Politics

By Maria Tsvetkova

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Donald Trump lost to Kamala Harris in every voting precinct in Manhattan – except one.

The single exception was in Two Bridges at the end of the historic Lower East Side, on a block that once served as home to Soviet spies Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, and has been a landing spot for Jewish, Italian and, more recently, Chinese immigrants.

A native New Yorker, Trump’s victory in a voting district in the borough of Manhattan – a Democratic stronghold – was his first since he started running for president in 2016. He won by a margin of 16 votes out of nearly 500 ballots cast, according to preliminary results, published by the city election board after 99% of votes in the district had been counted.

Counting the vote for the 2024 election in America’s most populous city is finishing up this week. By Saturday, the results should be certified at a local level all over New York state.

Across New York City, Trump won 30% of the total vote for president. That was a 7-point improvement from how he performed against Joe Biden in 2020. Most of his gains came from fewer Democrats turning out for Harris. She underperformed Biden in every borough of the city, losing about a quarter of his votes, according to the data.

Trump’s Two Bridges win came in a precinct that consists of the western part of a giant apartment complex near the Brooklyn Bridge, called Knickerbocker Village. Built in the 1930s as an affordable housing development, rent prices in the complex are still protected from significant increases by city laws in exchange for tax exemptions for the owners of the complex.

At the height of their espionage careers after World War II, the building was home to the Rosenbergs, who were executed in 1953 for passing secret information to the Soviet Union, including classified details about the nuclear bomb.

In 2015, new documents were declassified suggesting there was not enough evidence to justify Ethel Rosenberg’s execution. The Rosenbergs’ orphaned sons have long campaigned for her official exoneration.

Today, the block borders Chinatown to the north, and nearly 80% of its population is Asian with the remainder being mostly white, according to the 2020 census.

On a fall morning last week, dozens of Chinese men and women were entering or leaving the apartment complex through a well-kept, private inner yard, guarded by security personnel. Many residents told Reuters reporters they did not speak any English.

One of them, restaurant worker Yu Lin, 62, said in Mandarin she had voted for Trump.

“We feel confident in Trump,” she said. “We believe he will improve the lives of ordinary people, and possibly raise the quality of life.”

The median annual household income among residents of the pro-Trump block was around $25,000, four times lower than the median household income in Manhattan, according to census data.

Lin said her main source of information is the Chinese segment of YouTube. Several other residents of Knickerbocker Village also said they read and watch news exclusively in Chinese.

In the building’s laundry room, an elderly man was reading a newspaper – the Chinese edition of The Epoch Times, a right-wing print publication by followers of the Falun Gong spiritual movement that originated in China and was later banned there. Its output tended to steer toward support for Trump, Reuters previously reported.

A non-Chinese resident of the block, 49-year-old Sal Miro, said he also had voted for Trump.

“We needed a change,” said Miro, who works in building maintenance. “We need security and safety in our neighborhood and all around the country, with open borders, there’s crime all over and time for change.”

The centerpiece of Trump’s reelection bid was a promise to fight what he called “migrant crime” and deport record numbers of immigrants. He also pledged to slap hefty tariffs on Chinese imports as part of a package of “America First” trade measures.

Trump won 251 votes among the residents of the block while 235 ballots went for Harris, who secured nearly 68% of votes overall in New York City and 81% in Manhattan alone.

Despite losing the city, her opponent boosted his support in all five boroughs, most significantly in the Bronx, where his share of the vote almost tripled, reaching nearly 27% compared to 9% in 2016. Trump won the least populated, most politically conservative borough – Staten Island.

Harris’ supporters in Knickerbocker Village did not expect the vice president to lose, although they were aware that many of their neighbors voted for Trump.

Waiter Allen Lee, 50, has lived on the block for 12 years. “I don’t like Trump,” he said. “I can’t believe that someone like that can be a president.”

He said he knew Trump was popular among Chinese residents.

Retired hairdresser Mei Ling Ng, 74, said in Mandarin she had voted for Harris, only because she opposed Trump. She paused to greet a neighbor, a non-Chinese woman who was passing by.

“He should have won!” her neighbor said of Trump. “Goodbye! Go Trump!”

