Elections

Reform UK has received the largest political donation in British history, MPs have voted down assisted dying legislation, and the ground is shifting ahead of both a Westminster by-election and the American midterms. This hub follows the mechanics and drama of electoral politics on both sides of the Atlantic: who funds campaigns, who gets selected to fight for a vacant seat, and how governments quietly time contentious decisions to avoid handing opponents ammunition before voters go to the polls.

Elections shape who holds power and how that power is exercised, which is why the manoeuvring around them, donor influence, candidate selection rows, delayed rulings, party infighting, often reveals as much as the vote itself. In Britain, attention is turning to a closely watched contest for a former Labour leader's seat, with rival parties jostling for position and local issues such as North Sea drilling becoming entangled in the timing of national announcements. In the United States, both major parties are already framing the narrative around the midterms, trading accusations of foul play and reading the runes for who stands to lose ground.

Expect ongoing coverage of campaign finance, candidate controversies, parliamentary votes with electoral consequences, and the wider jostling between parties as they position themselves for the next test at the ballot box.

  • Locarno: The Filmmakers Behind ‘Piluk,’ From the National Film Board of Canada, Discuss the Language of Animation

    The National Film Board of Canada’s new short film “Piluk” has had its world premiere in the Pardi di Domani section of the Locarno Film Festival, and its directors have discussed their deliberately low-tech approach to animation. Directed by artists Marc Séguin and Elisapie Isaac, the film tells its wordless story using hand-drawn imagery and…

  • Nvidia links with Wall Street firms for $500bn AI financing deal

    Nvidia has struck agreements with six major Wall Street firms to raise more than $500bn (£370bn) in capital to fund artificial intelligence infrastructure, underlining how the AI boom is drawing in institutional investors as governments, companies and startups race to build datacentres. Chief executive Jensen Huang said Nvidia has the option to backstop up to…

  • Heritage Monday at the Locarno Film Festival Sees a Future in the Past

    At the Locarno Film Festival’s industry programme, this year’s Heritage Monday panel tackled how to draw younger audiences to older, classic films, amid growing interest in restoration and retrospective programming. Panellists including Leslie Vuchot (Timeless Cinema), Amy Homma (Academy Museum of Motion Pictures), Stefanie Schulte Strathaus (Arsenal Filminstitut) and Eddie Muller (Film Noir Foundation) argued…

  • North Carolina Republicans pick ballot replacement for Rep. Chuck Edwards

    Republicans in North Carolina selected state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom (R) as the new GOP nominee in the state’s 11th Congressional District, after Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-N.C.) dropped out of the race last week. Members of the state GOP’s executive committee for the 11th district selected Balkcom just 85 days before Election Day in what projects…

  • Sheffield park battle, RFK’s food fight and Pentagon races to rearm

    In Sheffield, a proposed Orgreave Park development at Handsworth Hall Farm became part of the wider dispute over the city’s green-belt housing plans. The scheme’s early environmental assessment envisaged up to 900 homes and a 49-acre business park on farmland near Orgreave Lane. It sits alongside a Local Plan that allocates 14 green-belt sites for…

  • Who were The Tennessee Three? The story of Johnny Cash’s devoted backing band

    Faroutmagazine.co.uk profiles The Tennessee Three, the backing band that helped shape Johnny Cash’s distinctive sound. The piece traces how Cash, raised in Arkansas and drawn to music through his mother and gospel radio, met the musicians who would become his lifelong collaborators after leaving the US Air Force in the mid-1950s, and explains why their…

  • Disabled in a heatwave: ‘We’re talking about survival’

    As the UK faces its fifth heatwave of the summer, disabled people say extreme heat poses risks to their safety and independence that are largely absent from public health advice and emergency planning. Campaigners and those affected describe the situation as far more serious than mere discomfort, with heatwaves forcing them to curtail travel, work…

  • 4 Wilson Pickett Songs That Everyone Should Still Know Today

    American Songwriter has published a retrospective highlighting four songs by soul singer Wilson Pickett that it argues remain essential listening today. The piece marks the enduring legacy of Pickett, who began his career with the 1963 album “It’s Too Late” and went on to record hits over a career spanning more than 25 years. It…

  • White House thrusts vaccines back into headlines 

    Click in for more news from The Hill {beacon} Healthcare Healthcare   The Big Story White House thrusts vaccines back into headlines The Trump administration appeared to be backing away from making moves on changing vaccine policy in recent months, perhaps wary of political backlash ahead of the midterm elections. But it all came roaring…

  • Alabama heads into a second primary election after redistricting

    Alabama voters are again selecting candidates for four Congressional districts after the state changed the district map to favor Republicans. The redistricting is causing confusion among voters.