Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek of Iowa on Tuesday captured his party’s Senate nomination in the race to succeed retiring GOP Sen. Joni Ernst.

Turek, a Paralympian, defeated state Sen. Zach Wahls in Iowa’s Democratic Senate primary, The Associated Press reported, and will now face off against Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson, who cruised to the GOP nomination.

The Republican-controlled Senate seat in Iowa is a top target for Democrats, and the race is one of about a dozen crucial showdowns in this year’s midterm elections that will determine whether Republicans successfully hold onto their slim majority in the chamber.

THE MIDTERM RACES THAT COULD TIP THE BALANCE OF POWER IN THE SENATE

Turek, a moderate Democrat who flipped a GOP-held Iowa House seat in 2022, was backed by former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and had the tacit support of longtime Democratic Senate Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York and Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chair Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand. And VoteVets, an establishment-aligned outside group, has spent big bucks on behalf of Turek.

«Josh Turek is a two-time Paralympic gold medalist who has represented his country on the world stage and has built a reputation in the legislature for working across the aisle to get things done for Iowans,» Schumer and Gillibrand said in a statement. «His nomination tonight puts the Iowa Senate seat firmly in play, and in November, Iowans will reject Ashley Hinson’s self-serving politics and send Josh Turek to the U.S. Senate.»

But National Republican Senatorial Committee Regional Press Secretary Samantha Cantrell said that «Chuck Schumer spent $10 million dollars to coronate Josh Turek as his rubber stamp for Democrats’ radical tax-and-spend agenda. In November, Iowans will reject him and elect Ashley Hinson to keep fighting for Iowa families, farmers, and workers.»

Wahls, a progressive candidate who Republicans likened to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, was endorsed by liberal champion Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. The Democratic primary grabbed plenty of national attention and drew tons of outside money.

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Iowa state Sen. Zach Wahls campaigns for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate during an event with local residents May 23, 2026, in Waukee, Iowa. (Charlie Neibergall/AP Photo)

Hinson, a former TV news anchor who is in her third term representing Iowa’s 2nd Congressional District, defeated former state senator and former U.S. Senate candidate Jim Carlin in the GOP Senate primary, The Associated Press reported.

Hinson was backed by President Donald Trump; Senate Majority Leader John Thune; the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which is the campaign arm of the Senate GOP; and by Ernst as she cruised to her party’s nomination. Hinson, who in 2020 flipped a Democratic-held seat, is seen as a rising star in the party.

Rep. Ashley Hinson on Tuesday won the Republican Senate nomination in Iowa in the 2026 race to succeed retiring GOP Sen. Joni Ernst. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Iowa was once a top battleground state that former President Barack Obama carried in his 2008 and 2012 White House victories. But the state has shifted to the right in recent election cycles with Trump carrying the state by nine points in 2016, eight points in 2020 and by 13 points in November 2024.

Republicans hold both of the state’s Senate seats — Ernst and longtime Sen. Chuck Grassley — and all four of Iowa’s congressional districts, as well as all statewide offices except state auditor.

But Democrats are energized heading into the midterms, when the GOP, as the party in power, will face traditional headwinds, a challenging political climate thanks to persistent inflation and sky-high gas prices due to what polls show is an unpopular war with Iran, as well as Trump’s sinking approval ratings.

And Iowa Democrats, in particular, are energized after flipping two GOP-held state Senate seats in special elections in 2025.

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, announced last year that she wouldn’t seek re-election in 2026 to a third term in the Senate. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The general election winner will succeed Ernst, a retired Army Reserve and Iowa National Guard officer who served in the Iraq War and was first elected to the Senate in 2014.

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Ernst grabbed plenty of national attention in that campaign with her «make ‘em squeal» ads as she won the high-profile Senate election to succeed retiring longtime Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin.

Fox News’ Sally Persons contributed to this report.

Estados Unidos acusó este martes a Brasil de prácticas comerciales desleales en rubros como redes sociales, propiedad intelectual o deforestación y amenazó con imponer un arancel general del 25%, aunque con algunas exenciones.

La amenaza se conoce a poco más de cuatro meses de las elecciones presidenciales en las que el presidente izquierdista, Luiz Lula da Silva, buscará su relección frente a su rival de derecha radical Flavio Bolsonaro, que cuenta con el respaldo directo de Donald Trump.

Tras la advertencia, Lula responsabilizó al hijo de Jair Bolsonaro por la nueva amenaza arancelaria y lo calificó de “cobarde”, “traidor” y “vendepatrias”.

El senador Flavio Bolsonaro visitó la semana pasada la Casa Blanca, donde fue recibido por Trump.

El hijo mayor del expresidente dijo que Trump “no confía en Lula” porque “menosprecia” a Estados Unidos y agita un “sentimiento antinorteamericano”.

“Quien está siendo represaliado no son las empresas brasileñas. Es Lula. Trump ve en Lula una persona no fiable e incompetente”, dijo a la radio Itatiaia. Además, aseguró que él mismo le pidió al presidente estadounidense no imponer aranceles a su país.

Las elecciones en Brasil se realizarán el próximo 4 de octubre.

Cómo es la nueva amenaza arancelaria de Estados Unidos a Brasil

La oficina del Representante Comercial estadounidense (USTR por sus siglas en inglés) anunció una audiencia pública el 6 de julio antes de su decisión final de imponer aranceles a Brasil.

El USTR “ha propuesto medidas de respuesta para que sean comentadas por el público, mientras que Estados Unidos continúa dialogando de manera intensiva con Brasil para buscar una solución”, explicó el comunicado, difundido en la noche del lunes.