(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova, additional reporting by Bing Guan and Echo Wang; editing by Paul Thomasch)

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By Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Former New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez asked on Wednesday that his recent corruption conviction be thrown out and a new trial ordered, after prosecutors admitted that his jury was allowed to review improper evidence during deliberations.

Menendez made his request after prosecutors admitted in a Nov. 13 filing that jurors reviewed nine pieces of evidence containing material that should have been redacted, but that the mistake did not justify setting aside the verdict.

A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in Manhattan, whose office prosecuted Menendez, declined to comment.

In a filing in Manhattan federal court, Menendez’s lawyers said the unredacted material contained the only evidence tying him to the government’s central accusation, that he accepted bribes in exchange for shepherding military aid to Egypt.

Menendez, a Democrat, had been chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee prior to being charged.

The material “exposed the jury to a theory of criminality that the government was barred from presenting under the (U.S. Constitution’s) Speech or Debate Clause – namely, that Senator Menendez made specific decisions with respect to military sales to Egypt in exchange for bribes,” Menendez’s lawyers wrote.

“In light of this serious breach, a new trial is unavoidable,” they added.

Prosecutors had also contended that defense lawyers waived their right to object because they reviewed the exhibits before jury deliberations began, and also missed the error.

Menendez’s lawyers called that alleged attempt to shift blame “factually and legally outrageous,” saying they had only a few hours to review a laptop with nearly 3,000 exhibits.

Two of Menendez’s co-defendants, businessmen Fred Daibes and Wael Hana, also asked on Wednesday that their convictions be thrown out and a new trial granted, citing improper evidence.

Menendez, 70, was convicted on July 16 on all 16 counts he faced, after being accused of accepting gold, cash, a Mercedes-Benz and other rewards in exchange for political favors.

U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein is scheduled to sentence Menendez, Daibes and Hana on Jan. 29, 2025.

A trial of Menendez’s wife Nadine Menendez on related charges was postponed because she underwent treatment for breast cancer. It could begin early next year.

Menendez resigned from the U.S. Senate after 18-1/2 years in August. New Jersey voters elected Democrat Andy Kim on Nov. 5 to replace him.

(Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

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By Gram Slattery, Svea Herbst-Bayliss and Steve Holland

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Donald Trump has tapped Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general who presented him with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, to serve as a special envoy for the conflict, the president-elect wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday.

Kellogg, who was the chief of staff for the White House National Security Council during Trump’s 2017-2021 term and national security adviser to then-Vice President Mike Pence, will likely play a central role in attempting to resolve the conflict in his new position.

While there is currently no special envoy for the war in Ukraine, Trump had privately expressed interest in creating the position.

Earlier on Wednesday, Reuters was first to report that Trump was eyeing Kellogg for the role.

Quickly winding down the Ukraine war was one of Trump’s central campaign promises, though he has avoided discussing how he would do so.

“Keith has led a distinguished Military and Business career, including serving in highly sensitive National Security roles in my first Administration,” Trump said on social media.

Kellogg’s plan for ending the war, which began when Russia invaded Ukrainian sovereign territory, involves freezing the battle lines at their prevailing locations and forcing both Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table, Reuters reported in June.

Richard Grenell, Trump’s former acting director of national intelligence, was also in the running for the job, Reuters reported on Friday. During a Bloomberg roundtable in July, Grenell had advocated for the creation of “autonomous zones” as a means of settling the conflict.

Kellogg drafted his plan for Ukraine alongside Fred Fleitz, who also served as a chief of staff to the National Security Council under Trump.

Under their proposed strategy, the U.S. would tell Ukraine that it would only get more American weapons if it enters peace talks. The U.S. would at the same time warn Moscow that any refusal to negotiate would result in increased U.S. support for Ukraine. NATO membership for Ukraine would be taken off the table for the immediate future.

That plan would be unlikely to please Kyiv, given that it would in practice give Russia uncontested control of parts of eastern Ukraine, at least for a significant period of time.

Additionally, some Republicans, particularly in the House of Representatives, would likely be reluctant to agree to more aid to Ukraine.

(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss, Steve Holland, Gram Slattery and Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Ross Colvin, Colleen Jenkins, Jonathan Oatis and Lisa Shumaker)

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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — A law requiring Missouri voters to show government-issued photo identification to cast regular ballots will stand after a lower-court judge found it constitutional Tuesday.

