Stories From The States

All Utah voters have automatically received a mail ballot since 2020. The reliably red state had championed universal mail voting. However, with voting under greater national scrutiny, Utah legislators rolled back universal mail voting. Although he’s recently urged voters to cast their ballots by mail, President Donald Trump has long attacked mail voting, claiming without evidence that it is a source of election fraud. Utah Republican Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, the state’s top election official, has recently spoken out about concerns over the Trump administration’s ‘gamesmanship’ with voting, saying it keeps her up at night. Democratic Salt Lake County Clerk Lannie Chapman says those same fears have woken her up at 3 a.m. in a panic. In Episode 49, you’ll hear from Chapman, whose office serves a third of Utah’s total voting population. According to Chapman, 90% of people who participate in any given election in the county use their mail ballot. Her priority each election is to have safe and accessible voting, and the 2026 midterms are no different. You’ll also get a weekly news wrap-up from Evening Wrap newsletter writer, Danielle Gaines and Daybreak newsletter writer Madyson Fitzgerald. They’ve got you covered with the latest on: dyed diesel, the battle between the federal government and New Mexico over a border wall and this week's political developments. Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. Click here for the full transcript. Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: As early in-person voting approaches, North Carolina election officials seek to ease fears (NC Newsline) Trump drops longtime aversion to mail-in voting with GOP trailing in polls (States Newsroom D.C Bureau) How election deniers are using public records to sow doubt in California (CalMatters) Gen Z politicians who want to make a change grapple with parties that aren’t always ready for them (Kansas Reflector and The 19th) Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected] Photo: Elections workers process ballots at the Salt Lake County Government Center in Salt Lake City on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

Despite a hard push by Republicans to bolster their chances of retaining control in Washington by redrawing congressional districts to the party’s advantage, Democrats are in a good position to gain several seats in the U.S. House in November. And which party controls the U.S. Senate after January is now a true toss-up, according to The Cook Political Report. Historically, the party that's out of power picks up seats in the midterm cycle. In Episode 48, you’ll hear from Erin Covey, who leads The Cook Political Report's coverage of the U.S. House of Representatives. Cook’s analysts have recently moved 15 House races in the Democrats’ direction, and say it’s realistic that the party could also take a majority in the U.S. Senate amid a worsening political environment for the GOP. Covey is keeping an eye on U.S. House races in Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Texas, along with the Senate races in Alaska, Iowa, Ohio and Texas. You’ll also get a weekly news wrap-up from Evening Wrap newsletter writer, Danielle Gaines and Daybreak newsletter writer Madyson Fitzgerald. They’ve got you covered with the latest on: data centers on federal land, states bolstering election safety and astronauts encouraging young people to vote. Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. Click here for the full transcript. Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: GOP’s ‘rubberstamp’ of Trump puts US Senate in play, Dem campaign chair says (States Newsroom D.C. Bureau) Gen Z isn’t choosing a side. They’re choosing issues. (Maine Morning Star) A New York Times article claimed hostility by Mary Peltola. Will it affect Alaska’s Senate race? (Alaska Beacon) Despite redistricting, Ohio Democrats eager to flip congressional seats (Ohio Capital Journal) Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected] Photo: Voters will decide this November who will have control in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate. (Photo by Jim Neuger/ Maine Morning Star)

