Northeast

Obama continues tradition of slow-rolled political endorsements as gubernatorial elections hit fever pitch

Published

2 months ago

October 19, 2025

Obama continues tradition of slow-rolled political endorsements as gubernatorial elections hit fever pitch

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Former President Barack Obama officially endorsed both Democrat candidates running in the only pair of gubernatorial elections this cycle, following the tradition of the former president holding his endorsement cards close to his chest in the lead-up to elections.

“Mikie’s integrity, grit and commitment to service are what we need right now in our leaders,” Obama said in a video endorsement ad released Friday by Democratic New Jersey Rep. Mikie Sherrill’s gubernatorial campaign. “Mikie Sherrill is the right choice for your next governor.

“Mikie is a mom who will drive down costs for New Jersey families,” Obama continued in the ad. “As a federal prosecutor and former Navy helicopter pilot, she worked to keep our communities safe.”

New Jersey and Virginia are the only states holding gubernatorial elections in 2025’s off-season election year, with Sherrill and former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia as the only Democrats in the running.

OBAMA ENDORSES SPANBERGER, ATTACKS REPUBLICANS IN VIRGINIA GOVERNOR’S RACE ADS

Former President Barack Obama continued his tradition of holding official political endorsements close to the vest, endorsing the Democrats running in the Virginia and New Jersey gubernatorial elections. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Obama endorsed Spanberger Thursday in a pair of ads that also took aim at Republicans for “attacking abortion rights.”

“Virginia’s elections are some of the most important in the country this year. We know Republicans will keep attacking abortion rights and the rights of women. That’s why having the right governor matters, and I’m proud to endorse Abigail Spanberger,” Obama said in an ad endorsing the Virginia Democrat.

“Republican policies are raising costs on working families so (that) billionaires can get massive tax cuts,” he said in another ad endorsing Spanberger.

Following Obama’s endorsement of Spanberger, the Republican challenger in the race, current Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears’ campaign told Fox Digital Thursday, “Abigail Spanberger is scared, and it shows.”

THE ONLY GOP GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES RUNNING IN 2025 ELECTIONS LEAN INTO TRUMP’S MAGA CAMPAIGN TACTICS

“After losing support across Virginia, she’s leaning on liberal elites to try and save her collapsing campaign,” Earle-Sears’ press secretary, Peyton Vogel, said. “This is a desperate play from a candidate who’s run out of support, out of ideas and out of time. Voters see through it, and that’s why Winsome Earle-Sears is surging.”

New Jersey Republican Jack Ciattarelli’s campaign also blasted the Obama endorsement in a comment to Fox News Digital Friday.

“If anything underscores the lack of enthusiasm around Mikie Sherrill’s arrogant, out-of-touch campaign, it’s that she thinks that endorsements by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton actually matter to middle and working-class New Jerseyans who have been kicked in the teeth by eight years of one-party Democrat rule making our state more expensive and less safe,” Ciattarelli campaign strategist Chris Russell told Fox News Digital. “Spoiler alert: They don’t. If anything, it energizes our voters even more.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attended fundraising events for both Democratic gubernatorial candidates in October.

Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., and former Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., launched gubernatorial bids for their respective states in the 2025 election. (Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call)

Since leaving the Oval Office, Obama typically has held his endorsement card close to his chest.

He endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in June 2016 following months of signaling support for Clinton without formally offering his endorsement.

THE ONLY TWO DEMS RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR IN 2025 ARE FORMER ROOMMATES WITH MIRRORING POLITICAL CAREERS

Obama remained coy during the 2020 election about whom he would endorse, saying he would not back anyone during the primary. As Democratic contenders such as former Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the race, Obama officially endorsed his former vice president, Joe Biden, after he became the party’s presumptive nominee.

Obama notably got more involved with the 2020 Biden campaign in its final weeks, holding his first in-person event amid the pandemic in Pennsylvania just days before the election.

The 44th president called on Democrats to “chill out” during the 2020 primary season and wait to see which candidate would emerge successful in the primary process. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

The 44th president called on Democrats to “chill out” during the 2020 primary season and wait to see which candidate would emerge successful in the primary process.

