in 1964. He is survived by his wife, by Liz and by a second daughter, Mary.___Associated Press writer Mead Gruver in Cheyenne, Wyoming, contributed to this report.<figure>
 <img src="https://ads.stickyadstv.com/user-matching?id=2545&amp;_fw_gdpr=&amp;_fw_gdpr_consent=" alt="" />
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Dick Cheney, powerful and polarizing vice president, has died

RENO COUNTY —Cleanup is underway and authorities are investigating the cause of a train derailment in Hutchinson.

At about 1 a.m.&nbsp; Monday, approximately two dozen Union Pacific rail cars derailed in Hutchinson, according to a statement from Union Pacific. The incident occurred near 17th Avenue and N. Halstead Street. There were no injuries or releases.&nbsp;

The railroad crossing at 17th Avenue has reopened. One northbound lane of K-61&nbsp; from 17th to 39th Avenue remains closed.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762178755778.jpeg" alt="Hutch Post Photo/Sean Boston" />
 <figcaption>Hutch Post Photo/Sean Boston</figcaption>
 </figure>RENO COUNTY —Cleanup is underway and authorities are investigating the cause of a train derailment in Hutchinson.<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/11/1762178739883.jpeg" alt="Hutch Post Photo/Sean Boston" />
 <figcaption>Hutch Post Photo/Sean Boston</figcaption>
 </figure>At about 1 a.m.&nbsp; Monday, approximately two dozen Union Pacific rail cars derailed in Hutchinson, according to a statement from Union Pacific. The incident occurred near 17th Avenue and N. Halstead Street. There were no injuries or releases.&nbsp;The railroad crossing at 17th Avenue has reopened. One northbound lane of K-61&nbsp; from 17th to 39th Avenue remains closed.

Cleanup underway after train derailment in Kansas

By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/geoff-mulvihill">GEOFF MULVIHILL</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/kimberlee-kruesi">KIMBERLEE KRUESI</a>

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration said Monday that it will partially fund&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-how-it-works-cards-e061c2af0f3cc997b69a24296238783c">SNAP</a>&nbsp;after two judges issued rulings requiring it to keep the nation’s largest food aid program running.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, had planned to freeze payments starting Nov. 1 because it said it could no longer keep funding it during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-food-lines-snap-6b55e2c21c0198f3309f3a45a55f33b6">federal government shutdown</a>. The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans and is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net. It costs more than $8 billion per month nationally. The government says an emergency fund it will use has $4.65 billion — enough to cover about half the normal benefits.

<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2025/10/1761944916334.png" alt="Post file Photo" />
 <figcaption>Post file Photo</figcaption>
 </figure>By&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/geoff-mulvihill">GEOFF MULVIHILL</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/author/kimberlee-kruesi">KIMBERLEE KRUESI</a>PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration said Monday that it will partially fund&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-how-it-works-cards-e061c2af0f3cc997b69a24296238783c">SNAP</a>&nbsp;after two judges issued rulings requiring it to keep the nation’s largest food aid program running.The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, had planned to freeze payments starting Nov. 1 because it said it could no longer keep funding it during the&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-food-lines-snap-6b55e2c21c0198f3309f3a45a55f33b6">federal government shutdown</a>. The program serves about 1 in 8 Americans and is a major piece of the nation’s social safety net. It costs more than $8 billion per month nationally. The government says an emergency fund it will use has $4.65 billion — enough to cover about half the normal benefits.Exhausting the fund potentially sets the stage for a similar situation in December if the shutdown isn’t resolved by then.It’s not clear exactly how much beneficiaries will receive, nor how quickly they will see value show up on the debit cards they use to buy groceries. November payments have already been delayed for millions of people.The administration said it would provide details to states on Monday on calculating the per-household partial benefit. The process of loading the SNAP cards, which involves steps by state and federal government agencies and vendors, can take up to two weeks in some states. But the USDA warned in a court filing that it could take weeks or even months for states to make all the system changes to send out reduced benefits. The average monthly benefit is usually about $190 per person.The USDA said last month that benefits for November wouldn’t be paid due to the federal&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/hub/government-shutdown">government shutdown</a>. That set off a scramble by food banks, state governments and the nearly 42 million Americans who receive the aid to find ways to ensure access to groceries..Most states have boosted aid to food banks, and some are&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-snap-states-help-a5ab631a93a6d8087a4448117f026fb7">setting up systems</a>&nbsp;to reload benefit cards with state taxpayer dollars. The threat of a delay also spurred lawsuits.<a href="https://apnews.com/article/snap-shutdown-lawsuits-deadline-4af8b0dec6cd31cddd023cc99c131b73">Federal judges</a>&nbsp;in Massachusetts and Rhode Island ruled separately but similarly Friday, telling the government that it was required to use one emergency fund to pay for the program, at least in part. They gave the government the option to use additional money to fully fund the program and a deadline of Monday to decide.Patrick Penn, Deputy Under Secretary Food Nutrition and Consumer Services for USDA, said in a court filing Monday that the department chose not to tap other emergency funds to ensure there’s not a gap in child nutrition programs for the rest of this fiscal year, which runs through September 2026.Trump said on social media Friday that he does “NOT want Americans to go hungry just because the Radical Democrats refuse to do the right thing and REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT.” He said he was telling government lawyers to prepare SNAP payments as soon as possible.Democratic state attorneys general or governors from 25 states, as well as the District of Columbia, challenged the plan to pause the program, contending that the administration has a legal obligation to keep it running in their jurisdictions. Cities and nonprofits also filed a lawsuit.Advocates and beneficiaries say halting the food aid would&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/government-shutdown-food-lines-snap-6b55e2c21c0198f3309f3a45a55f33b6">force people to choose</a>&nbsp;between buying groceries and paying other bills. The majority of states have announced more or expedited&nbsp;<a href="https://apnews.com/article/shutdown-snap-states-help-a5ab631a93a6d8087a4448117f026fb7">funding for food banks or novel ways</a>&nbsp;to load at least some benefits onto the SNAP debit cards.Rhode Island officials said Monday that under their program, SNAP beneficiaries who also receive benefits from another federal program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, received payments Saturday equal to one-fourth of what they typically get from SNAP. Officials in Delaware are telling recipients that benefits there won’t be available until at least Nov. 7.To qualify for SNAP in 2025, a household’s net income after certain expenses can’t exceed the federal poverty line. For a family of four, that’s about $32,000 per year.___Mulvihill reported from Haddonfield, New Jersey.