INTERNACIONAL
Conservative nonprofit investigates Virginia redistricting vote after court blocks certification
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
FIRST ON FOX: A conservative policy group is launching an investigation into Virginia’s redistricting amendment vote after a court blocked certification of the results, raising new questions from critics about how the referendum was conducted and whether election procedures were properly followed.
The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) is initiating a multi-part probe focused on mail-in ballot handling and alleged classroom political influence, Fox News Digital has learned.
The move comes as the legal fight over the amendment intensifies, with multiple lawsuits pending and the Virginia Supreme Court set to hear oral arguments Monday.
AFPI’s legal team said the first phase of its investigation will involve records requests to several Virginia counties seeking communications and documentation related to how mail-in and absentee ballots were handled during the election. The requests target how applications were processed, how ballots were distributed and accepted, how they were stored and what guidance election officials were operating under.
VOTER-ROLL SCRUTINY ESCALATES IN MINNESOTA AS BIGGEST COUNTIES FACE SWEEPING RECORDS DEMANDS
A person walks to vote in the Virginia redistricting referendum at Lyles-Crouch Traditional Academy, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Alexandria, Va. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
The group argues those materials are public records required under Virginia law and should clarify whether proper procedures were followed.
«The questions we’re asking aren’t complicated,» said Leigh Ann O’Neil, AFPI’s chief legal affairs officer. «Was the election conducted according to state and federal law? Did teachers improperly turn students into a private grassroots army? And, if so, what will the school district do about it? These are basic questions that demand answers no matter how you voted on Tuesday.»
A second component of the investigation focuses on Fairfax County Public Schools, where AFPI is seeking records related to civics class materials and instruction.
CARVILLE AND CO-HOST LAMENT THAT TRUMP SPARKED A REDISTRICTING WAR, MAKING BOTH PARTIES LOOK CYNICAL
Signs urge early voters to vote yes or no on the Virginia redistricting referendum at the Ellen M. Bozman Government Center in Arlington, Va., on Tuesday, March 31, 2026. Early voting continues across the state for Virginia’s redistricting ballot referendum. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
According to the group, some parents have alleged that teachers commented on parents’ political beliefs and encouraged students to persuade their parents how to vote on the referendum. AFPI argues that, if confirmed, such conduct could violate state law, federal law and school district policy governing political activity in publicly-funded classrooms.
The group said it is also sending a letter to the Fairfax County superintendent urging an internal investigation into what it described as «highly concerning reports of partisan voter influence.»
The investigation lands amid a growing legal fight over the amendment. A Virginia court has already moved to block certification of the vote, and the dispute is now moving toward the state’s highest court.
VIRGINIA JUDGE VOIDS REDISTRICTING PUSH, RULES LAWMAKERS OVERSTEPPED AUTHORITY
Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger speaks during a Virginians For Fair Elections canvassing event in Woodbridge, Va., on April 18, 2026. (Graeme Sloan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
There are currently three legal challenges pending in Virginia courts, including an original lawsuit brought by state Republicans, which the Virginia Supreme Court is set to hear Monday. There is also a separate case filed in Richmond by GOP Reps. John McGuire and Rob Wittman and a challenge in Tazewell County, where Circuit Court Judge Jack Hurley ruled the referendum unconstitutional. An appeal from Virginia Democrat Attorney General Jay Jones is expected.
A ruling in the primary case could come within weeks, with courts under pressure to act before Virginia’s August primary and late-July deadlines for voter registration and mail-in ballots.
AFPI said its investigation is intended to ensure transparency as the legal process unfolds, arguing that if election procedures were properly followed, the records will confirm it — and if not, Virginia voters deserve answers.
The Virginia Supreme Court hearing will be livestreamed, allowing the public to follow arguments as the case moves forward. Meanwhile, AFPI said its probe will continue in phases, with additional findings and requests expected in the coming weeks.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
The Virginia Department of Elections and Fairfax County Public Schools did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Fox News’ Bill Mears and Mark Meredith contributed to this reporting.
virginia, elections, investigations, voting, fox news investigates
INTERNACIONAL
WHO head ‘deeply concerned’ over ‘scale and speed’ of Ebola spread, says emergency committee will meet
WHO issues WARNING after DEADLY ebola outbreak
The CDC is coordinating the ‘safe withdrawal’ of at least six Americans exposed to a deadly Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo after the WHO declared a global health emergency.
