Northeast
NY Democrats blink as controversial state election bill affecting Rep. Stefanik seat declared dead: reports
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect reporting that New York Democrats have decided not to move ahead with the legislation.
A controversial New York state election bill will no longer come to fruition, as multiple reports said the bill was put on hold at the behest of Gov. Kathy Hochul.
Sources separately told the New York Post and City & State New York that Hochul asked the Democrat-majority legislature not to take any action on the legislation – which would give the governor more power to decide when special elections can be held and potentially delay the filling of U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik’s deep-red upstate seat once the Republican is confirmed as U.N. Ambassador.
The Post reported some of the reasoning stemmed from negotiations between Hochul and the Trump administration as to the longevity of the state-operated MTA’s “Congestion Pricing” tolling program in New York City – which the president has opposed.
City & State reported state Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, D-Bronx, declared the bill at least temporarily a non-starter at an afternoon meeting.
Assembly Minority Leader Will Barclay, R-Oswego, also confirmed the bill is “no longer moving forward.”
“It was a terrible piece of legislation in policy & principle. Thanks to strong pushback from Republican legislators & North Country residents, the bill has been halted,” Barclay wrote on X.
State Senate Minority Leader Rob Ortt, R-Niagara Falls, added in a statement to Fox News Digital that while the bill “appears to be defeated for now, we will remain vigilant against any effort to bring it back.”
The reform bill had been set to come up for a vote Monday.
Critics called it a naked attempt to keep Stefanik’s North Country congressional district without a representative until November, while Democratic sponsors say it will save local and taxpayer resources.
The bill, which would allow Hochul to postpone elections or combine them with upcoming general elections, was marketed by Democrats as a cost-saving measure that helps ensure more voters will cast ballots in specials.
However, Ortt said that for all Democrats’ claims about President Donald Trump being a threat to democracy, the truth is belied in their own legislation.
“It’s all about the outcome, not process, democracy, voter participation – they could give a s—. They could give a s—,” Ortt said.
TOUGH DECISIONS FOR SANCTUARY CITIES AFTER BONDI’S FUND-WITHHOLDING ORDER
“I can’t shame them; they have none… 800,000 folks [in Stefanik’s soon-to-be-former district] will not have a representative in Congress ‘til November. That’s a disgrace for a party that says it cares about democracy,” he said, predicting Hochul will use the law to its maximum extent when enacted.
Ortt said the bill has two different provisions – one for federal elections and one for state legislative elections and ruminated how they could benefit Democrats.
He pointed out that state Sen. Simcha Felder, D-Brooklyn, is likely to seek an open seat on New York City Council in the politically-moderate, majority-Jewish Borough Park area.
Felder caucused with Senate Republicans from 2013-18, which gave the GOP a slim, technical majority in Albany for part of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s term.
Ortt said Democrats stand to potentially lose Felder’s Senate seat, which explains the reported two-tiered changes in the bill.
Meanwhile, Barclay said 44% of New York state voted for Trump and the legislation shows his opposition is still smarting about it.
GOP RIPS HOCHUL’S INFLATION REFUNDS
Senate GOP Leader Rob Ortt (Reuters)
“No, they don’t accept that result,” said Barclay.
“So they’re going to do everything they can, including depriving 800,000 people of a say in the budget [or] the SALT (tax deduction for high-taxed states) bill.”
Barclay noted that if Stefanik’s seat remains vacant when the Farm Bill is voted on later this year, a significant portion of New York’s agricultural lands will lack representation.
But Democrats remained united, with Senate President Andrea Stewart-Cousins saying in a statement that New Yorkers currently face “unprecedented challenges, including the strain on our democracy and our high cost of living.”
“[T]his legislation is a common-sense approach that saves taxpayer dollars while maximizing voter turnout,” said Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers.
Currently, Hochul has 90 days to call a special election once Stefanik, or Felder, resigns.
The bill’s text suggested the current special elections’ framework in Albany is an operational and financial drag on counties and taxpayers – additionally citing “voter confusion and fatigue.”