“There will be differences, but I want us to make sure that we keep in mind that relative to the ultimate goal, which is to defeat a president and a party that has, I think, taken a sharp turn away from a lot of the core traditions and values and institutional commitments that built this country,” Obama said in 2019 at a Democrat fundraiser in California. “Compared to that goal, the differences we’re having right now are relatively minor.

“Everybody needs to chill out about the candidates,” he added, “but gin up about the prospect of rallying behind whoever emerges from this process.”

OBAMA, PELOSI, OTHER TOP DEMS RESISTED INSTANT HARRIS ENDORSEMENT CITING NEED TO ‘EARN IT,’ ‘HIKING’ EXCUSE

During the unprecedented 2024 election cycle, Obama did not offer a formal, new endorsement of Biden’s re-election run but did join him for campaign events. Biden ultimately dropped out of the race as concerns over his mental acuity and age mounted, with Obama again staying mum for days whether he would endorse then-Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s nominee.

Former President Barack Obama speaks with President-elect Donald Trump before the state funeral service for former President Jimmy Carter in Washington Jan. 9, 2025. (Roberto Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images)

Biden dropped out of the race July 21, 2024, and endorsed Harris to run in his place that same day in a separate social media post. Obama and first lady Michelle Obama endorsed Harris in a video message July 26, 2024, as party members and political pundits awaited the Obamas’ support with bated breath.

TRUMP NOT ON BALLOT, BUT PRESIDENT FRONT AND CENTER IN 2025 ELECTIONS

Harris published a memoir, “107 Days,” in September that detailed her short 2024 campaign cycle and noted in her book that Obama did not offer an immediate endorsement, instead advising that she has to “earn” the nomination and consider the “timing” of it.

“Saddle up! Joe did what I hoped he would do. But you have to earn it,” Obama said when Harris spoke to him, according to the book. “Michelle and I are supportive but not going to put a finger on the scale right now. Let Joe have his moment. Think through timing.”

Obama also endorsed former Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s failed 2021 re-election campaign at the end of October 2024, as that election began losing ground to Republican Glenn Youngkin as education issues took center stage.

The 2025 gubernatorial elections have teed up the two Democrats as potential leaders of the party if they prove fruitful in their races, following the Democrat Party’s disarray from the losses at the 2024 ballot boxes that handed President Donald Trump a victory.

Fox News Digital reached out to Obama’s office for additional comment on the gubernatorial endorsements Friday but did not immediately receive a reply.

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Northeast

Rare great white shark encounter off Maine coast captured in heart-stopping National Geographic photo

Published

2 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

Rare great white shark encounter off Maine coast captured in heart-stopping National Geographic photo

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

The year 2025 has been captured in stunning photography by many around the globe.

In its annual highlight reel of the year, National Geographic has released its Pictures of the Year, featuring 25 of the top shots of people, places, cultural moments and wildlife in action.

Five images were taken right here in the United States.

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC RELEASES ITS PICTURES OF THE YEAR: SEE SOME OF THE JAW-DROPPING SHOTS

Check out these standout photo moments below, all with a particular focus on animal life.

“From thousands of images made by our photographers all around the world, we present the ones that moved and inspired us most,” the editors write.

The details in the captions are all courtesy of National Geographic.

‘Chicken or Egg?’ — Berkeley, California

The cover of National Geographic’s December 2025 edition (at right) highlights its annual Pictures of the Year. For years, photographer Anand Varma has attempted to document when an egg yolk can still be seen but a bird form has clearly emerged. He experimented by incubating embryos in artificial shells before finally capturing the transformation at 12 days old. Varma separately raised some embryos to chicks, which he donated to people in the community. (Anand Varma; National Geographic)

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For years, photographer Anand Varma has attempted to document when an egg yolk can still be seen but a bird form has clearly emerged. He experimented by incubating embryos in artificial shells before finally capturing the transformation at 12 days old. Varma separately raised some embryos to chicks, which he donated to people in the community. (Anand Varma)