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
The head of the World Health Organization announced a meeting of his emergency committee regarding the «scale and speed» of the Ebola outbreak in the Congo and Uganda on Tuesday.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus cited data saying there have been over 500 suspected cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in recent weeks, and 33 confirmed cases. There have been two confirmed cases in Uganda. The outbreak has seen a total of 131 fatalities.
«I’m deeply concerned about the scale and speed of the epidemic,» Tedros said in a Tuesday statement.
Tedros is meeting with the WHO’s Emergency Committee later Tuesday.
US ISSUES URGENT TRAVEL WARNING AS DEADLY EBOLA OUTBREAK SPREADS OVERSEAS
Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, director-general of the World Health Organization, speaks during an event. (Lian Yi/Xinhua via Getty Images)
There are several factors that have made the WHO concerned about the potential for further spread, such as cases in urban areas, including Kampala, Uganda, and Goma in the DRC, as well as the conflict-affected province of Ituri.
The WHO has approved $3.9 million in emergency funding to support national authorities as they respond to the outbreak.
The WHO declared the outbreak a public health emergency on Sunday, and the U.S. issued an urgent travel warning for the DRC shortly after on Monday.
UGANDA STARTS CLINICAL TRIAL OF VACCINE FOR SUDAN STRAIN OF EBOLA AMID NEW OUTBREAK
A health worker sprays disinfectant on a colleague after working at an Ebola treatment center in Beni, eastern Congo, on Sept. 9, 2018. (Al-hadji Kudra Maliro/AP)
Officials said the outbreak was caused by the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola virus, a rarer variant for which existing vaccines may be less effective.
The State Department warns that Ebola is a «rare, severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fever illness.»
The virus can spread through direct contact with infected individuals, bodily fluids, infected corpses and objects contaminated with the virus.
CRUISE SHIP PASSENGER DESCRIBES UNCERTAINTY AFTER 3 DEATHS AMID HANTAVIRUS PROBE
«The U.S. government is unable to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in Ituri province,» the advisory noted. «Do not travel to this area for any reason.»
Pictured is the MV Hondius, the cruise ship tied to a hantavirus outbreak after a stop in Argentina that left three passengers dead. (Europa Press Canarias via Getty Images)
The development comes as global health officials continue monitoring a rare hantavirus outbreak tied to the MV Hondius cruise ship, which left multiple passengers and crew members sick, and caused three deaths.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
As of May 13, the WHO said 11 hantavirus cases had been identified in connection with the cruise outbreak, including eight confirmed cases, two probable cases and one inconclusive case.
Fox News’ Andrea Margolis and Michael Sinkewicz and Reuters contributed to this report.
world health organization, ebola, hantavirus, africa, outbreaks
INTERNACIONAL
Vladimir Putin llegó a Beijing para reunirse con Xi Jinping y reafirmar la alianza con China
El presidente de Rusia, Vladimir Putin, aterrizó este martes en Beijing para reunirse con su par chino, Xi Jinping.
El encuentro busca dejar en claro que la relación entre ambos países atraviesa se mantiene después de la reciente visita de Donald Trump a China.
La llegada de Putin se confirmó apenas unos días después de que Trump concluyera la primera de un mandatario estadounidense a China en casi diez años.
El objetivo del viaje del líder republicano fue intentar estabilizar los lazos entre Washington y Beijing, que atraviesan una etapa de fuertes tensiones.
Una alianza estratégica que se profundizó tras la guerra en Ucrania
Según el Kremlin, Putin y Xi tienen previsto discutir cómo “fortalecer aún más” la asociación estratégica entre sus países e intercambiar opiniones sobre los principales temas internacionales y regionales.
Desde la invasión rusa a Ucrania en 2022, los lazos entre Moscú y Beijing se profundizaron notablemente.
Putin visitó China cada año desde entonces, en un contexto en el que Rusia quedó diplomáticamente aislada y depende cada vez más de la economía china.
Hoy, China es el principal comprador del petróleo ruso sancionado, un dato clave para sostener el esfuerzo bélico del Kremlin.
Putin viaja a China tras la visita de Donald Trump. (Foto: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov).
Para marcar el tono de la visita, ambos líderes intercambiaron “cartas de felicitación” el domingo, celebrando los 30 años de la asociación estratégica.