Therefore, giving the governor the power to potentially consolidate elections is pertinent.
As NY1 reported, the bill also does not mandate Hochul – or any governor – to combine special and general or primary elections, but now gives her the power to do so.
Some in Stefanik’s district, however, believe Ortt’s claims may have substance.
“By holding up a special election, they’re keeping the North Country from having congressional representation at a critical moment,” state Sen. Dan Stec, R-Queensbury, told Plattsburgh’s NBC affiliate.
Stec is one of several Republicans vying for the seat, along with Sticker Mule CEO Anthony Constantino, Assemblyman Chris Tague of Schoharie, and author Liz Joy, who previously ran against Democratic Rep. Paul Tonko in the neighboring Capital Region district.
Tague told Fox News Digital that Hochul’s political career began via a special election using the same laws Democrats are seeking to change.
“She’s tossing them aside to cut backroom deals … leaving the people of Upstate and the North Country without a voice,” Tague said.
A spokesman for Stewart-Cousins told NY1 that state Democrats will not “be lectured to by a party that openly celebrated the release of violent felons that attempted to overthrow a presidential election and have opposed every single voting reform that increases voter participation.”
Read the full article from Here
Gunshots were fired in a daytime armed home invasion in Saugus, Massachusetts, on Sunday, police say, and the two suspects are in custody.
No one was hurt in the shooting on Oakwood Avenue about noon, Saugus police said. Two Boston men, Derek Matarazzo and Timothy Gregory, are facing felony charges including home invasion after their arrest shortly after the 911 calls came in.
The calls reported two men in masks, dressed in black, armed with guns, breaking into a house, police said. They didn’t share what led to the gunfire or how the men were tracked down, saying only that the department wasn’t speculating on their motivation.
Matarazzo and Gregory are believed to be the only people directly involved in the home invasion, police said, and it’s believed to be an isolated incident, so there’s no danger to the public.
Neighbors who spoke with NBC10 Boston say they are shaken up by what occurred, describing a shootout right outside their homes in the middle of the day.
Ring camera video from a nearby home shows the aftermath, as neighbors say you can see the homeowner running into the middle of the street with a phone pressed to his ear, desperately flagging down police — after the chaos.
A neighbor tells us his family first heard what sounded like a pop — something they thought could’ve been a lawn mower backfiring, until they realized it was gunfire. That neighbor says one of his daughters then saw a man carrying a safe — dropping it in their front yard — while shots were being fired.
“I saw somebody come out of the house shooting and then we all hit the deck, because you didn’t want a stray bullet to ricochet off something and come through the window or anything like that,” George Benn said.
“I saw the shots. I saw a man go down. I thought he was going to be dead but apparently he just flipped on that hill,” Tom Bushee said.
The investigation is ongoing.
This year’s Pittsburgh Marathon is one for the record books. More than 52,000 runners crossed the finish line, with more than 300,000 spectators cheering them on.
“We’re welcoming people from around the world,” P3R CEO Troy Schooley said. “This event has turned into an international event for our city. We’re going to show it off today. The runners will run through 14 neighborhoods. We have 33 different countries represented today and all 50 states.”
Advertisement
Mohammed El Youssfi claimed the men’s division of the Pittsburgh Half Marathon, crossing the finish line and immediately wrapping himself in the Moroccan flag.
“This is my first time in Pittsburgh, but the special moment for me today is the people here cheering me on,” El Youssfi said. “That helped me to win the race.”
Emotions ran high for Pittsburgh’s very own Will Loevner. The Winchester Thurston graduate has run the Pittsburgh Marathon multiple times, finishing as the runner-up in 2024 and fifth in 2025. But in 2026, he took home top honors, crossing the finish line first at 2:14.
“I’ve now won the Philadelphia marathon, the Cleveland marathon twice,” Loevner said. “To win Pittsburgh, I feel like it was the trifecta and the most special one for me. I mean, being in the hometown, nothing even compares.”