Cole County Circuit Judge Jon Beetem’s decision upholds the law, which was made possible by a 2016 voter-approved constitutional amendment allowing lawmakers to enact photo ID requirements.

“To maintain a secure system for voting, it only stands to reason that a photo ID should be essential,” Missouri Republican Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft said in a statement praising the ruling.

Voter photo ID supporters such as Ashcroft say the practice prevents voter fraud and improves public confidence in election results. Voting rights advocates say getting the records needed to obtain proper photo identification can be challenging, especially for older voters and people with disabilities.

The National Conference of State Legislatures reports 36 states request or require identification to vote, of which at least 21 ask for a photo ID.

Under Missouri’s law, people without government-issued photo identification can cast provisional ballots to be counted if they return later that day with a photo ID or if election officials verify their signatures.

The law also requires the state to provide a free photo identification card to those lacking one to vote.

Missouri’s NAACP and League of Women Voters, along with two individual voters, sued to overturn the law in 2022. They argued that some voters faced substantial obstacles getting up-to-date and accurate government-issued photo IDs and worried that casting a provisional ballot could put them at higher risk of having their votes not counted.

Beetem initially dismissed the lawsuit, finding neither of the two individual voters “alleged a specific, concrete, non-speculative injury or legally protectable interest in challenging the photo ID requirement.”

The Missouri ACLU and Missouri Voter Protection Coalition, who sued on behalf of the plaintiffs, in response added another voter to the lawsuit and asked Beetem again to find the voter ID requirement unconstitutional.

Beetem noted in his Tuesday ruling that all of the individual plaintiffs have successfully voted since the law took effect.

“Their claim that their provisional ballots may be rejected is purely speculative,” Beetem wrote. “In addition, the evidence at trial confirms that rejection rates for provisional ballots are low, and the rates specifically for signature-mismatch are exceedingly low.”

He concluded that the law’s rules on photo identification “protect the fundamental right to vote by deterring difficult to detect forms of voter fraud.”

Lawyers for the plaintiffs said they will appeal Beetem’s ruling.

“The League believes the state should be making it easier, not harder, for Missourians to exercise their fundamental right to vote,” Missouri League of Women Voters President Marilyn McLeod said in a statement. “There’s no evidence of voter impersonation in Missouri, so these restrictions don’t make our elections any safer or more secure.”

The 2022 law also includes permits in-person voting for any reason two weeks before an election, a compromise negotiated by Senate Democrats.

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(Reuters) – Billionaire Elon Musk, tasked with slashing government costs by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, on Wednesday called for the elimination of a federal regulatory agency charged with protecting consumers in the financial sector.

The comment on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) follows Musk’s recent appointment to a government efficiency role, further amplifying the influence of the world’s richest man, who donated millions of dollars to helping Trump get elected.

“Delete CFPB. There are too many duplicative regulatory agencies,” Musk said in a post on social media platform X.

The CFPB did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Musk and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy will co-lead a newly created Department of Government Efficiency, an entity Trump indicated will operate outside the confines of government.

The CFPB was created as part of the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law to police and regulate consumer financial products following the 2008 crisis and only Congress has the power to eliminate it.

Separately, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing sources, that the consumer finance watchdog is moving ahead with rulemaking in the final weeks of Joe Biden’s Democratic administration, in a bid to advance consumer protections before Trump overhauls the agency.

Republicans have sought to curtail or eliminate the agency from the outset, but legislative efforts to either scrap it altogether, or place stricter limits on its funding and leadership structure, have failed to gain traction in the years since its creation.

Banking industry executives and lawyers also anticipate the incoming Trump administration will likely place significant limits on the CFPB.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)

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By Tim Reid and Andrew Goudsward

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Several of President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet and administration picks were targeted this week with actions including bomb threats and “swatting,” a spokesperson for the transition team said on Wednesday.

The threats were made Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, and law enforcement acted quickly to ensure the safety of those targeted, spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

Elise Stefanik, a Republican U.S. representative and Trump’s choice to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, and Lee Zeldin, a former Republican congressman who is Trump’s pick to head the Environmental Protection Agency, both said in separate statements they had been the targets of bomb threats.

On Wednesday evening Pete Hegseth, Trump’s nominee to be U.S. defense secretary, said his family had been the target of a pipe bomb threat.

