Today’s installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.
* In an overnight ceremony, Kathy Hochul (D) was sworn in as New York’s 57th governor. She’s the first woman to ever hold the position in the Empire State, and one of only nine women to currently serve as governor in the United States. Hochul does not currently have a lieutenant governor, though she’s expected to appoint one this week.
* On a related note, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) portrayed himself as the victim of a “media frenzy” on his last day in office. CNBC, meanwhile, quoted a top Cuomo aide saying the New York Democrat “has no interest in running for office again.”
* A North Carolina court ruled yesterday that the state can deny voting rights to incarcerated felons, but those who are on parole, probation, or supervised release must be allowed to register to vote. The state has not yet said whether it will appeal the ruling.
* In Michigan, the latest Detroit Free Press poll found incumbent Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) with the narrowest of leads over her likely rival, former Detroit police chief James Craig (R), 45% to 44%.
* Axios reported this week that Republican ad makers are already starting to use footage from Afghanistan in the wake of the Taliban’s takeover, adding that GOP consultants “say it’s going to provide TV-ready ammo for attacks heading into the midterms.” * Is Donald Trump’s political operation using far-right vaccine fears as the basis for fundraising? Of course it is. * After spending many years living in Texas, former football player Herschel Walker appears to have moved to Georgia in advance of a likely Republican U.S. Senate campaign next year. In the meantime, Walker’s wife is reportedly under investigation for allegedly voting illegally in a Georgia election from Texas.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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