Advertisement
Buze Diriba Kejela is 2026’s women’s Pittsburgh Half Marathon champion, setting a course record for women and crossing the finish line at 1:08:39.
“I’m happy to set the course record. I like it,” she said.
Before the runners crossed the start line, the handcyclists got a head start. Marshall Tempest of Monroeville came out on top in the Pittsburgh Marathon Handcycle Division, finishing at 1:40:16.
“I’ve done 13 Pittsburgh marathons, and this is my 5th time winning it, in a row,” he said. “It feels good. It was a rough one, but I was determined to get that 5th one.”
“I love running,” said Will Henry Lawrence, who ran the half-marathon. “I love being able to have breath in my lungs and let my feet hit the pavement. I had a stroke six years ago, and so I give all glory to God for being able to get out and exercise.”
Advertisement
Tickets for the 2027 Pittsburgh Marathon are on sale for 48 hours, starting at 3 p.m. on May 3, 2026. You can register at thepittsburghmarathon.com
Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW
Connecticut
Scammers use AI images of injured pets to target owners, Blumenthal warns Connecticut residents
In a new and rapidly expanding scam, swindlers are using images generated by artificial intelligence to tap the wallets of desperate and heartbroken owners of lost pets.
In a press conference on Friday, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn, warned state residents about a fraud that is becoming “more and more rampant.”
Scammers manipulate photos of lost pets posted by owners on social media to make it appear the animal has been hurt, according to media reports from around the nation.
In Florida and Texas, for example, scammers have told owners of missing dogs that their pets were hit by cars, with an accompanying image of a dog that looks like theirs on a veterinarian’s operating table, WESH 2, a Hearst TV station affiliate in Florida, reported recently. The scammer then demands payment for the surgery.
An urgent demand for money is a red flag, Blumenthal said, along with the claim that a lost pet has been hurt and images of an injured pet. The Federal Trade Commission, as the nation’s consumer protection agency, should issue a formal warning about the scam, the senator said.
Numerous reports of lost pet scams have surfaced recently, Popular Science reported in March, describing a few common scenarios, including the one in which the owner is sent an image of what appears to be their injured pet at a veterinary hospital and another, in which the owner is sent images of what appears to be their pet at a shelter, about to be euthanized. But, the article states, these images are false.
Other types of lost pet scams involve an offer of fake pet-finding services, according to the Better Business Bureau.
“You may receive a message from someone on social media about drone technology and search parties that can help you find your pet,” the nonprofit consumer advocacy organization reported. “The person will ask you for payment up front and will likely ask you to send it through a peer-to-peer payment app. Before paying for services, always search for the business on BBB.org or check BBB Scam Tracker.”
All types of cyber-scams have been proliferating in the nation, according to the FBI’s 2025 Internet Crime Report. Since the agency’s Internet Crime Complaint Center was launched about 25 years ago, complaints have surged, the FBI reported, with a current average of about 3,000 complaints each day.
In 2025, losses reported to the center continued to climb, surpassing $20 billion, the FBI reported. Investment-related fraud once again made up the largest part of the losses, followed by business email compromises and tech support scams, the agency reported.
-
Miami, FL2 minutes agoWinners and losers from F1’s eventful Miami Grand Prix
-
Boston, MA8 minutes ago2 men arrested after armed home invasion with shots fired in Saugus, police say
-
Denver, CO14 minutes agoWATCH THE PENULTIMATE SUPERCROSS IN DENVER IN UNDER 24 MINUTES – Motocross Action Magazine
-
Seattle, WA20 minutes agoSeattle Mariners claim LHP José Suarez from next opponent – Seattle Sports
-
San Diego, CA26 minutes agoA happy return: Will Venable has lots of memories in San Diego
-
Milwaukee, WI32 minutes agoSeries Preview: Milwaukee Brewers @ St. Louis Cardinals
-
Atlanta, GA38 minutes agoMariners claim LHP José Suarez off waivers from Atlanta
-
Minneapolis, MN44 minutes agoMinneapolis sports bars see boost in revenue as professional teams continue playoff runs