“This morning, a police officer arrived at our home – where our seven children were still sleeping. The officer notified my wife and I that they had received a credible pipe bomb threat targeting me and my family. We are all safe and the threat has been cleared,” Hegseth said on X.

An FBI spokesperson said the bureau is aware of numerous bomb threats and swatting incidents targeting incoming administration nominees and appointees and is working with its law enforcement partners.

Swatting is the filing of false reports to police to induce a potentially heavy, armed response by officers at someone’s home. Law enforcement experts see it as a form of intimidation or harassment that is increasingly being used to target prominent figures.

“We take all potential threats seriously, and as always, encourage members of the public to immediately report anything they consider suspicious to law enforcement,” the FBI spokesperson said.

Stefanik said in a statement on Wednesday that she, her husband and their 3-year-old son were driving from Washington, D.C., to their family home in New York state when they were informed of the threat against their home.

Zeldin said he and his family also had been targeted.

“A pipe bomb threat targeting me and my family at our home today was sent in with a pro-Palestinian themed message,” Zeldin said in a statement posted on X. “My family and I were not home at the time and are safe. We are working with law enforcement to learn more as this situation develops.”

In Florida, the Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said the home of a family member of former Republican congressman Matt Gaetz had also been targeted with a bomb threat.

Gaetz, Trump’s first nominee to be U.S. attorney general, withdrew his name from consideration on Nov. 21 after he faced opposition from U.S. Senate Republicans over alleged sexual misconduct, which he denies.

“The mailbox was cleared and no devices were located. The immediate area was also searched with negative results,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement.

A White House spokesperson said Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden had been briefed about the threats.

“The president and the administration unequivocally condemn threats of political violence,” the spokesperson said.

The theats come months after Trump was wounded in an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania in July. In a separate incident in September, a man was charged with attempted assassination after allegedly positioning himself with a rifle outside one of Trump’s Florida golf courses.

(Reporting by Katharine Jackson, Ismail Shakil, Andrew Gousward, Susan Heavey and Jeff Mason in Washington; Tim Reid in West Palm Beach, Florida; and Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Editing by Colleen Jenkins, Rami Ayyub, Daniel Wallis and Lisa Shumaker)

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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration kept President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration closely apprised of its efforts to broker the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah that took effect early Wednesday, according to the outgoing Democratic administration.

Trump’s team, meanwhile, was quick to spike claim credit for the rare spot of good news for a Democratic administration that’s been dragged down by the grinding Mideast conflict.

“Everyone is coming to the table because of President Trump,” Florida Rep. Mike Waltz, Trump’s choice for his national security adviser, said in a post on X on Tuesday, shortly before the Israel Cabinet signed off on the agreement. “His resounding victory sent a clear message to the rest of the world that chaos won’t be tolerated. I’m glad to see concrete steps towards deescalation in the Middle East.”

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Wednesday confirmed he kept Waltz on the negotiations, but offered firm pushback on the idea that Trump deserved credit for the long-sought after deal finally coalescing.

The Biden administration’s coordination with Trump’s team on its efforts to forge the ceasefire in Lebanon is perhaps the highest-profile example of cooperation in what’s been a sometimes choppy transition period.

Trump’s transition team just Tuesday reached a required agreement with President Joe Biden’s White House that will allow transition staff to coordinate with the existing federal workforce before Trump takes office on Jan. 20. There has been some coordination on high levels between the outgoing Biden and incoming Trump teams, including talks between Biden’s national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Waltz.

Biden in Rose Garden remarks on Tuesday cheered the ceasefire agreement as a critical step that he hoped could be the catalyst for a broader peace in the Mideast, which has been shaken by nearly 14 months of war following Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

“This is designed to be a permanent cessation of hostilities,” Biden said. “What is left of Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations will not be allowed — I emphasize, will not be allowed — to threaten the security of Israel again.”

White House officials are now hopeful that a calm in Lebanon will reinvigorate a multi-country effort at finding an endgame to the devastating war in Gaza, where Hamas is still holding dozens of hostages and the conflict is more intractable.

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By Svea Herbst-Bayliss, Steve Holland and Gram Slattery

(Reuters) – President-elect Donald Trump is considering Keith Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general who has presented him with a plan to end the war in Ukraine, to serve as a special envoy for the conflict, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.

