CA-GOV: Swalwell campaign imploding after new sexual assault allegation

Multiple people have abruptly resigned from Rep. Eric Swalwell’s gubernatorial campaign, throwing the durability of his operation into question after the California Democrat repeatedly this week denied allegations of sexual misconduct.

Members of senior leadership have departed the campaign, including Courtni Pugh, a strategic adviser who served as Swalwell’s top liaison to organized labor groups.

Pugh confirmed her resignation, but declined to comment further. Two other people, who were granted anonymity to discuss internal campaign dynamics, confirmed there have been at least four departures.

The resignations came just before the San Francisco Chronicle published a report Friday afternoon reporting that a former staffer claims Swalwell had sexual encounters with her while working for him, and that he sexually assaulted her twice when she was too drunk to consent.



https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/10/swalwell-campaign-imploding-amid-sexual-assault-allegation-00867619

Prince William County announces additional early voting sites.

Virginia Redistricting Early Voting Update

Fairfax County: Early Voting on Constitutional Amendment Expands to 13 Additional Locations

Early voting for the April 21 proposed constitutional amendment special election continues, with voting expanding to 13 additional locations across Fairfax County tomorrow, Saturday, April 11. Days and hours are as follows:

Fairfax County Government Center: 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. (Monday–Friday); 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays, April 11 and 18.

Satellite locations including 13 new sites and the Mt. Vernon and North County Governmental Centers: 1 to 7 p.m. (Monday–Friday); 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturdays, April 11 and 18.

All locations are closed on Sundays.

Voters are also reminded that the 2026 congressional primary has been rescheduled from June to August.



https://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news/early-voting-begins-march-6-april-21-proposed-constitutional

Trump Promises Mass Pardons to Staff

“President Trump has repeatedly promised his top administration officials pardons before he leaves office,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

Said Trump, in a recent meeting: “I’ll pardon everyone who has come within 200 feet of the Oval.”

“That radius appears to be expanding as the president repeats the line. Another person who met with Trump earlier this year said the president quipped about pardoning anyone who had come within 10 feet.”

“In one conversation with advisers in the dining room next to the Oval Office last year, Trump said he would host a news conference and announce mass pardons before he left office.”


https://politicalwire.com/2026/04/10/trump-promises-mass-pardons-to-staff/

NY-10: Brad Lander (D) opposes U.S. funds to protect Israeli civilians from missiles and drones.

Lander’s position opposing U.S. aid to Israel marks a shift as he seeks to rally progressive voters. During last year’s mayoral race, Lander said he supports continued U.S. funding for Iron Dome and other defensive systems.

In a statement to the Forward on Friday, Lander said “Iron Dome is critical to ensuring the safety of civilians in Israel. Israel should have access to purchase it with their own funds.”

However, he added — citing the Leahy Law, which requires withholding funding in cases of “gross violations of human rights” — the U.S. ”should not provide taxpayer-funded financial aid for it at this time.”

The statement concluded: “I genuinely hope that changes in the future, speedily and in our day, as part of a deal that protects the human rights and safety of all civilians in the region.”



https://forward.com/brad-lander-aid-israel-dan-goldman-iron-dome/

DC-AL: Fifteen Democrats are running to succeed 18-term U.S. House incumbent in Washington D.C.

Fifteen candidates are running in the Democratic primary for the U.S. House of Representatives in District of Columbia on June 16, 2026. Voters will elect one non-voting member to serve in the U.S. House from Washington D.C.'s at-large U.S. House district. Three candidates—Brooke Pinto, Robert White, and Kinney Zalesne—lead in polling, fundraising, and media attention.

On January 26, 2026, incumbent Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) announced she would not seek re-election in 2026, saying, "The privilege of public service is inseparable from the responsibility to recognize when it's time to lift up the next generation of leaders. For D.C., that time has come." Norton was first elected in 1991, and will retire after serving 18 terms in Congress.

The Associated Press' Matt Brown wrote, "Her retirement opens up a likely competitive primary to succeed her in an overwhelmingly Democratic city," and NOTUS' Taylor Giorno wrote that the race "is shaping up to be one of the most expensive in the district’s history." While the non-voting delegate cannot cast final votes on bills, they can introduce legislation, serve on and vote in committees, offer amendments, and speak on the U.S. House floor.

