WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is taking his Republican midterm rescue mission to Nebraska on Monday, campaigning alongside GOP Sen. Pete Ricketts, who is running against an independent candidate backed by national Democrats.
Trump is headed to Grand Island, Nebraska, located in the solidly conservative south-central part of the state. It’s part of what the Republican president says is a 32-day blitz of rallies ahead of Nov. 3 that so far has taken him to ruby-red territory such as Oklahoma and Alabama. On Wednesday, he'll make his second stop in two weeks in Texas with a rally in San Antonio.
“The president’s coming to Nebraska to help me campaign, so I can get reelected,” Ricketts told the Associated Press last week on Capitol Hill.
Ricketts, a former governor of the state, was appointed then later elected to fill Sen. Ben Sasse’s seat when he left to run the University of Florida in 2023. Now he is running for his first full six-year term against independent Dan Osborn — a race that initially was not expected to be competitive but is now being watched by the national parties.
Voters across the country are frustrated with Trump's handling of the economy, including persistently high costs for fuel and groceries. It's a major issue for rural voters who have backed the president and his party in recent elections.
The administration’s plan to allow more imports of foreign beef has particularly roiled the agriculture-rich state of Nebraska. Trump wants to lower beef prices for consumers, but ranchers have rebelled against the import proposal, arguing it would undercut them.
“The plan to import low-quality foreign beef is not helping Nebraska ranchers,” Ricketts told the AP. “I would advise the White House to change that policy and look for longer-term things that will help us build the size of the herd and ultimately bring the price of beef down for consumers.”
In the House of Representatives, the Grand Island area is represented by Republican Rep. Adrian Smith, whose race is not expected to be close. But Nebraska has a competitive House race farther east in Omaha, considered the “blue dot” of the state because the area’s electoral vote in presidential elections often goes to Democrats.
Osborn, a former labor union chief, ran against Republican Sen. Deb Fischer in 2024 and lost by 7 percentage points. Though national Democrats support him, he has refused to say what party he would caucus with should he be elected in November.
Other independents in the Senate, including Maine’s Angus King on the moderate end and Vermont’s Bernie Sanders on the left, caucus with Democrats for organizational purposes and committee assignments.
With the Democratic brand remaining deeply unpopular in conservative states, Osborn isn’t the only declared independent running for the Senate against Republicans this year. In South Dakota, Navy and Air Force veteran Brian Bengs is campaigning as an independent against Republican Sen. Mike Rounds. Bengs ran as a Democrat for the Senate four years ago and was handily defeated by now-Senate Majority Leader John Thune.
It’s a similar dynamic in Idaho, where independent Todd Achilles is challenging GOP Sen. Jim Risch.
Democratic voters in Nebraska chose Cindy Burbank as their party nominee earlier this year, but Burbank specifically campaigned on ensuring that no votes would be siphoned from Osborn in the general elections in November, and she has since formally dropped out of the race.
Osborn has been traveling across Nebraska to hold meetings in all 93 counties, and has repeatedly criticized Ricketts for not holding town halls to meet with constituents.
Ricketts, whose family founded TD Ameritrade and owns Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs, served as governor from 2015 to 2023.
President Donald Trump dances as he departs after speaking during an event at Butler High School in Vandalia, Ohio, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
MADRID (AP) — Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced early elections Monday after his government suffered a bruising legislative defeat last week on emergency measures related to the country’s housing crisis.
The vote will be held Nov. 29.
In recent weeks, Spaniards have demanded solutions from the government over housing affordability, holding protests in cities across the country after public outrage grew over the televised eviction of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid last month.
Right-wing opposition parties joined forces to scuttle two emergency decrees in Parliament that included measures to reduce evictions and real estate speculation. The setback sparked wide speculation that Sánchez could consider moving up a national election from next year.
In a televised address, Sánchez argued that a broader progressive coalition in Parliament would allow Spaniards to tackle the biggest issues facing the country today.
“The time has come, therefore, for the Spanish people to decide what future you want for yourselves and for your country,” Sánchez said.
Sánchez, 54, has been Spain’s prime minister since 2018, making him one of Europe’s longest-standing leaders.
He has become one of the leading international progressive heads of government thanks to his defense of migration, his diplomatic efforts to defend Palestinians and his criticism of the American and Israeli war against Iran.
He has also enjoyed one of the fastest growing economies in the developed world in recent years.
But back home, the Spanish leader has been hemmed in by a series of legal cases involving his Socialist party as well as his wife and brother, who both deny wrongdoing.
He has also struggled to account for this summer’s border crossing by tens of thousands of mostly Moroccans into Spain’s North African territory of Ceuta.
He has led a coalition minority government along with the left-wing junior partner Sumar since 2023. But his reliance on several smaller parties to get anything done has hamstrung his legislative ability.
Throughout his political career, Sánchez has earned a reputation as a political escape artist capable of winning elections he looked set to lose.
The Socialist leader appears set to face another tough election against the conservative Popular Party that holds the most seats in Parliament already and will aim to retake control of the government.
Wilson reported from Barcelona, Spain.
People seen through a window inside a bar in La Cabrera, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, watch a televised speech by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez from La Moncloa Palace announcing national elections, Monday, Oct. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
People at a bar in La Cabrera, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, watch a televised speech by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez from La Moncloa Palace announcing national elections, Monday, Oct. 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
FILE - A partially damaged poster of Spanish Prime Minister and Socialist Party candidate Pedro Sanchez flaps in Parla, on the outskirts of Madrid, Spain, April 26, 2019. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
FILE - Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez attends the inauguration of the Tower of Jesus Christ by Pope Leo XIV at the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, Spain, Wednesday, June 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
FILE - Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez poses for a portrait after an interview with The Associated Press at the Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, June 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, left, applauds at the Spanish parliament in Madrid, Friday Oct. 2, 2026. (Eduardo Parra/Europa Press via AP)
People demonstrate to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. The banner reads in Spanish: toward the general strike. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas)
People demonstrate to demand stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas)
People hold up keys as a sign of protest during a demonstration demanding stronger laws to protect renters in Madrid, Spain, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Andrea Comas)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez arrives at the Spanish parliament in Madrid, Friday Oct. 2, 2026. (Eduardo Parra/Europa Press via AP)
