PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Republicans are choosing nominees Tuesday to challenge Democrats who hold top offices as the GOP searches for a path back to power in a battleground state it used to dominate.

U.S. Reps. Andy Biggs and David Schweikert, who represent neighboring districts in metro Phoenix, offer a clash of styles in the race to take on Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, considered the most endangered Democratic governor in the country this election cycle.

With President Donald Trump’s endorsement and support from the grassroots turnout machine of the conservative group Turning Point Action, Biggs says he can unite the party going into a general election.

Schweikert says his low key, pro-business, fiscal conservatism can win back voters turned off by a string of Trump loyalists like Kari Lake, the Republican nominee for governor four years ago.

Both parties have hotly contested primaries to replace Schweikert in the highly competitive 1st Congressional District.

Republicans also are picking nominees for secretary of state and attorney general, key posts with power over elections in a state that was pivotal for Trump’s efforts to overturn his loss in 2020.

Biggs built a national profile as chair of the House Freedom Caucus from 2019 to 2022 and as a staunch defender of Trump. He assisted the president’s attempt to block the certification of his loss in the 2020 election, voting against accepting Electoral College votes from Arizona and other battleground states after the Jan. 6 riot.

He has always represented safe Republican seats and is a veteran of factional brawls within the GOP. Before going to Congress, he nearly lost his post as state Senate president during a confrontation with then-Gov. Jan Brewer, also a Republican, over her push to expand Medicaid.

Schweikert has walked a tightrope with Trump, carefully keeping his distance without antagonizing him. That has helped him win a string of tough races in a competitive House district — a track record he says will help him win over swing voters and beat Hobbs — but has left him isolated from Trump’s “Make America Great Again” base.

Democrats have focused their attacks on Biggs, whom they plan to portray as an extremist focused on helping Trump and not Arizonans.

Schweikert’s 1st District is a top battleground in the fight for a congressional majority. Anchored in Scottsdale, it is home to many of the white, highly educated and affluent voters who have soured on the GOP under Trump.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee controversially threw its support behind Marlene Galán-Woods, a former television news anchor who used to be a Republican. Her late husband, Grant Woods, was the Republican attorney general in the 1990s and later became a vocal Trump critic.

Galán-Woods’ chief opponent, Amish Shah, is an emergency medicine doctor and former state legislator who was the nominee in 2024 but lost narrowly to Schweikert.

On the Republican side, former Arizona Cardinals kicker Jay Feeley has Trump’s endorsement. But he has been dogged by criticism for living outside the district — he resides in Biggs’ district and originally was running there until Trump endorsed a rival in that contest.

Feeley faces Joseph Chaplik, a former state legislator popular with many of the GOP’s grassroots activists, and businessperson John Trobough.

In Tucson, retired Marine drill instructor JoAnna Mendoza is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination to challenge second-term Republican Rep. Juan Ciscomani, who also has no primary opponent. The seat is perennially competitive in general elections and is a top pickup target for Democrats in November.

Meanwhile, the GOP primary for the safe Republican seat Biggs is vacating has turned salacious: Former Pinal County Sheriff Mark Lamb, who is endorsed by Trump, came under scrutiny for alleged sexual misconduct and abuse of power.

The county attorney cleared him of criminal wrongdoing, and Trump reiterated his endorsement this month. Lamb dismissed the allegations as “slander and lies.”

He faces Daniel Keenan, who owns a construction company.

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) – MAGA Inc, a campaign funding group aligned with U.S. President Donald Trump, has amassed more than $400 million, which the Republican leader’s allies will hope to use for the midterm elections.

Here are the details:

• A filing with the Federal Election Commission showed the super political action committee, which began the year with $300 million, had funds of more than $400 million by the end of June.

• In June, MAGA Inc raised $1 million from NASA administrator Jared Isaacman and $10 million from billionaires Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss, who liquidated bitcoin for the contributions, the filing showed.

• Republicans hold narrow majorities in the House of Representatives and the Senate heading into the November midterm elections.

• MAGA Inc spent nearly $377 million in the 2024 elections, which Trump won.

• In the months leading to the midterm vote, Trump’s approval rating has been weighed down by the unpopular U.S.-Israeli war on Iran and high energy prices.

(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Kate Mayberry)

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Democrats could vote as early as this week on the order of their primary calendar for the 2028 presidential election, although the decision wouldn’t be final until the full Democratic National Committee agrees.