‘A Bee’s ZZZs’ — Davis, California

A sunflower chimney bee rests on a pillow of velvety ochers in the early evening, likely already snoozing after a long day’s work pollinating plants. This species of bee often nests at the base of sunflowers, moving with commercial farmers as they rotate their crops. (Karine Aigner)

‘A Great Sighting’ — The Gulf of Maine

Photographer Brian Skerry has been chronicling marine life for decades, but this image represents his first run-in with a great white shark in the Gulf of Maine, a place he did not expect to encounter one — especially from four feet away. Sightings of sharks like this 10-footer are increasing from Cape Cod to Nova Scotia, perhaps due in part to changing climate patterns. (Brian Skerry)

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‘The Unlikely Hero’ — Wisconsin

This two-day-old piglet was bred to save lives. Scientists modified its genes in an attempt to harvest kidneys for human transplantation. Pigs like this represent new hope for the tens of thousands of Americans in desperate need of kidneys, 66% of whom remain on the waiting list for more than a year. (Craig Cutler)

More of this year’s Pictures of the Year can be found on National Geographic’s website.

Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle reporter for Fox News Digital.

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Boston, MA

Boston rebels against Trump immigration policies with an ‘ICE Tea Party’ – The Boston Globe

Published

4 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

Boston rebels against Trump immigration policies with an ‘ICE Tea Party’ – The Boston Globe

This time, the people marched in resistance to the harsh treatment of immigrants by the Trump administration.

“We descend from Immigrants and Revolutionaries,” read a battle cry beamed onto the side of the brick meeting house Tuesday.

“The society that stops seeing the people at the grocery line or the people that ride the bus with us, as human beings with beating hearts, then it’s not far off before our society devolves into no society at all,” Gilberto Calderin, director of advocacy at the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition said to the crowd of hundreds.

The protest was organized by activist groups Boston Indivisible and Mass 50501, and began at the Irish Famine Memorial Plaza, just steps from the meeting house.

The lively crowd held up signs, waved American flags, and chanted during the march along Milk Street and Congress Street to the harbor.

Janet England of Brighton held a sign that read, “Democracy Needs Courage.”

The protesters, she said are “true patriots because we want freedom and democracy.”

“Although protest is a long game, we can’t give up. If you think about women’s suffrage, gay rights, the civil rights movement, it took years, but we just can’t give up,” she said.

Gloria Krusemeyer, from Alrington, used a walker to join the march.

“I’m irritated that I haven’t done more, and I’m just lucky that I can walk fast enough to be doing this,” she said.

Rick Mueller, from Cambridge, was dressed as Uncle Sam and held a large sign that read, “Liberty and Justice For All.”

“We’re fighting for America, so I’m gonna be America,” he said of his costume.

He handed small American flags out to protesters who waved them enthusiastically.

Ice dumping duties was limited to volunteers and select people.

Among them was Sarah, a mother who brought her 4-year-old daughter, Fiona.

Sarah declined to share her last name for her daughter’s safety.

After throwing ice into the harbor, Fiona shyly said that she wanted to come to the protest to “help families stay together.”

Through tears, Sarah said her decision to bring along Fiona came from wanting to teach her daughter to care about people from all walks of life.

“Kindness and compassion are things we learn in kindergarten and she will be in kindergarten so it’s really important for her to be kind and compassionate,” Sarah said, kissing her daughter’s check.

Likewise, Sara Sievers, from Cambridge, brought her parents, sister, her nephews and niece to dump ice.

“I think this is one of the most brutal regimes we’ve had in this country, and I want my niece and nephew to remember that it’s important to protest, and that we in Boston are part of a proud tradition of dumping things into the harbor with which we disagree,” Sievers said.

The family wore costumes of historical figures including Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and King Charles.

As the protest came to a close, Martha Laposata, spokesperson for Boston Indivisible said she wanted protestors to walk away knowing their voices matter.

“We cannot stand down,” Laposata said. “When people rise up against an authoritarian government, if they stay consistent and they keep growing, ultimately an authoritarian government will stand down.”

Camille Bugayong can be reached at camille.bugayong@globe.com.

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