An Ignoble Experiment: Dem disaster as GOP sweeps Virginia

By Liza Hearon

Wednesday, Nov. 3

DEMOCRATS IN DISMAY AS GOP SWEEPS VIRGINIA Glenn Youngkin, a career private equity executive running his first campaign, defeated former Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) in Tuesday's Virginia governor's election, notching the first statewide victory for a Republican there since 2009 and dealing a major blow to the national Democratic Party. The hand-wringing has already begun. Check out some early takeaways from the race. And some other election bad omens for Dems. [HuffPost]

NEXT UP: COVID-19 SHOTS FOR KIDS The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention approved Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine for children ages 5 to 11 years, clearing the way for pediatricians and pharmacies to begin vaccinating kids soon. Roughly 28 million children are eligible in the U.S. [HuffPost]

STINGING DEFEAT FOR POLICE REFORM IN MINNEAPOLIS Voters in Minneapolis rejected a ballot measure calling to dismantle the city's police department and replace it with a department of public safety focused more on a comprehensive approach to policing. The failure of the measure — a year and a half after police officer Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd — suggests large hurdles remain in convincing voters to reimagine the role of law enforcement. [HuffPost]

BOSTON TO GET PROGRESSIVE MAYOR City Councilor Michelle Wu easily won the Boston mayor's race, making her the first woman and person of color to win a mayoral election in the city and putting a progressive voice in charge of the largest city in New England. While progressives have made gains in the U.S. House and state legislatures in recent years, they have won few races for executive positions. [HuffPost ]

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JOHN DEERE WORKERS DECIDE TO STAY ON STRIKE The largest U.S. private sector strike in two years is likely to continue as workers at John Deere voted to reject the latest tentative agreement negotiated between the company and their union. Deere has enjoyed record profits this year and strikers insisted that the company share more of this windfall with the workforce, especially with high inflation is eating away at wages. [HuffPost]

ATLANTA BRAVES WIN 1ST WORLD SERIES CROWN SINCE 1995 Most of the season, it seemed like it just wasn't going to happen for them. But then suddenly the Atlanta Braves transformed themselves and took off, finally hammering the Houston Astros 7-0 in Game 6 of the World Series. [AP]

MCDONALD'S CEO SLAMMED FOR 'RACIST, IGNORANT' TEXT ABOUT SHOOTING DEATHS A dozen groups are slamming McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski over a text message he sent to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot in April placing onus on the parents of two children killed in shootings in the city. The groups plan to protest at McDonald's headquarters, calling Kempczinski's comments "ignorant, racist and unacceptable." [HuffPost]

FACEBOOK DOES A RARE ABOUT-FACE Facebook said it will delete the face scan data of more than a billion people and shut down its facial recognition program entirely. Some limited uses for facial recognition will remain and the company's other products, like Instagram, may still use facial recognition software. A spokesperson told HuffPost there was no one reason behind the timing of the decision, which comes at a turbulent time for the company. [HuffPost]

U.S. JOINS GLOBAL DEFORESTATION PLEDGE More than 100 countries pledged Tuesday to end deforestation in the coming decade — a promise that experts say would be critical to limiting climate change but one that has been made and broken before. Biden is now back at the White House after speaking at the COP26 U.N. climate conference in Glasgow, which continues this week. [AP]