The panel that sets the party’s voting order could make that determination as early as Friday when it meets in Washington, two people with knowledge of the party’s process but not authorized to discuss it publicly told The Associated Press on Monday.

The Rules and Bylaws Committee has been holding monthly meetings as it considers the order in which states will vote during the 2028 primaries. The panel has heard presentations from a dozen states hoping to kick off the party’s primaries and caucuses, including Iowa, Michigan, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina.

The calendar isn’t considered set until it’s approved by the full DNC, which is scheduled to meet in August. The DNC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Democrats upended their process for setting their calendar after Iowa’s 2020 Democratic caucus debacle, which led to days of uncertainty over who had won. The party since then has favored more diverse states.

For the 2024 cycle, President Joe Biden led a DNC effort to have South Carolina — which for years has held the party’s first Southern contest — go first overall in the party’s primaries. He cited the state’s more racially diverse population compared to the traditional first-in-the-nation states of Iowa and New Hampshire, which are overwhelmingly white.

Four years earlier, Rep. Jim Clyburn, South Carolina’s lone congressional Democrat and for a time the top Black Democratic lawmaker on Capitol Hill, helped Biden revive his flagging primary campaign and win a resounding victory in the state. He then went on to secure the party’s presidential nomination.

South Carolina’s Democratic leaders have pushed for the state to lead off again, lobbying for support and getting buy-in from Democratic Party chairs in five Southern states. In May, they pressed for South Carolina to reprise its role as the party’s first-in-the-nation contest holder, arguing that the state best represents the initial playing field for presidential candidates to build the coalitions needed to win.

A quarter of the state’s population is Black and about 9% is Hispanic, according to the Census Bureau.

___

Cappelletti reported from Washington. Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United States military said late Monday it was carrying out its 10th consecutive night of strikes on Iran in a push to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The renewed bombings followed the death of another American service member, and came after Iran launched attacks on American allies Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain, home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet. 

U.S. Central Command said on social media that the latest strikes “are designed to further degrade Iranian military capabilities used to attack commercial shipping” in the strait. 

Even as the U.S. and Iran inch closer to all-out war again, glimmers of hope appeared on the diplomatic front, as Iran’s interior minister traveled to Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, for talks. 

The interim deal signed last month that was meant to end the fighting has crumbled. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — a vital supply route for world energy supplies — has largely stalled. And as fighting intensifies, both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people. 

A new potential threat to world energy markets emerged Monday after Iran-backed rebels in Yemen said they planned to prevent Saudi Arabia from shipping in the Red Sea, an alternate route for oil exports during the war. 

The escalation has pushed oil prices higher in recent weeks. Benchmark Brent crude traded Monday above $88 a barrel and regular gasoline in the U.S. climbed to an average of $4 a gallon, keeping pressure on Americans’ wallets ahead of midterm elections this fall. 

The U.S. military identified two soldiers who were killed in Jordan in attacks that left a third person missing. Separately, the military confirmed another death in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone. President Donald Trump took to social media on Monday to warn that “Every time Iran kills an American Soldier they will pay for that killing many times over!” 

Trump was planning to attend a ceremony on Tuesday evening at Dover Air Force Base, where at least one service member’s remains were due to arrive. 

US targets strategic sites in Iran 

U.S. Central Command said Sunday’s airstrikes targeted “Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and communications networks.” Last week, the U.S. struck bridges and a tower at an Iranian port. 

Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency reported that the American strikes killed at least one person around Tabriz, a northwestern city about 520 kilometers (325 miles) from the capital, Tehran. Tabriz is believed to host underground missile bases run by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard. 

U.S. strikes likely also hit Bandar Imam Khomeini in Khuzestan province, Sirik and Jask in Hormozgan province and Konarak and Chahbahar in Sistan and Baluchistan province, IRNA reported. 

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said Monday evening that a second ship had been attacked a day earlier in the Strait of Hormuz, this one off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. 

The other vessel caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after being hit by a projectile near the coastline of Oman. The crew abandoned the vessel, which was adrift and still ablaze hours later, the UKMTO said. 

The route around Oman has been the one the U.S. military has encouraged ships to travel to avoid Iran’s control. The Guard later claimed it was targeting tankers in the strait. 

Tehran also hit U.S.-allied countries throughout the Middle East. 

Kuwait said its air defenses fired at an incoming barrage, and Jordan’s armed forces said Monday evening they had shot down three Iranian missiles, adding that there had been no material damage or casualties. There was no immediate word from Iran. 

Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry condemned Iranian drone strikes targeting the country’s air traffic systems, saying they endanger travel for civilians. 

The Strait of Hormuz remains key to the conflict 

A new pressure point could emerge for world energy markets as Yemen’s Houthi rebels announced on Monday a maritime embargo against Saudi Arabia. The Houthis, who are backed by Iran, said they would block shipping between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden in response to an attack on Sanaa International Airport last week that they blamed on Saudi Arabia. 

With the Strait of Hormuz blocked up, Saudi Arabia has been relying on a pipeline to the Red Sea to get millions of barrels of oil out to market. The Houthis earlier demonstrated their ability to disrupt shipping there when they targeted ships for months over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, with over 100 vessels attacked. 

There was no immediate response from Saudi Arabia. 

Trump has threatened to target Iran’s power stations and bridges to try to compel Tehran to loosen its hold on the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of world oil supplies were shipped before the war. Recent attacks suggest the U.S. military is carrying out that plan. 

The U.S. in the past week reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports to halt its shipments of crude oil. The military says it has redirected seven ships and disabled one since then. 

A glimmer of hope for diplomacy 

Pakistan has intensified diplomatic efforts in recent days to resuscitate the interim ceasefire reached last month that called for resolving remaining issues tied to the war within 60 days. The truce unraveled after both sides resumed attacks on each other’s military installations and other infrastructure. 

Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni arrived in Islamabad on Monday for two days of talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and others. Momeni’s counterpart, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, expressed optimism. 

“God willing, we will have good news,” Naqvi said. 

On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the U.S. is still open to negotiating with Iran but that “it has to be real.” 

“If the door opens to diplomacy — if the guys that want to do something productive for Iran win and take control of that system, or take control of the negotiations — that’ll be a very positive development,” Rubio said. “That’s not where we are tonight, unfortunately.” 

Iranian authorities on Sunday said at least 50 people have been killed and 517 wounded in the latest rounds of U.S. strikes. Since the war began on Feb. 28, 17 U.S. service members have been killed. 

By Emma Farge, Olivia Le Poidevin, Simon Lewis and David Brunnstrom

GENEVA/WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) –  The Trump administration has in recent weeks weighed cutting ties with the U.N. refugee agency, prompting a campaign by diplomats and U.N. officials to persuade the United States to maintain support, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. 

Eight sources including diplomats, aid sources and a congressional source told Reuters that Washington – historically UNHCR’s largest donor  – has been considering disengaging from the agency. Several said a decision had been expected last week, but no announcement was made, suggesting that the lobbying effort may have helped delay or avert a move. 

Reuters granted the sources anonymity to speak about U.N. relations with the U.S.

The U.S. deliberations over leaving UNHCR, which was created in the aftermath of World War Two to help refugees fleeing war, persecution and violence, follow a disagreement over the appointment of the deputy high commissioner, five of the sources said. 

They said that the agency had informed supporters that it could be placed on a U.S. blacklist, ending funding, and that Washington could also withdraw from its governing Executive Committee. 

Any end to U.S. funding would seriously weaken the agency at a time of near-record levels of displacement around the world amid long-running conflicts like Ukraine and Sudan,  diplomats and aid officials said. 

“People have been alerted by UNHCR to call friends in the administration,” a source at an aid group involved in the talks told Reuters, saying that many had done so. “They are at least thinking about it,” the source added.

Another diplomat said UNHCR officials had asked supporters in the past week to use all available diplomatic channels with the United States to urge ongoing support. 

A U.N. refugee agency spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. “We have no comment on this issue because we have no information on it,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

A State Department spokesperson said there have not been any changes to Washington’s engagement with UNHCR. “As with many other international organizations, we work with and through UNHCR when doing so is useful to advance U.S. foreign policy interests or save lives.”

“We will continue to evaluate the United States’ role in international organizations…” the spokesperson added, referring to a February 2025 Executive Order to review U.S. participation and funding. 

 Since beginning his second term last year, President Donald Trump has cut funding for U.N. agencies and withdrawn from dozens of U.N. entities including the World Health Organization. Trump officials have also urged other nations to join a global campaign to roll back asylum protections.