Kellogg, who was the chief of staff for the White House National Security Council during Trump’s 2017-2021 term and national security adviser to then-Vice President Mike Pence, would likely play a central role in attempting to resolve the conflict if he is selected.

Kellogg’s plan for ending the war, which began when Russia invaded Ukrainian sovereign territory, involves freezing the battle lines at their prevailing locations and forcing both Kyiv and Moscow to the negotiating table, Reuters reported in June.

There is currently no special envoy for the conflict, but Trump is likely to create the position, said all the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private deliberations.

Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump’s transition effort, declined to comment on the possible selection of Kellogg, beyond saying that personnel decisions “will continue to be announced by (Trump) when they are made.”

Kellogg, 80, did not respond to a request for comment.

He faces competition for the role. Richard Grenell, Trump’s former acting director of national intelligence, is also in the running, Reuters reported on Friday. One of the sources with knowledge of Kellogg’s potential appointment said Grenell still appeared to be the frontrunner.

During a Bloomberg roundtable in July, Grenell advocated for the creation of “autonomous zones” as a means of settling the conflict.

Kellogg drafted his plan for Ukraine alongside Fred Fleitz, who also served as a chief of staff to the National Security Council under Trump.

Under their proposed strategy, the U.S. would tell Ukraine that it would only get more American weapons if it enters peace talks. The U.S. would at the same time warn Moscow that any refusal to negotiate would result in increased U.S. support for Ukraine. NATO membership for Ukraine would be taken off the table for the immediate future.

That plan would be unlikely to please Kyiv, given that it would in practice give Russia uncontested control of parts of eastern Ukraine, at least for a significant period of time.

Additionally, some Republicans, particularly in the House of Representatives, would likely be reticent to agree to more aid to Ukraine.

(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss, Steve Holland, Gram Slattery and Alexandra Ulmer; Editing by Ross Colvin, Colleen Jenkins and Jonathan Oatis)

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The states that saw the most active attacks against election certification two years ago certified the results of this year’s races without controversy this week, prompting the Arizona secretary of state to proclaim that “election denialism” is a thing of the past.

Others said they weren’t so sure. Certification proceeded normally this year in part because Donald Trump won the presidential race, quieting his supporters after he had spent the campaign making unsubstantiated claims that he could lose only through widespread cheating.

The statewide certification votes Tuesday in Nevada and New Mexico follow a vote Monday to certify the results in Arizona. In all three states, the certification process was tumultuous during the 2022 midterms when Democrats won most statewide offices.

Those controversies followed attempts by Trump and his allies to halt or challenge certification in Michigan, Georgia and other battleground states in 2020, disrupting what until then had been a routine administrative process. This year, some who have been the most vocal in questioning the integrity of elections have instead been celebrating Trump’s victory.

“The results are being accepted in the manner that they are, in part, because those who have been eroding trust or casting doubt on the integrity of U.S. elections have a result they feel good about,” said David Levine, a former local election official in Idaho who now advises on election administration issues. “Hopefully we can get back to a place where Americans can feel confident in the results even if it’s one they disagree with.”

On Tuesday, Nevada and New Mexico certified their statewide results with little discussion. During Monday’s certification in Arizona, Secretary of State Adrian Fontes reflected on the lack of controversy this year.

“I think the age of election denialism, for all intents and purposes, is dead,” he said.

Sitting next to Fontes, state Attorney General Kris Mayes, a fellow Democrat, said she was more skeptical. Her Republican opponent in 2022 spent two years challenging his loss.

“Do I think election denialism is dead? No, I don’t,” she said. “We’ll see over the next couple of election cycles what happens, but I don’t think we’re there yet.”

Public confidence in elections has dropped since Trump challenged his loss in 2020 and made false claims of widespread fraud, particularly among Republicans. Some Republicans began targeting the certification process, when local and state boards certify the results after local election officials provide them with the final tally of votes. A firestorm erupted in Georgia over the summer when the state election board, with a new pro-Trump majority, attempted to politicize the certification process with changes later blocked by the courts.

While certification battles did not surface after the Nov. 5 election, a vocal segment within the Republican Party remains deeply skeptical of election processes, particularly of the availability of mail ballots and the use of ballot scanners to tally votes.

