October 29, 2026 - Brewers Win First World Series

It’s unlikely anyone could do to a Smerconish what Democrats are accused of doing to Dan Sullivan in Alaska. When my hometown still had a phone book, ours was the only family listed under that name.

Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan isn’t so lucky. According to a New York Times investigation published Wednesday, aides to his Democratic challenger, Mary Peltola, and officials at the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee worked to put a second Dan Sullivan on next Tuesday’s ballot. A staffer combed voter rolls for Alaskans with the name. An Ohio operative using a fake name pitched would-be candidates over beers. Eventually a retired teacher from Petersburg, a fishing village reachable only by air and sea, filed to run. The effort, known internally as the “ballot composition project,” recruited other spoilers too. The Peltola campaign and the DSCC deny involvement, and the campaign’s former manager, a key source, has tried to retract her statements. The Times published them anyway, saying they matched its other reporting.

Republicans have tried this too. In 2024, a conservative activist recruited two extra Bob Fergusons to run for governor of Washington against the Democrat of the same name.

What gets lost in the outrage is that Alaska’s ranked-choice voting, which President Trump calls a scam, actually limits the harm. Under the old system, a vote for the wrong Sullivan would have been a lost vote. Now a voter can rank both Sullivans, and the vote still ends up with the senator. The safeguard only works for voters who use it, though. In 2024, about 60 percent of Alaskans marked a single candidate and stopped.

With nearly 50,000 Alaskans having already voted, the revelation may come too late to change the outcome.

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The Milwaukee Brewers captured their first World Series championship Wednesday night, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1 in Game 5 behind Jacob Misiorowski’s scoreless pitching, Cooper Pratt’s record-setting hitting and a relentless team effort that ended decades of frustration for baseball’s smallest market.

MLB.com

U.S. officials have warned Middle Eastern allies to prepare for possible renewed strikes against Iran after the November 3 midterm elections and potential Iranian retaliation against energy facilities and critical infrastructure, although President Trump has not made a final decision as diplomatic efforts continue.

Associated Press

Stephen A. Smith claims tensions between Knicks owner James Dolan and players over a potential White House visit may be affecting the defending NBA champions, though Smith acknowledged he hasn't confirmed the reported dispute directly with players, and Jalen Brunson has said the team's decision remains uncertain.

Mediaite

At least 68 people were killed and more than 100 injured when two high-speed trains collided south of Madrid Wednesday, with Spanish officials attributing the disaster to human error following a computer system failure.

Euronews

A NYT investigation alleges that operatives linked to Democrat Mary Peltola’s Senate campaign worked to recruit Republican spoiler candidates, including another Dan Sullivan, to divide votes in Alaska’s election, despite denials from the campaign and Democratic Senate officials.

The New York Times

Fox News is reportedly facing its lowest October ratings in years, with total viewership down 27% and its key advertising demographic falling 32% from last year, even as the network maintains its overall cable news lead amid growing tensions with President Trump over coverage decisions.

Yahoo News

Neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu nor opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot have secured a parliamentary majority, with Netanyahu's bloc projected to win 53 seats against Eisenkot's 48, leaving coalition negotiations, a possible unity government or another election as potential outcomes.

Axios

A review of 180 noncitizen voter fraud cases brought by the Trump administration found many defendants cited honest mistakes, and none of the indictments allege an organized scheme by Democrats or others to bring noncitizens to the polls as the president has claimed.

The Washington Post

Amy Acton's long-lost stepsister has come forward to corroborate the Ohio Democratic gubernatorial nominee's account of childhood sexual abuse by her stepfather, undercutting a Vivek Ramaswamy campaign ad featuring Acton's mother calling her a liar days before the November 3 election.

Daily Mail

A new Boston University study estimates that 75% of former NFL players who died between 2008 and 2023 had signs of CTE, a brain disease linked to repeated head impacts, though researchers caution the figure is an estimate and not everyone with the condition develops dementia or cognitive symptoms.

NBC News