LEADERSHIP DILEMMA

The dispute centres on last month’s appointment of U.S. career diplomat Tressa Rae Finerty as UNHCR’s deputy high commissioner.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih chose Finerty over Simon Hankinson,  a U.S.-backed candidate and former foreign service officer who has accused the UNHCR  of pursuing  “a mass migration agenda.”

“If they wanted reform, a return to UNHCR’s original mission of helping actual refugees, and a careful inspection of budgets and spending, I was the guy,” he told Reuters, calling Finerty a “business as usual” candidate.

Reuters could not reach Finerty for comment.

A former senior UNHCR official said Salih, a former Iraqi president and refugee, would have faced internal “uproar” had he backed Hankinson. 

 Other U.N. agencies like the International Labour Organization have also faced dilemmas over appointing U.S. officials amid questions about the U.S. commitment to global cooperation.

Andrew Veprek, Assistant Secretary of State in the Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration who has espoused anti-migration views, was involved in backing Hankinson’s candidacy, two of the sources said. The U.S. State Department declined to comment on his involvement. 

TOP DONOR

The U.S. was the top donor to UNHCR in 2025, giving $868 million or about a quarter of the total contributions, according to the agency.

UNHCR is already facing a financial crisis after available funding fell roughly 30% in 2025 compared with 2024, Reuters reported.  The agency has cut thousands of jobs and  announced further cuts this year.

Diplomats and aid officials said a full U.S. withdrawal would deepen the crisis and undermine support for the 1951 Refugee Convention, the cornerstone of the post-war refugee protection system.

“Rethinking it would be an existential threat for UNHCR,” the former UNHCR official said. “It could have a massive knock-on effect.”

(Additional reporting by Jonathan Landay and Patricia Zengerle in Washington; Editing by Don Durfee and Sanjeev Miglani)

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Sen. Darline Graham said Monday she’s running for a full term to replace her late brother Lindsey Graham’s Senate seat.

“I’ve made a decision,” Darline Graham told Fox News Channel host Sean Hannity, according to a clip released of an interview set to air later Monday. “I’m in.”

The entrance of Darline Graham — sworn in last week to fulfill the remaining months of her late brother’s term, which expires in January — into the Republican scramble to select a new Senate nominee further complicates an already rushed process following Lindsey Graham ‘s death earlier this month.

A weeklong filing period opens Tuesday for the special Republican primary, which will be Aug. 11. On Friday, President Donald Trump said that Darline Graham had his “Complete and Total Endorsement” to seek the nomination, adding, “RUN, DARLINE, RUN!”

Last week, Gov. Henry McMaster appointed Darline Graham to serve the remainder of her brother’s term, which ends in January. In his announcement, McMaster made no reference to Darline Graham as a placeholder or symbolic appointment, although a person familiar with McMaster’s thinking but unauthorized to speak publicly said the governor, in selecting Darline Graham, had never contemplated that she would run for the seat herself.

Before the emergence of Darline Graham — and their Oval Office meeting after she was sworn in — Trump had previously suggested he could back a potential candidacy from Rep. Russell Fry, who said Monday he would officially enter the special primary.

Several other noteworthy politicians, including Rep. Ralph Norman, have already gotten in, and others like Lt. Gov. Pamela Evette have been eyeing a run. Rep. Nancy Mace announced Monday she would not enter the contest.

Darline Graham told Hannity said she had been “praying a lot” about how to navigate her new role.

“It is a tremendous amount of pressure,” she said.

“I know I’m a hard worker. I learned that from Lindsey,” Darline Graham said. “I feel like I can do it. I feel an inner peace about it. Will it be difficult? Yes.”

Funeral services for Lindsey Graham are scheduled to be held next week in Washington and South Carolina. A preliminary report from the medical examiner said he suffered a tear in his aorta.

The millions in Lindsey Graham’s campaign account aren’t funds that Darline Graham could directly access in a run of her own, according to Bradley A. Smith, a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission.

Under federal rules, Lindsey Graham’s campaign would be limited to transferring just $2,000 to a potential Darline Graham candidacy. However, Smith said there is no limit on how much it could transfer to the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which could — thanks to a Supreme Court decision last month — “spend an unlimited amount in coordination with Darline’s campaign.”

___

Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP

By Jasper Ward and Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Darline Graham said on Monday she plans to run for a full term to replace her brother, late Senator Lindsey Graham, who died this month after serving two decades in the U.S. Senate.

Last week, President Donald Trump asked her to run for the U.S. Senate in a ​special Republican primary in South Carolina on ​August 11. She was appointed to ⁠fill her brother’s vacant Senate seat until the first week of January.

