Climbing monthly electricity bills, a growing stressor on U.S. families as demand surges for energy, have emerged as a significant issue in the nation’s only two elections for governor this year and as a test on the political parties’ messages for next year’s midterms. Virginia and New Jersey are less than a week away from electing their next governors in campaigns being closely watched for signs of the electorate’s reaction to President Donald Trump’s second term as well as the Democrats’ effort to respond after their national defeat in 2024.

What is next for the commoner once known as Prince Andrew probably involves moving trucks as he packs up the trappings of his once royal life to move to an isolated private home owned by his brother, King Charles III. The commoner now known as 65-year-old Andrew Mountbatten Windsor was stripped by his brother of his titles and will be forced to vacate his rent-free Royal Lodge mansion near Windsor Castle because of his association with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Andrew's new home will be on the king’s estate at Sandringham on wind-swept east coast. Despite his downfall, Andrew remains eighth in line to the throne.

An Ohio commission has adopted new U.S. House districts that could help Republicans win more seats in next year’s elections. The map approved Friday by the Ohio Redistricting Commission could boost Republican chances in districts currently held by Democratic Reps. Greg Landsman in Cincinnati and Marcy Kaptur near Toledo. Republicans already hold 10 of the state’s 15 congressional seats. The state constitution requires new districts before the 2026 election because the current ones were enacted without bipartisan support. President Donald Trump is encouraging Republican-led states to redraw districts to boost the GOP’s chances of holding on to the House in next year’s elections.

A bird sighting on New York's Long Island has avian enthusiasts flocking to the region in the hopes of spotting a feathered friend who has never been seen before in the state. The common cuckoo is typically found from Europe to Japan, with the majority of the population wintering in Africa. But one was recently spotted in Riverhead on the north shore of Long Island. Once the bird was confirmed as a common cuckoo, birders quickly shared the news in their online communities. The bird has since been spotted more than 200 times. It’s not clear how or why the bird ended up there.

A memorial to 44 people who died in the first confirmed case of sabotage against a U.S. airliner is being dedicated on the 70th anniversary of its bombing over Colorado. A farmer who helped recover the bodies of those killed and a woman who lost her father, who have recently become friends, will be among those there for Saturday's ceremony in Denver. Attention on the dramatic details of the bombing, the lack of a federal law making it a crime to attack a plane and the meticulous investigation into what happened has overshadowed attention on the victims and those they left behind until now.

Two federal judges could rule on whether the federal government must continue replenishing SNAP food aid benefits during the shutdown. The Trump administration says debit cards will not be loaded for November, a decision that impacts the ability to buy groceries for about 1 in 8 Americans. Lawyers representing Democratic state officials from across the country made their case in court Thursday to continue the benefits. A hearing on a similar challenge from a coalition of cities and nonprofit groups is scheduled for Friday. Even if benefits are ordered to continue, they'll likely be delayed for many beneficiaries.

FBI Director Kash Patel says federal officials have arrested multiple people in Michigan who had allegedly been plotting a violent attack over the Halloween weekend. Patel announced the arrests in a social media post, saying the arrests took place Friday morning. He didn't release further information about the arrests, but said more information would be coming. Dearborn Police say the department was made aware that the FBI conducted operations in the city on Friday and assured residents that there is no threat to the community.

There’s been an unprecedented surge in the numbers of attendees at Sunday worship at the Quaker Arch Street Meeting House in Old City Philadelphia. Many of them are young people who are seeking respite from this noisy technological age in the silent worship of the centuries-old faith. For years, attendance at Arch Street was so low, and its historic 300-seat West Room felt so empty, that the few people present began to meet in a smaller room. But in recent years, they’ve used technology and social media to help teach others about Quakers and the meeting house that was built in the early 19th century and that is still one of the world’s largest and most important Quaker buildings.

School crossing guards are important in making sure kids get to school safely. But those guards work under dangerous conditions that can threaten their lives. An investigation by The Associated Press and Cox Media Group finds that at least 230 school crossing guards were injured or killed over the past 10 years, based on accident reports requested from nearly 200 U.S. police departments. There are no national standards or reporting methods for keeping track of when guards are hurt on the job. Experts say that’s hampered efforts to develop better safety measures or even assess just how dangerous the job is.

A U.S. Senate investigation has uncovered numerous credible reports of medical neglect and poor conditions in immigration detention centers across the country. The report, released by Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff, highlights cases where detainees were denied insulin, left without medical attention for days, and forced to compete for clean water. It documents 80 credible cases of medical neglect and widespread complaints about inadequate food and water. Senate investigators say these findings point to systemic failures in federal detention oversight. The report cites delays in medical care that, in some cases, proved life-threatening.

No one is bigger than the monarchy. Not even the king’s brother. In the end, that reality spelled the end of Prince Andrew’s life as a prince of the realm. From now on, the scandal-plagued British royal will be known simply as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. As details of Andrew’s links to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein continued to dribble out and Parliament raised questions about his rent-free residence at a sprawling country house near Windsor Castle, King Charles III on Thursday moved to shield the monarchy from any further revelations.

The U.S. Secretary of Defense has told his Chinese counterpart that Washington will "stoutly defend" its interests in the Indo-Pacific. This was during talks in Malaysia on Friday. Pete Hegseth described the meeting with Chinese Admiral Dong Jun as "good and constructive." He raised concerns over Chinese activities in the South China Sea and around Taiwan. Hegseth also signed a new defense agreement with India, aimed at expanding military cooperation. The meeting reflects ongoing efforts to manage tensions in the region, even as strategic differences remain, particularly over Taiwan and freedom of navigation.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says drug makers have recalled more than a half-million bottles of the blood pressure medication prazosin hydrochloride over concerns it may include a cancer-causing chemical. New Jersey-based Teva Pharmaceuticals USA issued a voluntary recall earlier this month for some lots of the capsules it sells. Doctors prescribe prazosin, which relaxes blood vessels, to help lower blood pressure. It also is sometimes prescribed for post-traumatic stress disorder. The FDA has given the drug a Class II risk classification because some of the recalled medication may have nitrosamine impurities that are considered potentially cancer causing.

Many museums began reassessing security after the stunning jewelry heist at the Louvre in Paris. Some were also reflecting on the inherent tension in the task of securing art: Museums are meant to welcome people to engage with art, not create distance from it. While the Louvre has acknowledged major security lapses, it has also received messages of solidarity from the art world. Experts highlight the difficulty of securing art in historic buildings not designed as museums. The focus, they say, is on finding a workable balance between security and accessibility.

The government shutdown has some people rethinking what to hand out this Halloween. Some U.S. householders are preparing to give trick-or-treaters shelf-stable family foods like ramen, canned soup or cheese sticks. These creative neighbors aren't opposed to handing out candy; they're trying to help people whose families may have trouble making ends meet when the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is cut off. The program helps tens of millions of Americans feed their families and is set to run out of money Nov. 1. A flurry of widely shared posts online suggest some households will even be giving out diapers to families in need.