Good morning, it’s Friday, October 31, 2025. Today we’re trick-or-treating as the world’s greatest newsletter. In today’s edition, states ban license plate flippers; Ohio to vote on redistricting plan; the ten best horror flicks of all time:
Top Stories
CRIMINAL JUSTICE: Delaware, Illinois and Wisconsin have approved new laws banning license plate flippers — devices that allow drivers to obscure their plates with the flip of a switch. They join California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Washington, which already approved such laws. New Jersey is on deck. People use license plate flippers to evade tolls, automated enforcement cameras and police detection. (Pluribus News)
Three cheers to a certain editor, who will go unnamed, who chose the photo of James Bond’s Aston Martin to go along with this story.
REDISTRICTING: Ohio Republicans have unveiled a proposed congressional district map that would give them an advantage in 12 of the state’s 15 U.S. House seats. The state Redistricting Commission plans to meet this morning to vote on the map, which is likely to earn bipartisan support. It would put incumbent Reps. Marcy Kaptur (D) and Greg Landsman (D) in Republican-leaning districts. (State Affairs)
Democrats are likely to back the map because an alternative version that Republicans could propose in November might also endanger Rep. Emilia Sykes (D).
MORE: Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) may move ahead with a plan to redraw U.S. House district lines, despite opposition from Senate President Bill Ferguson (D). A state judge struck down an earlier version of a map that would have given Democrats control of all eight of the state’s congressional districts. (Maryland Matters)
SHUTDOWN: Governors in 21 states have written to the Trump administration urging the federal government to release contingency funds to support SNAP benefits for 42 million people in the midst of the federal shutdown. (CT News Junkie) Governors have issued emergency orders or freed up other funding in an effort to keep the program running ahead of Nov. 1, when the next set of benefits are supposed to arrive.
PUBLIC HEALTH: Ohio lawmakers plan to unveil legislation regulating kratom and banning synthetic derivatives. Kratom is used to treat symptoms of opioid addiction. The bill will ban the sales of products with 7-OH levels greater than 1 milligram per serving, essentially an all-out ban. (State Affairs)
TRANSPORTATION: Florida Reps. Yvette Benarroch (R) and Kim Kendall (R) have introduced legislation creating new regulations around electric bikes, motorized scooters and electric motorcycles. The bill would require a state agency to maintain a database of crash statistics involving those vehicles and make it illegal to tamper with or modify electric bikes to make them go faster. (Florida Politics)
LGBTQ RIGHTS: The Texas Supreme Court has issued a new interpretation of the state Judicial Code of Conduct allowing judges and justices of the peace to refuse to perform wedding ceremonies on the basis of “sincerely held religious belief.” A north Texas county official had sued in federal court over fears he would face punishment for refusing to perform same-sex weddings. (KXAN)
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE: The Arizona House Ad Hoc Committee on Election Integrity will hold a hearing next month exploring the use of AI in elections. Rep. Alexander Kolodin (R), chair of the committee, called the risk of insufficient oversight of AI systems “literally what dystopian nightmares are made of.” (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
NEW JERSEY: Final polls in the race for governor show U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D) leading former Assemb. Jack Ciattarelli (R) by slim but meaningful margins. Sherrill is up 52%-45% in a Fox News poll, 46%-42% in a Suffolk University poll and up 51%-44% in a Quinnipiac poll. (Fox News, Suffolk, Quinnipiac)
PENNSYLVANIA: Spending on the retention election of three state Supreme Court justices is on track to exceed $15 million, by far the most expensive retention contest in state history. The three justices up for retention are Democrats; if they are ousted from office, the court would be mired in a 2-2 ideological split for the next two years. (Associated Press)
Read our story previewing the race here.
CRIME BLOTTER: The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted Maryland Sen. Dalya Attar (D) on extortion and conspiracy charges, alleging she spied on and conspired to blackmail a political consultant who worked on her campaign. The indictment says Attar’s brother and a Baltimore police officer set up recording devices to catch the consultant having an affair, then threatening to leak evidence. (Daily Record)
By The Numbers
67%: The share of Democrats who say they are frustrated with their own party, according to a new Pew Research Center poll. Just 39% of Americans see Republicans governing ethically and honestly, while 42% say the same of Democrats. (Pew)
12%: The share of American adults who favor the current system of daylight saving time, while 47% oppose the existing system, according to a new AP-NORC poll. (Associated Press)
Don’t forget to change your clocks back on Sunday morning.
More than $200,000: The amount Heretic Coffee, in Portland, Ore., has raised to help serve breakfast to those losing food benefits. The shop has received donations from as far away as West Africa and Australia. (Oregonian)
Off The Wall
Thieves broke into the Oakland Museum of California earlier this month, making off with more than 1,000 precious artifacts, including intricately carved ivory tusks, jewelry and Native American baskets. The heist took place four days before thieves broke into the Louvre, making off with millions in jewelry. (Los Angeles Times)
Not to make light of a burglary, but has anyone checked the British Museum?
Greg Semenza, an English professor at the University of Connecticut who teaches a class on the theory and history of horror films, has a list of the ten best horror films ever made. Number one is “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.” Number two is “Alien,” followed by “Psycho,” the original 1933 version of “King Kong” and “An American Werewolf in London.” (CT Insider)
We’ll stick to “The Rocky Horror Picture Show,” thanks.
Quote of the Day
“I don’t want my grandkids to be in Indiana.”
— Utah Gov. Spencer Cox (R), whose son is looking to purchase a house across the country because he can’t afford to buy in Utah. (Salt Lake Tribune)