“I have been ⁠praying a lot, talking to my ​family … I feel like I can ​do it. I feel an inner peace about it. Will it be difficult? Yes. ​Absolutely,” she told Fox News’ ‘Hannity’ program ​in a clip released on Monday.

Lindsey Graham, a one-time vocal critic of Trump ​who went on to become one of the ​Republican president’s staunchest allies, died on July 11 from a heart ailment caused by hardening of the arteries, his office said.

U.S. Representative Ralph Norman, a South Carolina Republican, said on Saturday he will seek to replace Lindsey Graham in the Senate.

Republicans currently ​hold a narrow majority in the ​Senate ⁠and the House of Representatives heading into November’s U.S. midterm elections.

The late U.S. senator’s memorial will ⁠be ​held on July 28 in ​Washington and July 29 in South Carolina.

South Carolina’s Republican Party will hold a special primary election on August 11 with a runoff on August 25 if no candidate wins a majority. Whoever captures the party nomination will face Democrat Annie Andrews in the November 3 general election.

CJ Westfall, the chairman of the Republican Party in South Carolina’s Dorchester County, said he formally requested that the state Republican Party’s rules committee review Darline Graham’s eligibility before candidates are certified.

(Reporting by Jasper Ward in Washington; editing by Michelle Nichols)

Troy Jackson, a former Maine lawmaker and fifth-generation logger from the North Maine Woods, has emerged as the likely new replacement for the state’s Democratic Senate nominee after former candidate Graham Platner quit the high-stakes race less than two weeks ago.

Platner’s departure followed a sexual assault allegation that he denied but forced his exit anyway. It sparked a wave of potential candidates eager to prove to Mainers that they could take on longtime Republican Sen. Susan Collins.

But by Sunday, the field had largely been cleared after Jackson supporters spent the weekend securing hundreds of delegates who promised to back him at the upcoming state convention. Under a never-before-used system to replace Platner, delegates will vote Saturday in Bangor on a new Senate nominee. Out of the 601 delegates who will gather this weekend, Jackson’s campaign says they have 481 delegates committed to supporting him.

Top opponents — ranging from Secretary of State Shenna Bellows to Nirav Shah, former director of Maine’s Center for Disease Control and Prevention — have since dropped out, while Jackson announced Monday that he was focusing his attention on ousting Collins.

“I’m grateful to Democrats across Maine for putting their faith in me and in what we’re fighting for,” Jackson said in a statement. “This didn’t happen because of one person. It happened because hundreds of volunteers put in the hours, knocked on doors, made phone calls, and believed we could build something bigger than ourselves.”

Yet securing the nomination is only just the beginning of challenges facing Jackson. There’s little more than 100 days until the general election, meaning Jackson faces an uphill battle raising campaign funds when Collins already has millions. Jackson also must implement a statewide campaign network and woo over the state’s large independent base.

As former state Senate president, Jackson may be more politically vetted than Platner was running as a first-time candidate, but the logger’s backing of progressive policies will leave him open to plenty of attacks by Republicans, said Nicholas Jacobs, a political scientist at Colby College in Maine.

“The guy does have some pretty interesting positions,” Jacobs said. “Positions that are pretty far to the left of the median voter.”

Like Platner, Jackson has said he wants to “get rid of” Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which has become top of mind for many Mainers after an ICE officer fatally shot a driver last week. Democrats have rushed to connect Collins to the embattled federal agency, while Jackson has reiterated his support of dissolving ICE altogether.

Jackson has also called for “Medicare for All,” which would replace job-based and individual private health insurance with a government-run plan that guarantees coverage for all with no premiums, no deductibles and only minimal copays for certain services.

Republicans were already criticizing Jackson as a “socialist” on Monday.

“This entire process is just as bad as Kamala’s rigged coronation,” said Republican National Committee spokesperson Kristen Cianci, nodding to former President Joe Biden’s decision to drop out of the presidential race in July 2024, leaving Vice President Kamala Harris to head up the Democratic ticket and ultimately lose to Republican Donald Trump.

“Maine voters have had their voices stolen by party insiders,” Cianci added.

However, unlike the scrutiny Platner faced from a series of controversies, Jackson’s background coming from “old Maine” and his decades of working in the logging industry will help him, Jacobs said.

“He’s the real deal,” Jacobs said.

