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Montgomery Steppe takes early lead in District 4 Supervisor race

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Monica Montgomery Steppe was leading over Amy Reichert in early results in the special election for the District 4 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.Tuesday's election between San Diego City Councilmember Monica Montgomery Steppe and founder of “Reopen San Diego” Amy Reichert was held to fill the spot that was vacated by former Supervisor Nathan Fletcher after he was accused of sexual misconduct in his role as chairman of the MTS board in a lawsuit.In August, District 4 voters took to the ballot box to select between four candidates in a primary election. However, none received more than the 50% majority that was needed to win outright, prompting the special election to move to a runoff between the top two vote-getters.Montgomery Steppe, a Democrat, earned 41.70% of the vote in the Aug. 17 primary. Meanwhile, Reichert, a Republican, garnered 28.84% of the vote.Whoever wins in the Nov. 7 runoff will serve out the remainder of Fletcher’s ter...

Miesfeld, Verdugo take early lead in Chula Vista City Attorney race

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

CHULA VISTA, Calif. -- Bart Miesfeld and Marco Verdugo were leading in early results in the special election for Chula Vista city attorney.Tuesday's election between Dan Smith Diaz, Bart Miesfeld and Marco Verdugo was held after the unexpected death of the previous candidate elected left the position vacant.A candidate will need to receive more than 50% of the vote to win outright. If none of the candidates meet the threshold, the top two vote-getters will move to a runoff election on Mar. 5 next year. Whoever is elected will serve out the remainder of the term, which runs through December 2026. Meet the candidates in the Chula Vista City Attorney special election The late Simon Silva passed from cancer during the November 2022 race after his name could not be removed from the ballots. He beat his opponent by 756 votes.After Silva won, Chula Vista officials started planning for a special election, as the city charter requires. However, the move drew some controversy, given en...

Voters head out to polls for local special elections

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Lidiya Harvey brought her young daughter to the San Diego County Registrar of Voters to cast her ballot in person Tuesday along with hundreds of thousands of San Diegans participating in a handful of special elections throughout the county.“I think local elections are the most important elections because it starts here and it affects our everyday lives,” Harvey said.In District Four, voters will choose between Supervisor Candidates Monica Montgomery Steppe, a Democrat, and current San Diego City Councilmember and Republican Amy Reichert to fill the seat left vacant by Nathan Fletcher. Whoever wins will tip the balance of power – now evenly split. Karyn O’Rear lives in District Four in La Mesa. “I think that it's important to go vote for the people and go for the people who represent your ideas and your values,” O'Rear said. San Diego’s guide to the Nov. 7 special elections Beyond the supervisors’ race, the city of Chula Vista will elect a city atto...

‘Extraterrestrials’ return to Mexico’s congress as journalist presses case for ‘non-human beings’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

MEXICO CITY (AP) — The lower chamber of Mexico’s congress once again turned to spectacle Tuesday, devoting hours of its time to a controversial character who pressed the case for “non-human beings” he said were found in Peru.Less than three weeks after Category 5 Hurricane Otis devastated Acapulco, a port of nearly 1 million people, the Chamber of Deputies spent more than three hours listening to journalist José Jaime Maussan and his group of Peruvian doctors.Maussan and some Mexican lawmakers became the subject of international ridicule in September when he presented two boxes with supposed mummies found in Peru. He along with others claimed they were “non-human beings that are not part of our terrestrial evolution.”In 2017, Maussan made similar claims in Peru, and a report by that country’s prosecutor’s office found the bodies were actually “recently manufactured dolls, which have been covered with a mixture of paper and synthetic glue to simulate the presence of skin.”The report ...

As price of olive oil soars, chainsaw-wielding thieves target Mediterranean’s century-old trees

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

SPATA, Greece (AP) — In an olive grove on the outskirts of Athens, grower Konstantinos Markou pushes aside the shoots of new growth to reveal the stump of a tree — a roughly 150-year-old specimen, he said, that was among 15 cut down on his neighbor’s land by thieves eager to turn it into money.Surging olive oil prices, driven in part by two years of drought in Spain, has meant opportunity for criminals across the Mediterranean. Warehouse break-ins, dilution of premium oil with inferior product, and falsification of shipping data are on the rise in olive-growing heartlands of Greece, Spain and Italy. And perhaps worst of all: Gangs using chainsaws to steal heavily laden branches and even entire trees from unguarded groves.“The olive robbers can sometimes produce more oil than the owners themselves – seriously,” Markou said, before heading off to patrol his own grove at nightfall. The crimes mean fewer olives for growers already contending with high production costs and climate ...

