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California holds special election today to fill vacancy left by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy
Washington — Voters in California’s 20th district are going to the polls Tuesday to fill the vacancy left by former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, as House Republicans eagerly await an additional vote in the chamber after his departure late last year.
Among the group of candidates vying to fill the vacancy left by McCarthy are State Assembly member Vince Fong, who has the former speaker’s endorsement and the backing of former President Donald Trump, and Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux.
The solidly conservative district is all but certain to deliver the House another Republican. But how quickly that happens remains to be seen.
A candidate has to win more than 50% of the vote to avoid a runoff election. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote in the district, the top two candidates, regardless of party, will move on to an election on May 21. The winner will serve until Jan. 3, 2025, or the remainder of McCarthy’s House term.
Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
The special election may draw confusion, after voters in the Golden State headed to the polls just two weeks ago to vote in the primary. That’s because California Gov. Gavin Newsom set the date for a special election in the state’s 20th Congressional District for March 19, just two weeks after the primary for McCarthy’s seat for a full term was held.
Fong and Boudreaux have already advanced to be on the ballot for the November election for a full term representing the district. The special election will determine who carries out the remainder of the former House Speaker’s term.
McCarthy announced in December that he was leaving Congress to “serve America in new ways,” two months after he became the first speaker in U.S. history to be ousted from his post.
NEW YORK — Former New York Gov. David Paterson and his stepson were attacked in New York City on Friday night, authorities said.
The incident occurred just before 9 p.m. on Second Avenue near East 96th Street on the Upper East Side, according to the New York City Police Department.
Police said officers were sent to the scene after an assault was reported. When officers arrived, police say they found a 20-year-old man suffering from facial injuries and a 70-year-old man who had head pain. Both victims were taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the former governor said the two were attacked while “taking a walk around the block near their home by some individuals that had a previous interaction with his stepson.”
The spokesperson said that they were injured “but were able to fight off their attackers.”
Both were taken to Cornell Hospital “as a precaution,” he added.
Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.
The 70-year-old Paterson, a Democrat, served as governor from 2008 to 2010, stepping into the post after the resignation of Eliot Spitzer following his prostitution scandal. He made history at the time as the state’s first-ever Black and legally blind governor.
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A 17-year-old boy was critically injured and a person is in custody after a gunman opened fire on a SEPTA bus in North Philadelphia Friday evening, police said.
At around 6:15 p.m., Philadelphia police were notified about a shooting on a SEPTA bus traveling on Allegheny Avenue near 3rd and 4th streets in North Philadelphia, Inspector D F Pace told CBS News Philadelphia.
There were an estimated 30 people on the bus at the time of the shooting, Pace said, but only the 17-year-old boy was believed to have been shot. Investigators said they believe it was a targeted attack on the teenager and that he was shot in the back of the bus at close range.
According to Pace, the SEPTA bus driver alerted a control center about the shooting, which then relayed the message to Philadelphia police, who responded to the scene shortly.
Officers arrived at the scene and found at least one spent shell casing and blood on the bus, but no shooting victim, Pace said. Investigators later discovered the 17-year-old had been taken to Temple University Hospital where he is said to be in critical condition, according to police.
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Through their preliminary investigation, police learned those involved in the SEPTA shooting may have fled in a silver-colored Kia.
Authorities then found a car matching the description of the Kia speeding in the area and a pursuit began, Pace said. Police got help from a PPD helicopter as they followed the Kia, which ended up crashing at 5th and Greenwood streets in East Mount Airy. Pace said the Kia crashed into a parked car.
The driver of the crashed car ran away but police were still able to take them into custody, Pace said.
Investigators believe there was a second person involved in the shooting who ran from the car before it crashed. Police said they believe this person escaped near Allegheny Avenue and 4th Street, leaving a coat behind.
According to Pace, police also found a gun and a group of spent shell casings believed to be involved in the shooting in the same area.
“It’s very possible that there may have been a shooting inside the bus and also shots fired from outside of the bus toward the bus,” Pace said, “We’re still trying to piece all that together at this time.”
This is an active investigation and police are reviewing surveillance footage from the SEPTA bus.