In 1998, Jackson helped lead a weeklong blockade along the Quebec border in an effort to protest the hiring of Canadian loggers who were coming into Maine and driving down pay rates. The standoff ended with Jackson being escorted away by police, but resulted in Jackson fighting for better logger and wood hauler protections as a state lawmaker.

Jackson initially ran as a Republican in 2000 when he sought a seat inside Maine’s House of Representatives. He lost, but won two years later when he ran as an independent. He switched to the Democratic Party in 2004, and eventually became the Maine Senate president before leaving the Statehouse in 2024.

He came in third while running for governor in this year’s Democratic primary election, but had the backing of Platner, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders and Our Revolution, the political organization founded by Sanders.

Democrats must net four Senate seats to gain control of the 100-member chamber, and party leaders viewed Maine as a critical piece of the puzzle, along with Alaska, Ohio and North Carolina.

(AP) – Video circulating online appears to show the moment Iranian missiles hit an airbase in Jordan, killing two American service members. Another remains missing after the Friday attack. And another U.S. service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday, reflecting how troops face lethal risks without being deployed into Iran.

The U.S. military’s Central Command said Monday’s strikes targeted “Iranian military command centers, air defense and coastal surveillance sites, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and communications networks.”

Iranian authorities on Sunday said at least 50 people have been killed and 517 wounded in the latest rounds of U.S. strikes. Since the war began on Feb. 28, 17 U.S. service members have been killed.

The U.S. military said the latest service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone.

“We hit them very hard again tonight,” President Trump said. “And we did that in honor” of the soldiers killed.

Reports indicate that US-led strikes targeted Iran’s under-construction Darkhovin nuclear facility for the eighth consecutive night. At least three missiles struck the site, prompting fury from Tehran’s Atomic Energy Organization, which condemned the attack on what it calls a peaceful facility.

While the United States has not officially confirmed the strike, the action follows the recent killing of two American service members. The attacks may have involved regional allies responding to previous Iranian drone and missile assaults on Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan. The incident marks a significant escalation in regional tensions.

Key Developments

• The Target: Iran’s Darkhovin nuclear power plant, currently under construction.

• The Context: Part of eight consecutive nights of US-led strikes following the deaths of two American service members.

• The Response: Tehran claims the strike violates international law, while the US views the facility as a legitimate military target.

• Regional Involvement: Gulf states like Kuwait and Bahrain may be involved following recent Iranian attacks on their territories.

As the strikes began, a vessel caught fire early Monday in the Strait of Hormuz after being hit by a projectile near the coastline of Oman, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. The crew abandoned the vessel, which was adrift and still ablaze hours later, the UKMTO said.

The route around Oman has been the one the U.S. military has encouraged ships to travel to avoid Iran’s control. The Guard later claimed it was targeting tankers in the strait.

The United States targeted Iran with a new round of airstrikes early Monday after announcing the death of another American service member, hitting around a northwestern city believed to be home to underground missile bases. Iran responded by attacking Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, and Kuwait.

Meanwhile, benchmark Brent crude rose Monday above $90 a barrel, further fueling a global energy crisis sparked by the conflict. An average gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. rose to $4, putting more pressure on American wallets ahead of midterm elections this fall.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Arizona Republicans will choose a nominee in a state primary Tuesday to challenge Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs in November. Voters across the state will also set the general election matchups for competitive U.S. House seats and for a full range of state and local offices.

The Arizona governorship is a top takeover opportunity for Republicans in a midterm environment where voters historically have punished the party occupying the White House. The eventual winner, along with his or her statewide political organization, could play an important role in the 2028 presidential campaign, as Arizona is once again expected to be a critical battleground.

Of the seven Democratic governors in states Donald Trump carried in 2024 as the Republican presidential nominee, only two are up for reelection in 2026, and only Hobbs is expected to face a competitive general election.

Two Arizona congressmen and two businessmen are vying for the Republican gubernatorial nomination. Five-term U.S. Rep. Andy Biggs is a former chair of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. Eight-term U.S. Rep. David Schweikert is giving up his competitive swing district seat after narrowly prevailing against strong Democratic challenges in the last three elections. Businessmen Ken Miceli and Scott Neely have backgrounds in the construction industry.

Biggs has a key endorsement from Trump. The president had already endorsed another candidate, billionaire housing developer Karrin Taylor Robson, but he issued an additional endorsement for Biggs shortly after he entered the race in early 2025. Taylor Robson dropped out of the race in February. Trump has been known to occasionally endorse more than one candidate for the same race. Recently, he endorsed both candidates in the primary runoff for South Carolina governor.

