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TDFP News Roundup – 11/04/26

Writer: Yossi Schmidt
Yossi Schmidt
2 days ago
7 min read

Today’s 20 stories from The Digital Free Press the morning after the midterms, led by Democrats winning both the House and the Senate, President Trump’s reaction, Sen. Susan Collins’ concession in Maine, and three TDFP reports: a guilty plea in an Ethiopia spying case, Lockheed Martin’s $29.5 million settlement and the FBI affidavit in the white powder letters case.



Part 1: Top 10 Stories


1. Democrats win both the House and the Senate, the first midterm since 2006 in which the out-of-power party took both chambers

Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate in Tuesday’s midterm elections, the first midterm since 2006 in which the party out of power won back both chambers, the New York Post reported. The Post said Democrats flipped Senate seats in Iowa, Kansas, Maine, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina and Texas, positioning Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries to lead the Senate and House. “America is back,” Jeffries said.


2. Federal prosecutors move to drop frog embryo smuggling charges against Harvard scientist Kseniia Petrova

Federal prosecutors in Boston moved Tuesday to dismiss smuggling and false statement charges against Kseniia Petrova, a Russian-born Harvard Medical School researcher accused of bringing frog embryos into the U.S. without declaring them, the New York Post reported. The filing came after a judge cleared the way for her to seek government records supporting her claim that she was vindictively prosecuted; prosecutors called those claims “meritless” but said continuing the case “would divert significant time and attention from more substantial federal interests.” Petrova had pleaded not guilty.


3. Trump congratulates Democrats and says ‘part of it was Iran’

“The Democrats did a good job. They fought hard,” President Trump told Fox News in a post-election phone call, the New York Post reported, pledging to work across the aisle. Trump said “part of it was Iran” and blamed high fuel costs and some candidates for Republican losses, according to the Post and the Washington Examiner; that is his claim, not verified. The Daily Caller reported Trump told Fox News he could work with Democrats on immigration.


4. Ex-federal IT contractor pleads guilty to spying for Ethiopia

Abraham Teklu Lemma, 53, of Maryland, a former IT contractor at the National Reconnaissance Office, the State Department and the Justice Department, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Washington to conspiring to give classified U.S. defense information to the government of Ethiopia, the Justice Department said, The Digital Free Press reports. Under his plea agreement, if the court accepts it, he faces 120 to 262 months in prison. Sentencing is set for April 14, 2027.


5. Lockheed Martin to pay about $29.5 million over alleged race- and sex-based pay decisions

Lockheed Martin will pay about $29.5 million to resolve Justice Department and EEOC allegations that it took race and sex into account in bonuses, hiring and promotions while certifying to the government that it did not, The Digital Free Press reports. The deal includes $22 million to the U.S. under the False Claims Act, $4.4 million of it to the former Lockheed vice president who filed the whistleblower suit, and about $7.5 million to more than 1,000 employees. Lockheed denies the allegations.


6. FBI affidavit: burner phone, library Wi-Fi and Walmart records led agents to white powder letters suspect

A sworn FBI affidavit read by The Digital Free Press says a cash-bought burner phone, logins from public library and university networks in Oklahoma City, and Walmart purchase records led agents to Robin Patrick Martin, 67, who is accused of mailing hundreds of letters containing white powder to election offices, members of Congress, pollsters, media outlets and the FBI. Martin is charged in a federal criminal complaint; the charges are allegations, and he has not entered a plea.


7. Sen. Susan Collins concedes to Democrat Troy Jackson in Maine

Republican Sen. Susan Collins called Democrat Troy Jackson to concede shortly after midnight Eastern, ending a Senate career that began with her first win in 1996, the Daily Wire reported. “I called Troy Jackson tonight to congratulate him and to assure him that my staff and I will work to ensure a smooth transition,” Collins said. Jackson led by seven points with 70% of the vote counted as of 12:30 a.m., the outlet said.


8. Democrat Adam Hamilton defeats Sen. Roger Marshall, Kansas’ first Democratic Senate win since 1932

Democrat Adam Hamilton defeated Republican Sen. Roger Marshall in Kansas, the first time since 1932 that Kansas voters elected a Democrat to the Senate, the Daily Wire reported. Decision Desk HQ called the race at 10:48 p.m. Eastern, with Hamilton ahead by about five points with 92% of votes counted, according to the outlet. Hamilton leads the United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in the Kansas City suburbs.


