Early Voting Breaks Midterm Record Ahead of Election Day

ACA Premiums Rise by Double Digits as Enrollment Opens

Democrats Face Late Setbacks in Michigan and Alaska

Record Crypto Hack Linked to North Korea

AI Expansion Tests Funding and Power Deals

Early Voting Breaks Midterm Record Ahead of Election Day

More than 53 million Americans had voted early in person or by mail by the morning of Nov. 1, according to a University of Florida Election Lab count cited by Al Jazeera. The national total had already exceeded the entire 2022 midterm early vote by Oct. 30, States Newsroom reported. Texas recorded more than 7.7 million early voters, or 40.5% of registered voters, surpassing its 2018 midterm record, according to preliminary state data reported by The Texas Tribune. Georgia exceeded its 2022 in-person early-voting total, while Virginia surpassed its overall early-vote total from that election. The preliminary counts do not reveal how people voted or predict the outcome, and some of the increase reflects a lasting shift toward voting before Election Day that began during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Nov. 3 election will decide all 435 House seats, 35 Senate seats and 36 governorships, with control of Congress determining the prospects for the president’s agenda and oversight of his administration.

Al Jazeera / States Newsroom / Texas Tribune / Georgia Secretary of State / Fox 5 DC / Newsweek

ACA Premiums Rise by Double Digits as Enrollment Opens

Premiums for the Affordable Care Act’s benchmark silver plans are rising by double digits for 2027, averaging increases of 11% in states using the federal marketplace and 16% in states operating their own platforms, according to KFF. Open enrollment began Nov. 1 in most states as buyers faced a second consecutive year of steep premium increases. Enhanced federal premium tax credits expired at the end of 2025, although the original ACA subsidies remain available to eligible buyers. KFF reported that marketplace plan selections for 2026 fell by 1.2 million from the previous year. Federal marketplace customers must enroll by Dec. 15 for coverage beginning Jan. 1, and open enrollment ends Jan. 15, although state deadlines can differ. The higher costs put additional pressure on self-employed workers, small-business employees and early retirees who depend on the marketplaces for health insurance.

KFF / WJLA

Democrats Face Late Setbacks in Michigan and Alaska

Democrats faced late setbacks in two Senate battlegrounds as Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens of Michigan endorsed Republican Mike Rogers and federal investigators expanded a probe into an alleged effort to confuse Alaska voters. Stevens, a Democrat who lost her party’s primary to Abdul El-Sayed, announced her endorsement Nov. 1 after disputes with him over Israel and an outside group’s advertisement she called antisemitic. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer condemned the endorsement and reaffirmed support for El-Sayed. In Alaska, the Justice Department issued new grand jury subpoenas Oct. 29 in an investigation into allegations that Democrat Mary Peltola’s allies recruited Dan J. Sullivan to draw votes from Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, AP reported. Peltola denied knowing about the effort, but The New York Times reported that text messages and documents showed her advisers’ involvement, contradicting her campaign’s denial. U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason dismissed a related lawsuit seeking to block certification if the senator loses, but the department appealed, prolonging a legal fight in one of the races that could decide Senate control.

ABC News / AP / NYT

Record Crypto Hack Linked to North Korea

An attacker stole about $6.36 billion from Binance wallets across 10 blockchains in what TRM Labs described as the largest cryptocurrency theft on record. Most of the money moved in about 20 minutes, and the total exceeded four times the $1.5 billion stolen from rival exchange Bybit in February 2025. TRM attributed the attack with high confidence to North Korea’s TraderTraitor hacking unit, while the FBI said it was assessing the incident without publicly assigning responsibility. Binance halted withdrawals and said Oct. 30 that it had set aside more than $6.34 billion in company funds to cover losses. The exchange also said about $3 billion in stolen assets had been frozen with help from industry partners. U.S. officials and U.N. investigators have linked earlier North Korean cryptocurrency thefts to weapons funding, adding national security stakes if the attribution is confirmed.

Nextgov / Reuters / Binance

AI Expansion Tests Funding and Power Deals

The Nasdaq fell 5.3% in October, its worst month since March 2025, while Intel shares plunged 28.6% on Oct. 30 after a weaker-than-expected revenue outlook that cited weak PC demand, parts shortages and rising memory costs. OpenAI reduced its fundraising target from $30 billion to $20 billion for a round that remains unfinished, CNBC reported, while rival Anthropic has filed for an initial public offering.

Neoclouds rent out AI computing power using borrowed money; CoreWeave’s $2.6 billion loan runs about five years against customer contracts averaging three, leaving some repayment dependent on future business. Reuters reported Oct. 15 that CoreWeave’s 2031 bond yield reached 16%, the return investors demanded to hold the debt, while its five-year credit default swap spread exceeded 11%, an annualized measure of the cost of insuring against nonpayment. The spikes signal growing concern that lenders may not be repaid and could make new borrowing more expensive, potentially slowing construction of AI data centers. Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed a petition for rehearing Oct. 30 challenging regulators’ approval of DTE’s electricity contracts for Google’s data center, warning they could raise other customers’ power bills despite regulators’ assurances that the contracts protect ratepayers.

Citizen Journal Analysis / CNBC / Reuters / Anthropic / CoreWeave / CFA Institute / SEC / Michigan AG / Michigan PSC / Michigan Public

NOVEMBER 2, 1917: BALFOUR DECLARATION LETTER WRITTEN

The Balfour Declaration laid the diplomatic groundwork for establishing a Jewish national home in Palestine under British rule. Its vague promise to support both Jewish and Arab inhabitants helped set the stage for a century of conflict over land, rights and sovereignty.  This letter remains a key reference point in debates about the origins and course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and wider Middle Eastern politics.

This article was written using our proprietary AI system, Cronkite. The final decision to publish this article was made by a human. For more info, read our AI policy.

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Sources

1. Al Jazeera / States Newsroom via Michigan Advance / Texas Tribune / Georgia Secretary of State / Fox 5 DC / Newsweek
2. KFF / WJLA
3. ABC News / AP via ABC7 / NYT via GV Wire
4. Nextgov / Reuters via StreetInsider / Binance
5. Citizen Journal Analysis / CNBC — Markets / Reuters via Yahoo Finance — Intel / Reuters via Investing.com — Intel Closing Decline / CNBC — OpenAI / Reuters via StreetInsider — OpenAI / Anthropic / CoreWeave — SEC Filing on Loan Terms / CoreWeave — Quarterly Filing / Reuters via MarketScreener — AI Debt Markets / CFA Institute — Credit Default Swaps / SEC — Bond Yields / Michigan AG / Michigan PSC / Michigan Public