Pinto represents Ward 2 on the Washington D.C. city council. Pinto earned her bachelor's degree from Cornell University and her law degree from Georgetown. Before her election to the city council, Pinto was an assistant attorney general in Washington, D.C. Pinto is running on her public service record. Her campaign website says she "has a proven track record of delivering results and will fight on Capitol Hill for our autonomy and self-governance, for our families, for a fair economy for working people, and for public safety in all of our neighborhoods."





https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/04/10/fifteen-democrats-are-running-to-succeed-18-term-u-s-house-incumbent-in-washington-d-c/

Oklahoma voters to decide state question on reimbursement methodology for local revenue lost to manufacturing tax exempt

Oklahoma voters will decide on a constitutional amendment at the Aug. 25, 2026, primary runoff election. The amendment would require the state legislature to establish a set methodology for determining reimbursement amounts for local governments and districts for revenues lost due to a statewide manufacturing tax exemption.

As of 2026, new or expanded manufacturing plants in Oklahoma are eligible for a five-year property tax exemption. The exemption was originally created when State Question 588 was approved by voters in 1985. The Oklahoma constitution currently requires the state to reimburse cities and other local governments for revenue lost due to the property tax exemption.

The constitutional amendment would add that the state legislature must set levels and methodologies for such reimbursements. The amendment states that the aim of the requirement would be to “[ensure] that no individual county shall receive reimbursement in amounts that result in a detriment to the other counties of the state.”

On March 3, 2026, state Rep. Kyle Hilbert (R-29) introduced the amendment to the state House as House Joint Resolution 1087 (HB 1087). On March 25, 2026, the state House approved HB 1087 in a vote of 76-16. Sixty-nine Republicans and seven Democrats voted yes. Four Republicans and 12 Democrats voted no. On April 9, 2026, the state Senate approved HB 1087 in a vote of 38-7. Thirty-eight Republicans voted yes, and seven Democrats voted no.



https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/04/10/oklahoma-voters-to-decide-state-question-on-reimbursement-methodology-for-local-revenue-lost-to-manufacturing-tax-exemption-on-august-25-primary-runoff-ballot/

AZ-Corp Comm: Clean energy just won big in Phoenix. Advocates now want to go statewide.

After renewable energy supporters won an election to take charge of a major electrical utility company in Phoenix for the first time ever this week, Arizona Democrats are newly enthused about a pair of races this fall for the body that regulates utilities across the state.

Democrats Jonathon Hill and Clara Pratte are campaigning to flip two Republican-held seats on the Arizona Corporation Commission, an entity that, due to its unusual power, has often been nicknamed the state’s “fourth branch of government.” (A huffy state Supreme Court made sure to specify in a footnote to a 2021 ruling that “our Constitution is clear that we have only three branches of government.”)

Republicans hold all five seats on the board, and, because only two of them are on the ballot this year, they aren’t in danger of losing control of the commission this cycle. A strong year for Democrats, though, would set them up for more success in 2028 when the other three seats will go before voters.

Incumbents Nick Myer and Kevin Thompson, however, can’t focus on the general election yet. State Reps. Ralph Heap and David Marshall, who are both allied with the state’s branch of the far-right Freedom Caucus, announced last year that they would challenge Myer and Thompson in the GOP primary.



https://www.the-downballot.com/p/morning-digest-clean-energy-just

National GOP goes to the mat to get anti-voting extremists on election board in key Georgia county

The Fulton County Republican Party asked the Georgia Supreme Court to step in after a lower court ruled local officials can reject its election-denying nominees.

The petition, filed Thursday, asks the state’s highest court to overturn a March ruling that allowed the Fulton County Board of Commissioners (BOC) to refuse to appoint two GOP-backed nominees — both of whom have challenged 2020 election results — to the county’s Board of Registration and Elections.

“Democrats in Fulton County can ignore the law and stall all they want, but we’re not going anywhere,” Republican National Committee chairman Joe Gruters and Georgia Republican Party chairman Josh McKoon said in a joint statement. “We will keep fighting until they are held accountable and forced to follow the law, and we will not stop until Republican nominees are given the equal representation they are entitled to under Georgia law.”

The Fulton County elections board oversees voter registration, absentee ballots and certification of election results in Georgia’s most populous county.


https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/national-gop-anti-voting-extremists-election-board-key-georgia-county/