Xi remarcó que la cooperación bilateral “se ha profundizado y consolidado continuamente”, según medios estatales chinos.
En un mensaje de video dirigido al pueblo chino, Putin aseguró que las relaciones alcanzaron “un nivel verdaderamente sin precedentes” y que “el comercio entre Rusia y China sigue creciendo”.
El mandatario ruso subrayó: “Sin aliarnos contra nadie, buscamos la paz y la prosperidad universal”, evitando mencionar a Estados Unidos o a otros países.
“Viejos amigos” frente al mundo
La relación personal entre Putin y Xi es un punto central de la visita. Cuando el presidente ruso estuvo en Beijing por última vez, en septiembre de 2025, Xi lo recibió como a un “viejo amigo”, un gesto que no repitió con Trump la semana pasada.
Putin, por su parte, suele llamar a Xi su “querido amigo” y busca mostrar que la alianza con China no se ve afectada por la presencia de Trump en la región. El presidente estadounidense Donald Trump, a la derecha, sonríe junto al mandatario chino Xi Jinping luego de visitar el Jardín Zhongnanhai, el viernes 15 de mayo de 2026, en Beijing. (Evan Vucci/Foto compartida vía AP)
Aunque no se espera que la visita de Putin tenga la misma espectacularidad que la del expresidente estadounidense, analistas remarcan que “la relación entre Xi y Putin no requiere ese tipo de gesto de tranquilidad”.
Ambas partes consideran que sus lazos son “estructuralmente más fuertes y estables” que los que China mantiene con Estados Unidos.
Ucrania, petróleo y el tablero global
Beijing pidió en varias ocasiones que se abran conversaciones para poner fin a la guerra en Ucrania, pero nunca condenó a Rusia por la invasión y se presenta como un actor neutral.
La semana pasada, Trump y Xi Jinping hablaron sobre el conflicto, pero el presidente estadounidense se fue de China sin avances concretos.
Expertos aseguran que el mandatario chino probablemente informará a Putin sobre su cumbre con Trump, y que la falta de resultados claros “tranquiliza a Moscú”, ya que no hubo acuerdos que puedan afectar los intereses rusos.
Putin llega a China con la expectativa de que Xi profundice su compromiso con Moscú, especialmente después de que Trump anunciara que Beijing acordó comprar petróleo estadounidense.
Rusia depende de las ventas a China para sostener su economía y su esfuerzo militar, por lo que el respaldo chino es fundamental.
Diferencias sobre Medio Oriente y el futuro de la alianza
El presidente ruso también buscará conocer la postura de China sobre el futuro de Oriente Medio, luego de que Trump señalara que espera un rol más activo de Beijing en la región.
Sin embargo, los intereses de ambos países no siempre coinciden: mientras China necesita que las rutas marítimas sigan abiertas para su economía, Moscú se benefició de la flexibilización de sanciones por los combates en Irán.
Leé también: Preparativos para la visita de Putin a China y calor extremo en Nueva Delhi: el mundo en imágenes
En abril, tras reunirse con Xi, el canciller ruso Serguéi Lavrov afirmó que Rusia podría “compensar” la escasez energética de China a medida que la guerra afecta los suministros mundiales.
Putin y Xi buscan mostrar al mundo que su alianza es sólida y que, pese a los movimientos de Estados Unidos, la relación entre Moscú y Beijing sigue siendo un eje central en el tablero global.
Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Rusia, China
NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
A progressive state legislator vying to be Michigan’s next U.S. senator voiced openness to supporting an Iron Dome for Palestinians.
State Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Mich., made the eyebrow-raising remark, first reported by Jewish Insider, during a recent interview with pro-Palestinian podcasters Matt Bernstein and Emma Vigeland.
«I don’t think anybody should live in fear of being bombed or killed,» McMorrow said when the hosts grilled her on her support for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. «I would look at how do we support defensive systems for Palestinians? How would we support defensive systems for Lebanese?»
Asked by Fox News Digital whether that would apply to Palestinians in Hamas-controlled Gaza, a spokesperson for McMorrow replied, «No.»
Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system intercepts projectiles over Tel Aviv on Feb. 28, 2026, amid strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran and retaliatory missile barrages from Iran targeting Gulf states and Israel. (Jack Guez/AFP via Getty Images)
DEMOCRATIC U.S. SENATE HOPEFUL SAYS HER PARTY NIXING ROGAN INTERVIEW IS WHY PEOPLE ARE ‘TURNING AGAINST’ IT
«Her priority remains ending this war and securing lasting peace in the region,» the spokesperson added.
During the interview, McMorrow also omitted mention of the Iranian-backed terror group Hezbollah, which fires missiles indiscriminately at Israel from Lebanon.
After Vigeland appeared to mockingly suggest Palestinians having access to Iron Dome missile technology, McMorrow enthusiastically replied, «Let’s have that conversation.»
When McMorrow’s comments drew an audible groan from Bernstein, who continued to press the Senate hopeful to disavow her support for Israel’s defensive weaponry, she appeared to double down.
«I mean the horror of living in fear of being bombed constantly,» McMorrow said. «Let’s work with the outcome of how do we end the violence, period.»
McMorrow later said she hopes missile defense systems eventually become unnecessary altogether.
«I would love to get to a place where it’s not needed, period, for anybody,» she told the podcasters, referring to the Iron Dome.
She also told the podcasters that she would have supported a resolution sponsored by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., that blocked certain weapons sales to Israel. The measure failed in April due to overwhelming opposition from Senate Republicans and a handful of pro-Israel Democrats.
Mallory McMorrow campaigns at the Michigan Democratic Nominating Convention in Detroit on April 19, 2026. (Jim West/UCG/Universal Images Group)
MICHIGAN DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE CLAIMS ISRAEL ‘JUST AS EVIL’ AS HAMAS
McMorrow’s remarks come as she is vying for the Democratic nomination in a bruising three-way primary contest that counts Jewish, Muslim and Arab communities as important constituencies.
Rep. Haley Stevens, an establishment Democrat backed by pro-Israel groups, and Bernie Sanders-backed Abdul El-Sayed are also running in the August primary.
The Senate hopeful did not appear to push back when the podcasters railed against «Zionist indoctrination» or accused Israel of being an «apartheid state.»
During the interview, McMorrow sought to cast herself as a bridge candidate who could keep the Democratic coalition from fracturing over Israel-Palestine issues.
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and state Sen. Mallory McMorrow are running to the left of Rep. Haley Stevens, D-Mich., and have sharply criticized the Israeli government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images; Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
«If we let it tear us apart, we get Mike Rogers,» McMorrow said, referring to the presumptive GOP nominee who is endorsed by the president. «[Donald] Trump gets a win.»
El-Sayed sparked backlash earlier this year after leaked audio, reported by The Washington Free Beacon, showed the far-left candidate voicing concern about constituents who were allegedly upset about the assassination of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei during a U.S.-Israeli airstrike.
politics, middle east foreign policy, war with iran, israel, hamas, rashida tlaib
Milei ratificó el déficit cero y anticipó qué pasará con la inflación en los próximos meses
CONMEBOL le quitó localía a equipos bolivianos ¿Cuáles son las razones y dónde jugarán?
Victoria Villarruel habló del caso Adorni: “Estamos todos esperando su declaración jurada”
Hugo Moyano (hijo): “La reforma laboral no es un capítulo terminado”
WHO head ‘deeply concerned’ over ‘scale and speed’ of Ebola spread, says emergency committee will meet
Milei habló en el Malba: defendió su gestión y cuestionó dos medidas del gobierno de Macri
Carlos Melconian: “Hoy estamos con una afluencia de dólares que evita una crisis, pero no hay que despilfarrarlos”
Marcela Pagano respondió a los agravios de Milei, que la había tildado de “cerda”
La Justicia detectó movimientos por más de US$100.000 en las billeteras virtuales de Manuel Adorni
Jorge Macri defendió una eventual candidatura a presidente de Mauricio Macri: “Todo el mundo tiene derecho a competir”
ECONOMIA2 días agoCarlos Melconian: “Hoy estamos con una afluencia de dólares que evita una crisis, pero no hay que despilfarrarlos”
- POLITICA2 días ago
Jorge Macri defendió una eventual candidatura a presidente de Mauricio Macri: “Todo el mundo tiene derecho a competir”
- POLITICA1 día ago
El PRO redobló las críticas contra La Libertad Avanza y elevó la tensión: «Cuando ellos estaban callados, nosotros combatíamos al kirchnerismo”
