How confident should Democrats be about surprise new polling which puts them ahead in deep Republican territory? In states such as Kansas which haven’t elected a Democratic senator since 1932, Democrat candidates are doing well – why is that, and how much can we trust the polls?

The party’s hope for a blue wave in this year’s midterm elections rest on their ability to flip four Republican seats in the Senate. While the polls suggest the Democrats are ahead in Texas, Alaska and Ohio, the picture is more complicated in Democratic states like Maine and Michigan, which many believe the party must hold on to if they’re to reclaim control of Congress.

Sarah and Justin unpack the latest polls and what it tell us about Democrat and Republican strategy before we speak to the Democratic strategist and pollster John Anzalone. He’s currently working on Roy Cooper’s Senate campaign in North Carolina and most recently served on Joe Biden’s successful 2020 campaign. He tell us why Democrats should be cautious about hopes for a blue wave in November and the issues candidates need to focus on in the run-up to polling day.

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00:00 What does this mean for the Democrats?
02:10 Are the polls accurate?
03:50 Ken Paxton, James Talarico and Texas
06:28 What’s hapening in Kansas?
09:32 The impact of the cost of living
10:43 Iowa and farmers’ votes
17:09 The big picture
21:27 James Talarico: “a generational candidate”
25:00 Margins for error

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Australia has one of the highest rates of pet ownership in the world and owners are spending more than A$20bn (£10.4bn) on their pets, according to the RSPCA.

The industry has grown rapidly since the pandemic and one airline is planning to allow cats and dogs to travel with their owners in aircraft cabins this year.

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#Australia #BBCNews

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Russian President Putin is ready, in principle, to resume three-way peace talks between the US, Ukraine and Russia in mid-November.

The Kremlin announcement came after a meeting with US special envoy Steve Witkoff in St Petersburg.

So – is a deal possible? In this video…

1:02 – The handshake moment
1:11 – What Putin said
1:58 – What Witkoff said
2:43 – What was said at the talks
3:35 – Does Putin want a deal
4:17 – Marco Rubio on any deal
5:34 – Ukraine view of the talks
6:21 – Zelensky wants a ceasefire
6:53 – What did Trump say
7:32 – What is Trump’s strategy
8:43 – How talks reported in Russia
9:24 – What do Ukranians want

#Russia #Ukraine #US #BBCNews

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Fires, floods, and typhoons – the impact of El Niño is already having a significant impact on global weather patterns.

Countries including Indonesia, India and the United States have been experiencing droughts, floods and heatwaves in line with projections about how extreme weather events will be supercharged by the phenomenon.

The World Meteorological Agency says the record-breaking El Niño will strengthen further and persist until at least 2027.

The BBC looks at the different ways its impact is already being felt around the world.

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#ElNiño #ClimateChange #BBCWeather #BBCNews

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As US envoy Steve Witkoff meets Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg, Ukrainians fear that President Donald Trump will side with Moscow in talks to end the war in Ukraine. Earlier, Mr Trump suggested it was up to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to end the conflict, saying he “could have made a deal two years ago”.

A US official says Mr Putin has now accepted a proposal for a technical-level trilateral meeting with Ukraine. But the Russian leader has also reportedly proposed talks with President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. It is not clear whether President Zelensky would be involved in those discussions.

Meanwhile, Russia has said it will release Stephen Hubbard, a retired American teacher detained by Russian forces four years ago in occupied Ukraine. Some analysts have said this decision – and Mr Putin’s offer to help end the war in Iran – are attempts to curry greater favour with President Trump.

Also in the Global News Podcast:

06:25 We report from the front lines of President Trump’s immigration crackdown as ICE agents target Haitian migrants in the state of Ohio, ahead of the midterm elections.

New episodes of the Global News Podcast are published twice a day. You can listen here: https://link.mgln.ai/GNP-YT

And you can find more of our YouTube episodes here: https://bbc.in/GlobalNewsPodcast

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