A record number of women will soon serve in state legislatures, breaking the previous cap of female lawmakers by at least 69 seats and bringing total representation to more than 32%. Read more»

Hakeem Jeffries of New York was named U.S. House Democratic leader - making history as the first Black lawmaker to head any party in Congress - when Democrats gathered Wednesday to elect its top leaders for the 118th Congress. Read more»

The U.S. Senate approved legislation Tuesday that would enshrine protections for same-sex and interracial marriages, codifying many of the rights that would disappear if the Supreme Court were to overturn those decisions the way it overturned the nationwide right to an abortion. Read more»

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is processing claims at the fastest rate in its history, hoping to avoid a significant backlog as hundreds of thousands of veterans apply for health care and benefits under the landmark toxic exposure law Congress passed earlier this year. Read more»

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who became the first woman in history to hold the gavel, shepherding landmark bills across four presidencies, announced Thursday she’ll step aside from leadership though she’ll remain in Congress. Read more»

The U.S. Senate cleared a key hurdle to passing a marriage equality bill Wednesday, garnering even more than the 60 senators from both political parties needed to move past a legislative filibuster. Read more»

The Biden administration on Tuesday asked Congress for billions more in funding this year to address COVID-19 and the ongoing war in Ukraine, suggesting lawmakers attach it to a spending bill that must pass before Dec. 16. Read more»

Rep. Kevin McCarthy fought off a challenge from Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs and is on track to become the next speaker as U.S. House Republicans elected their slate of leaders for the 118th Congress, even though the party hadn’t yet secured the seats needed to take the majority. Read more»

The United States’ ceiling for female governors was shattered this week, with voters in 12 states electing women to the role, breaking the prior record of nine set for the first time back in 2004. Read more»

Control of the U.S. Senate remained unclear early Wednesday as races in a handful of swing states in the midterm elections were still too close to call, and it appeared it might be days — or even weeks — before a final result was known. Read more»

The super PAC aligned with U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, has spent a record amount advertising for GOP Senate candidates this cycle, about $178 million in five key U.S. Senate races. Read more»

Republicans are eyeing the debt limit and government funding deadlines as a way to force Democrats to the negotiating table for spending cuts, should the GOP regain control of Congress following the midterm elections. Read more»

Roughly 9.4 million Americans have already voted in the midterm elections - within states releasing the data, 2.6 million people have voted in person while 6.8 million have returned mail-in ballots - and another 41.6 million voters have requested mail-in ballots. Read more»

Women running in governors’ races throughout the country are potentially set to break records if elected this November, and Arizona will undoubtedly contribute to those numbers with Democrat Katie Hobbs and Republican Kari Lake running against one another. Read more»

Democrats are fighting to hold their razor-thin majorities in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate and Republicans are trying to convince voters they need to balance the scales by putting them in charge of one, or both chambers as both parties battle ahead of the midterm election. Read more»