Washington, que tiene varios contenciosos comerciales de larga fecha con Brasil, abrió una investigación bajo la sección 301 de su Ley Comercial de 1974.

“Durante el último año, el presidente Trump y yo hemos mantenido varias reuniones constructivas con el presidente Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva y su gabinete, las cuales se han intensificado en las últimas semanas”, declaró el jefe del USTR, Jamieson Greer.

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“Sin embargo, seguimos manteniendo diferencias sustanciales a la hora de resolver los problemas identificados en esta investigación”, indicó.

Estados Unidos aplicó aranceles a Brasil como a todos sus socios en abril del año pasado.

Luego, ante el impacto inflacionario, Trump anunció en noviembre exenciones a productos agropecuarios como el café, la carne de res o los tomates.

En el rubro de comercio digital, Washington acusa a tribunales brasileños de haber emitido “órdenes secretas” dirigidas a empresas estadounidenses como X, Meta y Google para que suspendan “ciertos contenidos políticos y perfiles de residentes estadounidenses, a veces a nivel mundial”.

Brasil mantuvo una pugna en especial con el multimillonario Elon Musk y su red social X, a la que acusa de haber difundido noticias falsas, incumplir órdenes judiciales y atentar contra instituciones públicas.

Leé también: Trump podría ganar un importante aliado en las próximas elecciones de Colombia

El magistrado de la corte suprema Alexandre de Moraes había abierto en 2024 una investigación contra el empresario “por obstrucción de la justicia” y otros delitos, aunque en marzo de este año un juez brasileño ordenó archivar la investigación.

“Los tribunales brasileños también han responsabilizado económicamente a las empresas estadounidenses de redes sociales por no cumplir estas órdenes”, añade el texto.

El USTR también acusa a Brasil de “perjudicar injustamente a empresas estadounidenses que participan en servicios de pago electrónicos competidores”.

Brasil cuenta con su propio sistema de pagos electrónicos instantáneo, Pix, muy popular en el país.

La lista de presuntas violaciones comerciales también incluye la falta de eficacia en la lucha contra la corrupción, o las supuestas prácticas comerciales favorables a México o India, en detrimento de intereses estadounidenses.

(Con información de EFE y AFP)

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA – Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Xavier Becerra were leading in unofficial early returns Wednesday morning and appeared positioned to advance to the November California gubernatorial election in the race to succeed term-limited Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom in steering the nation’s most populous state and one of the world’s largest economies.

Hilton, a one-time British political strategist turned American conservative commentator and former Fox News Channel host who is backed by President Donald Trump, and Becerra, a former California attorney general who later served as a Cabinet secretary in former President Biden’s administration, were in the lead early Wednesday morning, with votes still being counted and results not yet certified.

«Change is coming to California, and it’s long overdue,» Hilton told supporters at his primary night watch party in Orange County.

Hilton, in an exclusive Fox News Digital interview following his speech, said speaking «honest, simple truths» to voters boosted his campaign. «Everything is too expensive in California. We’re going to cut people’s costs,» he pledged.

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Becerra, who, if elected in November, would make history as California’s first Latino governor since Romualdo Pacheco briefly served in 1875, told supporters that his campaign’s success is «more than a Hollywood ending. More than a milestone. That’s the everyday miracle of living in a state that makes the improbable seem inevitable. And I couldn’t have done it without you.»

Democrat-dominated California holds what’s known as a jungle primary in which all candidates, regardless of party affiliation, appear on the same ballot, with the top two finishers advancing to the general election.

Tom Steyer, a billionaire hedge fund founder turned environmental activist who unsuccessfully ran for his party’s 2020 presidential nomination and who has shelled out over $200 million of his own money in his bid for governor, was in third place as the results continued to be tabulated and as additional mail and provisional ballots remained to be counted. Meanwhile, more than $80 million in outside money has also been spent on the race.

Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, a Republican, as well as Democratic candidates former Democratic Rep. Katie Porter, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, were also among the whopping 61 candidates on the ballot.

Hilton is hoping to become the first California Republican to win a gubernatorial election since then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 2006 re-election.

In his speech, Hilton showed off the lining of his blazer, with American and California flags, that he said Schwarzenegger a few years ago urged him to wear. «Arnold, I did that for you,» Hilton said.

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Xavier Becerra (D) speaks during CBS Television Stations’ California Gubernatorial Debate on April 28, 2026 in Claremont, California. (Leon Bennett/Getty Images for CBS Television Stations)

Former Vice President Kamala Harris and Sen. Alex Padilla mulled launching Democratic bids for governor, but both last year announced they would take a pass. That resulted in the lack of a clear Golden State gubernatorial frontrunner for the first time in more than a quarter-century.

And the race was overshadowed for much of last year, as the devastation from the Los Angeles-area wildfires and President Donald Trump’s immigration raids grabbed headlines in California.

But the showdown for governor entered the spotlight earlier this year when one of the leading candidates, Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell, dropped out of the race and then resigned from Congress after facing multiple allegations of sexual assault and misconduct that he continues to deny.

Matt Mahan, Xavier Becerra, Chad Bianco, Steve Hilton, Tom Steyer and Katie Porter appear during a gubernatorial debate at KRON Studios in San Francisco, California, US, on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. California will hold its primary election on June 2, where the top two finishers advance to the general election in November regardless of party affiliation. (Jason Henry/Nexstar/Bloomberg – Pool/Getty Images)

Swalwell’s exit from the race opened the door for first Steyer and then Becerra to rise in the polls.

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Bianco, who launched his campaign for governor in April of last year, was among the top contenders in the race until Trump’s endorsement of Hilton in early April appeared to blunt his momentum.