Anxiety over artificial intelligence is growing. Will it replace humans and take jobs? How will it change our privacy? Will it impact our elections? The list of existential questions about AI goes on. The technology has not been regulated on a national level. Congress has struggled to pass federal legislation, while the Trump administration has pushed to limit state oversight efforts. One expert says states have stepped up to the plate to create commonsense guardrails on AI. In Episode 47, you’ll hear from Maddy Dwyer, a policy analyst on the Center for Democracy & Technology’s State Engagement team. She’ll break down how states are regulating AI and whether it's too out of control for the federal government to set limitations on what the technology can do. You’ll also get a weekly news wrap-up from Evening Wrap newsletter writer, Danielle Gaines and Daybreak newsletter writer Madyson Fitzgerald. They’ve got you covered with the latest on: mail-in ballots, SNAP participation and state laws protecting wildlife. Click here for the full transcript. Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: Pritzker establishes AI cabinet amid calls for greater regulation (Capital News Illinois) Spanberger presses Congress for AI guardrails as states forge ahead (Virginia Mercury) As police increasingly embrace AI, some wait for regulations and proof it works (New Jersey Monitor) CT announces AI regulations for state employee health plans (CT Mirror) Majority of Coloradans dislike AI, new survey finds (Colorado Newsline) How New York Can Influence the Future of Artificial Intelligence (New York Focus) Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected] Photo: ChatGPT, an AI-powered system trained to follow instructions and carry out conversations, is being limited in some states. (Madyson Fitzgerald/States Newsroom)

Attorney Alexa Sendukas represents many unaccompanied children in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody and tries to reunite them with relatives in the U.S. She has started to see a startling tactic: Federal agencies are using the children to trap and detain the adults who come to detention centers to pick the kids up. It’s left many families scrambling and trying to figure out when they’ll see each other again. In Episode 46, you’ll hear from Alexa Sendukas, a managing attorney with the Galveston-Houston Immigrant Representation Project. She has represented many detained adults and children in their immigration cases. You’ll also get a weekly news wrap-up from Evening Wrap newsletter writer Danielle Gaines and Daybreak newsletter writer Madyson Fitzgerald. They’ve got you covered on the latest about: local officials in Louisiana signing NDAs, how states are using their national opioid settlement funds and how school boards are dealing with declining school enrollment. Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. Click here for the full transcript. Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: ICE is arresting relatives who come forward to take custody of migrant children in federal shelters (Texas Tribune) ‘There will be another family’: Newberg family scrutinizes feds over father’s detention (Oregon Capital Chronicle) Lacking federal funds, local groups press to continue legal aid for immigrant children (Maryland Matter) Doctors say children of immigrants are missing healthcare (Stateline) Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected] Photo: A masked, armed agent outside Ocean Seafood Depot during an immigration raid, Newark, NJ, Wednesday, Nov. 19, 2025. (Photo by Anne-Marie Caruso/New Jersey Monitor)

When United Flight 93 crashed in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, on Sept. 11, 2001, Tim Lambert was on his way to work at a public radio station. In the newsroom, he saw the televised images of the wreckage in a field near Shanksville and thought the trees looked familiar. Later that night, his dad left a message on his answering machine saying, “Those trees are ours.” Lambert and his family, by chance, became a part of the story of Flight 93. In Episode 45, you’ll hear from Pennsylvania Capital-Star Editor-in-Chief Tim Lambert. For 25 years, he has reported on Flight 93, kept in contact with many of the victims’ families and shared their stories. You’ll also get a weekly news wrap-up from Evening Wrap newsletter writer Danielle Gaines. She’s got you covered on the latest about: the uneven growth of labor unions, wrinkle in the national school voucher debates and the latest on the Rhode Island and New Hampshire election results. Episode produced and edited by Mallory Cheng. Music for Stories From The States composed by David Singer. Click here for the full transcript. Relevant reading from States Newsroom outlets and partners: Remembering Flight 93 through the lens of healing (Pennsylvania Capital-Star) On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, States Newsroom editor remembers the heroes of Flight 93 (Stateline) Part of Flight 93 crashed on my land. I went back to the sacred ground 20 years later (WITF) Walking Flight 93 crash site helps family member heal (Tim Lambert/WITF) How 9/11 changed the way America surveils its citizens (Stateline) Got questions? An episode idea? Email us at [email protected] Photo: Tim Lambert, center, interviews Somerset County Coroner Wallace Miller, left. Former WITF News Director Damon Boughamer on the right records the conversation at the Flight 93 crash site on Oct. 6, 2001. (Courtesy of Tim Lambert)