Nation and World news — at a glance — for October 26

Harris and Trump deadlocked to the end, final Times/Siena national poll finds

(NYTimes) — Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are locked in a dead heat for the popular vote, 48% to 48%, the final national poll by The New York Times and Siena College has found, as the vice president struggles for an edge over the former president with an electorate that seems impossibly and immovably divided. The result, coming less than two weeks before Election Day, and as millions of Americans have already voted, is not encouraging for Harris. In recent elections, Democrats have had an edge in the popular vote even when they have lost the Electoral College and thus the White House.

E. coli outbreak tied to McDonald’s widens to 75 people in 13 states

(NYTimes) — The number of people hospitalized from the E. coli outbreak linked to raw onions on McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers has more than doubled, and those reporting they have been sickened rose to 75, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported Friday. Illnesses of people ranging in age from 13 to 88 were reported in 13 states. Additionally, the CDC said a second person had developed the life-threatening condition associated with E. coli called hemolytic uremic syndrome. Although cases had been originally clustered in the Mountain West, updated data from the CDC now shows cases in Michigan, Washington and Oregon.

Teenager charged with murder of 5 relatives in Washington state

(NYTimes) — Prosecutors in Washington state charged a 15-year-old boy Thursday with the murder of his parents and three siblings this week near Seattle. The teenager has been in custody since Monday, when officers found the five family members shot dead at their home in Fall City. The suspect staged the scene before the officers arrived to make it appear as if his 13-year-old brother had killed himself after shooting the others, authorities said. The 15-year-old called 911 around 5 a.m. and said his brother had killed the family because he had gotten into trouble for looking at pornography, Leesa Manion, a King County prosecuting attorney, said in charging documents filed Thursday.

Washington Post says it will stop endorsing presidential candidates

(NYTimes) — A debate inside The Washington Post continued for days among top leaders: Should it make an endorsement in the presidential race, continuing a decades-long tradition? Jeff Bezos, the paper’s billionaire owner, decided that the answer was no. On Friday, Post CEO Will Lewis announced the decision to the newsroom. It came after the debate and decision by Bezos, a person with knowledge of the talks said. “The Washington Post will not be making an endorsement of a presidential candidate in this election,” Lewis wrote to the staff. “Nor in any future presidential election. We are returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates.”

Biden administration floats student loan relief for borrowers facing hardship

(NYTimes) — The Biden administration has proposed another student debt relief plan for 8 million people who cannot repay their loans because of “financially devastating hardships,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said Friday. The proposal, which will almost certainly face legal challenges, builds on the administration’s strategy of finding new ways to reduce student loan debt after the Supreme Court last year rejected a far more ambitious plan. Under the proposed regulation, the secretary of education would be authorized to cancel federal student loans in cases where the Education Department determined hardships based things such as surprise medical bills, burdensome child care or elder care costs, and financial losses from a natural disaster.

North Korean troops assemble in Russia’s Kursk region, US officials say

(NYTimes) — Several thousand North Korean soldiers have arrived in Russia’s western Kursk region, where they are expected to participate in a counteroffensive against Ukrainian troops who have occupied a portion of the region since August, officials said Friday. The North Korean troops have not yet entered the fight, and it is not yet clear what role they will play, the officials said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. Whatever their role, the officials said, any significant contingent of North Korean troops will allow Russia to keep more of its forces in eastern Ukraine, where they can stay focused on seizing as much territory as possible before the winter sets in.

Gang gunfire in Haiti hits US embassy vehicles and UN aid helicopter

(NYTimes) — Armed gangs in Haiti opened fire on U.S. Embassy vehicles and a United Nations helicopter this week, an escalation of attacks as criminal groups overwhelm security forces in the country — including an international mission charged with taking on the gangs. The helicopter was hit in midair Thursday while flying over the capital, Port-au-Prince, a U.N. official said. It was carrying three crew members and 15 passengers. No one was injured, and the helicopter landed safely, said Arnaud Royer, head of the U.N. human rights office in Haiti. The helicopter is used to deliver humanitarian aid to Haitians, many living in communities cut off by gangs.

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