In the race to replace Schweikert in the 1st Congressional District, the Republican field features state Rep. Joseph Chaplik, sportscaster and former Arizona Cardinals placekicker Jay Feely and technology and telecommunications executive John Trobough. Feely briefly ran in the 5th Congressional District, but Trump endorsed another candidate and nudged Feely to run in another district or for a different office. Feely switched to the 1st District, and Trump endorsed him and former state party chair Gina Swoboda for the nomination. Swoboda later dropped out to run for secretary of state.

The Democratic primary includes two candidates from the 2024 primary for this same seat: former state Rep. Amish Shah and former local news anchor Marlene Galán-Woods. Shah won the nomination two years ago, while Galán-Woods finished third out of six candidates. Shah received 48% of the vote against Schweikert in the general election. Publisher Rick McCartney and entrepreneur Jonathan Treble round out the Democratic field.

The 1st Congressional District is just northeast of Phoenix and includes Scottsdale. It is contained entirely within Maricopa County. Schweikert received 51.9% and 50.4% of the vote in his 2024 and 2022 reelection bids, respectively. In the 2024 presidential race, Trump received about 51% of the vote, compared with about 48% for then-Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris.

Another Republican-held seat that is key to Democratic hopes of retaking the U.S. House is in the 6th Congressional District, where Rep. Juan Ciscomani seeks a third term. He and his Democratic opponent, Marine Corps veteran JoAnna Mendoza, are unopposed in their primaries.

In the state Legislature, all 30 state Senate seats and all 60 state House seats are up for election. Republicans hold slim majorities in both chambers. Democrats have not controlled the state Senate since 1992 or the state House since 1966, the last time the party controlled the governorship and both chambers simultaneously.

Maricopa County is by far the most populous and most influential of the state’s 15 counties in both Democratic and Republican statewide primaries. It is home to Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tempe and Mesa and contributed about 61% of the vote in the 2024 presidential general election. Pima County was a distant second with about 15% of the vote.

Here are some of the key facts about the election and data points the AP Decision Team will monitor as the votes are tallied:

Polls close at 7 p.m. local time, which is 10 p.m. ET in almost all of the state. No results will be released before 11 p.m. ET. Most of Arizona does not observe daylight saving time. The Navajo Nation is an exception, and polls there close at 9 p.m. ET.

The Associated Press will provide vote results and declare winners in contested primaries for U.S. House, governor, secretary of state, attorney general, treasurer, state school superintendent, state Corporation Commission, state Senate and state House.

Registered Democrats and Republicans may vote only in their own parties’ primaries. Independents may vote in either the Democratic or Republican primary.

As of July, there were about 4.3 million registered voters in Arizona, including about 1.5 million Republicans, about 1.2 million Democrats and about 1.5 million voters not registered with any party.

About 596,000 Democratic primary votes and about 831,000 Republican primary votes were cast in the 2022 primaries for governor.

Arizona conducts elections predominantly by mail. About 93% of the Democratic primary vote and about 79% of the Republican primary vote in the 2022 state primaries was cast early in person or by mail.

As of Thursday, about 755,000 ballots had already been cast in Tuesday’s election, roughly 335,000 from Democrats and 347,000 from Republicans

Arizona counties tend to release all or almost all of their results from early in-person voting, as well as a significant amount of results from mail voting, in the first vote update of the night, usually before any in-person Election Day votes are reported.

In the 2024 state primary, the AP first reported results at 11:02 p.m. ET, or 2 minutes after the state allowed votes to be released. About half of the total votes cast had been counted by 11:05 p.m. ET. The last vote update of the night was at about 5:35 a.m. ET with about 83% of total votes counted.

The AP does not make projections and will declare a winner only when it’s determined there is no scenario that would allow a trailing candidate to close the gap. If a race has not been called, the AP will continue to cover any newsworthy developments, such as candidate concessions or declarations of victory. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and explain why.

In Arizona, recounts are automatic if the vote margin is 0.5% of the total vote or less. The AP may declare a winner in a race that is subject to a recount if it can determine the lead is too large for a recount or legal challenge to change the outcome.

As of Tuesday, there will be 105 days until the 2026 midterm elections.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 election at https://apnews.com/projects/elections-2026/.