Midterm elections in the United States

The conflict with the Pope threatens Trump's support among Catholics

Donald Trump's outburst against Pope Leo creates problems for Republicans ahead of the midterm elections, when the party needs Catholic votes to maintain its majority in Congress. This is reported by the New York Times and Axios.

The president's profanity-laden social media posts during Easter week, as well as a Jesus-like AI portrait of himself, are considered to be able to make Catholic uncertain voters turn their backs on him.

- I can't think of any parallels, at least not from Western countries with a Christian majority, to such open and sharp attacks on the Pope, says Andrew Chesnut, professor of Catholic studies at Virginia Commonwealth University, to Axios.

Catholics make up the country's largest group of religious commuter voters and contributed to Trump's victory in 2024. Small changes in their voting can have a disproportionately large effect in swing states like Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin, where they make up a significant portion of the electorate.

Even before Trump's move against the Pope, support among Catholics was on the decline, writes the NYT. But with six months left until the election, it is still unclear what impact the conflict will have.

Frustration over Newsom: Refuses to choose a successor

California's incumbent Democratic governor Gavin Newsom continues to refuse to answer who he thinks should succeed him, writes the Los Angeles Times.

Democrats have a very narrow starting field, and many believe that they would benefit from choosing a candidate to focus on. As it stands today, over 50 people are running in the election.

Thad Kousser, a political scientist at the University of San Diego, tells the newspaper that Gavin Newsom is one of the few people who has enough influence to unite Democrats around a candidate.

– This could be the party's last chance if they don't want to split their votes.

Newsom, who is widely considered to be preparing a campaign to become the next Democratic presidential candidate, has previously said that his voters are not particularly interested in the upcoming gubernatorial election.

– You know my position. I don't comment on the gubernatorial election, Newsom said last year.

California Democrats try to come to an agreement after the scandalous defection

On Tuesday, a long line of people who want to become California's next Democratic governor are expected to gather in Sacramento to try to agree on who they should bet on, writes the AP.

Eric Swalwell, who had emerged as the favorite among the many Democratic candidates, was recently forced to withdraw his candidacy after allegations of sexual assault. He has also announced that he will resign from his seat in Congress.

More than 50 candidates are expected to run in the election. California typically votes Democratic, but many party supporters are concerned that the large number of candidates could mean two Republicans face off in a runoff. Under California law, two representatives of the same party can advance if they receive the most votes.