40 Filipinos flee war-ravaged Gaza Strip through Rafah crossing and arrive in Egypt

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Dozens of Filipinos fled from the war-ravaged Gaza Strip into Egypt through the Rafah crossing after Filipino diplomats negotiated for their safe passage and Qatar mediated for the border to be opened, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Wednesday.The 40 Filipinos were traveling to the Egyptian capital of Cairo, where they planned to take flights back to the Philippines, Marcos said in a video message in Manila. Two Filipino doctors managed to leave the Gaza Strip into Egypt last week.“I hope the rest of our countrymen who also wanted to return home can also exit properly with their spouses and loved ones,” Marcos said.Most of at least 134 Filipinos in Gaza, many of whom are married to Palestinians, have sought help to leave the besieged territory and are waiting for an opportunity to leave, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said.Hamas militants rampaged in southern Israel on Oct. 7, which sparked a war between Israel and Hamas.Before ...

Japan’s Nintendo is developing a live-action film based on its hit video game ‘The Legend of Zelda’

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Nintendo is developing a live-action film based on its hit video game “The Legend of Zelda,” the Japanese company behind the Super Mario franchise said Wednesday.The film, with financing from Sony Pictures Entertainment as well as its own investment, will be directed by Wes Ball, the American director of the upcoming “Planet of the Apes” film. It’s being co-produced by Nintendo and Arad Productions Inc., which is behind the live-action Spider-Man films and headed by Avi Arad.The move highlights Kyoto-based Nintendo’s strategy to leverage various aspects of its business, including theme parks, merchandising and movies, to boost machine and software sales, and vice versa.That strategy has met success. Its animation film “The Super Mario Bros. Movie,” released earlier this year, has raked in more than $1.3 billion and drew nearly 170 million people worldwide.President Shuntaro Furukawa, briefing reporters online, said the company was pleased with the success of the Super M...

Democrats win in several states on abortion rights and other highlights from Tuesday’s elections

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats had plenty of good news to celebrate in Tuesday’s off-year election and more evidence that they can win races centered on the national debate over abortion.Abortion rights supporters won an Ohio ballot measure and the Democratic governor of beet-red Kentucky held onto his office by campaigning on reproductive rights and painting his opponent as extremist. A Democrat won an open seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after campaigning on his pledge to uphold abortion rights. And Democrats won a majority in the Virginia State Senate, blocking Republicans from being able to pass new abortion restrictions. The wins won’t be enough to make them feel secure heading into next year’s presidential election. The off-year elections have major implications for all of those states and provide a snapshot of American politics heading into 2024. But two big names — Joe Biden and Donald Trump — weren’t on the ballot this time. How Americans view them will be a...

Thursday/Friday temp pullback and gusty “NW” winds to follow Wednesday rainy spells; longer range: impressive late season mild spell due next week; daytime 60s forecast at a time of year when 40s are typical

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

FORECAST MAPS FOR WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAYWGN WEATHER HEADLINESARE EL NIÑOS AND LA NIÑAS BEING IMPACTED BY CLIMATE CHANGE?As I post this, there's a WELL DEVELOPED EL NINO IN PROGRESS across the equatorial Pacific — a situation predicted to continue through Spring 2024. This may impact the coming winter here in Chicago.El Niños have their largest impact globally on winter season weather. While NO TWO El Niños are exactly alike, there are general trends which have often been observed when El Niños occur. Winters tend to be milder and less snowy in many El Niño years here in the Midwest. We'll see if that actually occurs in the months ahead.Both trends, above normal temps and near to below normal precip, are incorporated in official NWS seasonal temp and precip trend forecast — including the November through January forecast I've included below. Temps during that period are predicted to come in ABOVE NORMAL while precip during the period is forecast to be NEAR TO BELOW NORMAL over a wi...

Raising teacher pay approved by Round Rock ISD voters, KXAN projects

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:11:54 GMT

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to correct when the raise would go into effect. We regret the error.ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) - Round Rock Independent School District voters approved a proposition in a tax rate election that will effectively grant teachers a pay increase. ELECTION DAY BLOG: Texans vote on 14 state constitutional amendments, local propositions The district called for a Voter Approved Tax Ratification Election (VATRE). According to RRISD, this would allow the district to keep more of its funding that it currently sends as “recapture” payments to the state.Back in August, RRISD Superintendent Dr. Hafedh Azaiez said the district’s tax rate would decrease slightly.He said the district called for this election to make up for shortcomings from this year’s legislative session that failed to secure raises for Texas teachers. Election Results: November 2023 Teachers and all staff would receive a 3% additional raise. The raise would come on the January paycheck, ...