During a forum Monday on the social platform X led by the group Cause of America, the group’s director expressed doubt about voting equipment. Shawn Smith, who also is a retired Air Force colonel, argued the certification process suppresses legitimate concerns and goes against “the sovereignty of the people.”

Although not as widespread as four years ago, this sentiment did surface sporadically at the local level this month. In Washoe County, Nevada, which includes Reno and voted narrowly for Vice President Kamala Harris, the vote to certify the results was 3-1 with one abstention. Commissioner Jeanne Herman has consistently voted against certification and did not make a public comment about her vote this year.

Commissioner Mike Clark, a staunch Trump supporter who had also previously voted against certification, said he would abstain and left before the vote.

“I am not an election denier and clearly the person I wanted to win, won this state,” Clark said before leaving the meeting. “However, that does not mean that all the protocols were followed and that we can truly certify the election.”

Such skepticism, whether in Nevada or elsewhere, leaves the door open to certification disputes during future elections.

The questioning of election results isn’t limited to Republicans. Even though Harris quickly conceded after losing all seven presidential battleground states, online posts among her supporters continue to raise concerns about her loss.

One Reddit community that has amassed 23,000 members features a steady drumbeat of Democrats scrutinizing a result they can’t believe is real. Some posting in the group have issued calls to contact Harris and her running mate to ask them to demand a recount or otherwise object to the outcome.

Among the battlegrounds, Michigan was among those where Trump and his allies pressed to halt certification of the 2020 election for Democrat Joe Biden amid false claims of fraud and manipulation. Two Republican members of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers who initially opposed certification eventually relented. The state board of canvassers eventually voted to certify, even after one Republican member abstained.

This year, the state board voted unanimously on Nov. 22 in favor of certifying and praised the state’s election workers.

In Georgia, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger certified his state’s results on Nov. 22. Four years ago, the Republican state official was facing immense pressure from Trump and his allies to investigate their unsubstantiated claims of fraud.

Also certifying results Tuesday, and doing so unanimously, was the state Board of Elections in North Carolina. It was the only presidential battleground state won by Trump in 2020 — and the only one where he and his allies didn’t make claims of fraud.

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Cassidy reported from Atlanta. Associated Press writers Susan Montoya Bryan in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Ken Ritter in Las Vegas, Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada, and Ali Swenson in New York contributed to this report.

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SUNBURY, Ohio (AP) — For the Young family in rural Sunbury, Ohio, activism begins at home.

The conservative Catholic family chooses to live their anti-abortion beliefs through adoption, foster-parenting and raising their children to believe in the sanctity of life. They’re also committed to teaching their children about political candidates they see as aligned with their beliefs.

The night before this year’s presidential election, Erin and Mike Young gathered their children, Lucas, 8, Gianna, 7, and Isaac, 5, around a bonfire near their farmhouse to pray for Donald Trump as “the pro-life candidate.”

A small group from the church they attend joined them for the “Patriotic Rosary.”

Rosaries in hand, they prayed for the nation and its leaders. They prayed for former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. They recited the “Hail Mary” prayer for each state and “every soul living there.”

As the fire dwindled, they sang “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

The next afternoon on Election Day, the three children put on “Future Ohio Voter” stickers. Isaac and Lucas wore their Trump baseball hats. They piled into their dad’s truck to go to the polling place. Mom had voted earlier. Around the voting booth, they pressed their faces in close to watch dad vote for Trump.

“Educating our kids why voting for leaders who honor and protect life is very important,” said Erin, who homeschools the children. She notes that she and her husband were told one of their children was born after the child’s biological mother took abortion medication that did not work.

“They know, and they understand why we voted for Trump. They know that he’s the most pro-life president,” she said a little more than a week after the election. “Now that the election has gone our way. We still need to focus on what’s going on in Ohio. Because the power has been given back to the states. We still need to pray, and we still need to fight against the abortion laws in the state itself.”

Ohio voters a year ago approved a constitutional amendment that ensured access to abortion. Trump, who claims credit for his Supreme Court appointees who helped reverse Roe v. Wade, has repeatedly said states should decide the issue.

The Youngs said they are not bothered by Trump’s decision to put abortion-rights supporter Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in charge of the Department of Health and Human Services despite his conflicting stands on abortion. “Abortion is now a state issue, not federal,” Mike said.

The family next plans to attend the National March for Life on Jan. 24 in Washington.

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