9. Democrat James Talarico defeats Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate race

Democratic state Rep. James Talarico defeated Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who was backed by President Trump, and will become the first Democratic senator to represent Texas in close to 40 years, Fox News reported. The Daily Caller reported that Democratic-aligned groups spent $133.4 million on ads backing Talarico, while Republicans spent over $350 million to help Paxton, including about $212 million from Elon Musk.

Source: Fox News


10. Sherrod Brown defeats Sen. Jon Husted to return to the Senate from Ohio

Democrat Sherrod Brown defeated Republican Sen. Jon Husted in Ohio, two years after Ohio voters ousted Brown in 2024, the Daily Wire reported. Decision Desk HQ called the contest at 11:15 p.m. Eastern, with Brown projected to win by just over two points with 84% of ballots counted, the outlet said. President Trump carried Ohio by more than 11 points in 2024.


Part 2: 10 More Stories, Only on TDFP


11. Rep. Byron Donalds wins Florida governor’s race, set to become the state’s first Black governor

Republican Rep. Byron Donalds won Florida’s governor’s race and will become the state’s first Black governor, Fox News reported in a roundup of the night’s historic firsts. Fox said Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, the Democratic nominee in Wisconsin, will be that state’s first Black governor.

Source: Fox News


12. Democrat Josh Turek wins Iowa’s open Senate seat over Rep. Ashley Hinson

Democrat Josh Turek, a state representative and four-time Paralympic wheelchair basketball competitor, defeated Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson for the seat held by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst, the Daily Wire reported. Decision Desk HQ called the race at 11:16 p.m. Eastern, according to the outlet. Fox News reported it is the first time Democrats have captured the seat since 2008.


13. Abdul El-Sayed defeats Mike Rogers in Michigan, set to become the first Muslim U.S. senator

Democrat Abdul El-Sayed is set to become the first Muslim U.S. senator after winning Michigan’s open Senate race, Fox News reported. He defeated former Republican Rep. Mike Rogers for the seat of retiring Democratic Sen. Gary Peters, the Daily Caller reported, days after Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens endorsed Rogers.

Source: Fox News


14. Dow jumps more than 1,200 points after the Democratic sweep

U.S. stocks rose Wednesday after Democrats’ sweep of Congress, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up more than 1,200 points, the S&P 500 up 1.7% and the Nasdaq up 2.1% in morning trading, the New York Post reported. Analysts quoted in the report said a divided Washington could limit sharp policy shifts.


15. Rep. Max Miller loses Ohio’s 7th District to Democrat Brian Poindexter

Democrat Brian Poindexter defeated Republican Rep. Max Miller 54.1% to 45.9% in Ohio’s 7th Congressional District, the Daily Caller reported, citing Decision Desk HQ. President Trump won the district by 11 points in 2024, and Miller won it by 15 points that year, according to the outlet.


16. Rep. Tom Kean Jr. loses New Jersey’s 7th District to Democrat Rebecca Bennett

Republican Rep. Tom Kean Jr. lost his bid for a third term to Democrat Rebecca Bennett, a former Navy helicopter pilot, the New York Post reported. Kean had disappeared from public view for about four months earlier this year and later said depression was the cause, the Post said. His father, Tom Kean Sr., was governor of New Jersey from 1982 to 1990.


17. Trump ally Anthony Constantino declares victory in Elise Stefanik’s New York district

Republican Anthony Constantino, CEO of printing company Sticker Mule, declared victory in New York’s 21st Congressional District, the seat of retiring Rep. Elise Stefanik, the New York Post reported. With 80% of votes counted, he led Democrat Blake Gendebien 51% to 48.8%, according to the Post.


18. Democrats win their largest New York State Senate majority since 1847

Democrats picked up six seats in Tuesday’s elections to secure a 47-seat majority in the 63-seat New York State Senate, the largest majority since 1847, the New York Post reported. Democrats also won every statewide office in New York, the Post said.


19. New York City voters approve all five ballot proposals from Mayor Mamdani’s commission

New York City voters approved all five ballot proposals drafted by Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Commission on Government Efficiency, covering outdoor dining, city contracts, construction, emergency savings and street projects, the New York Post reported. “Tonight, New Yorkers voted for a government that moves as fast as they do,” Mamdani said. Some neighborhood groups opposed the measures, according to the Post.


20. Supreme Court hears Catholic preschools’ challenge to Colorado’s universal preschool rules

The Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday in St. Mary Catholic Parish v. Roy, in which Catholic preschools are challenging Colorado’s decision to bar them from its universal preschool program because they will not agree to admit families who do not follow Catholic teachings, the Washington Examiner reported. The schools say the requirement violates their First Amendment rights; Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson asked whether they were seeking a “special rule,” the Examiner said.


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