WJPA News

The Pennsylvania Departments of Transportation (PennDOT) and Education (PDE) have announced that they will invest nearly $12 million in 27 Pennsylvania educational institutions in 21 counties through the first round of funding for the PennDOT Career and Technical Education grant program. The new competitive grant program supports career pathway education, technical training, industry certification, and on-the-job learning in the highway industry for middle, high school, and college students. Eligible educational institutions will be able to use this funding to expand or create new education programs geared toward many skilled labor. “These grants will help schools start or expand programs to expose students to the trades that will continue building Pennsylvania,” said PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll. The grant program was developed following  Governor Josh Shapiro’s July 2023 executive order that created a first-in-the-nation job training program that provides workforce development investments to ensure Pennsylvania’s infrastructure have the skilled workforce they need. The California Area School District is to receive $490,710 to establish a new welding program operated within the district’s existing approved career and technical education operation.

Harrisburg, PA – Secretary of the Commonwealth Al Schmidt today reminded registered Pennsylvania voters planning to vote by mail ballot in the Nov. 3 general election that they must apply for their ballot online or in person by 5 p.m. Oct. 27th.  “If you want to vote by mail, now is the time to apply so you will have enough time to receive, complete, and return your ballot to your county elections office by the deadline of 8 p.m. on Election Day,” Sec. Schmidt said. “You also have the option of applying for your mail ballot in person at your county elections office, completing it, and returning it all in one visit through Oct. 27. Voters are encouraged to check their county elections office’s hours before making the trip.”  The Department of State’s Elections Data page links to a downloadable Daily Mail Ballot Report, which provides point-in-time data showing each county elections office’s statistics.  County elections offices must receive completed mail ballots by 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 3. Mail ballots returned after that time, even if postmarked by 8 p.m. Nov. 3, will not count..  Polls will be open 7 a.m. through 8 p.m. on Election Day for registered voters who want to vote in person. If a voter is in line by 8 p.m., they can vote.

Rising childcare costs are a factor for parents weighing how to vote in November’s midterm elections. In Pennsylvania’s hotly contested 7th Congressional District, both candidates are making childcare part of their pitch to voters. Democratic nominee Bob Brooks supports universal prekindergarten and increased federal childcare assistance. Republican Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, the incumbent, favors bigger tax breaks for families paying for childcare and employers who subsidize it for their workers. Childcare costs have rose faster than inflation from from 2020 to 2024. The Campaign for a Family Friendly Economy said it has spent $60 million this year to support Democratic candidates, who have historically favored bigger-ticket childcare investments.

WASHINGTON (AP) — When Vice President JD Vance speaks on the campaign trail about the high costs Americans are facing, he often says he understands that people are hurting. But in the way President Donald Trump talks about affordability concerns, the pain is often his. Depending on which Republican is speaking, Americans are getting a different perspective on how bad things are with the economy. Trump says “the golden age of America is upon us.” Vance walks a tightrope to show that he knows voters are feeling an economic pinch while still selling them on Trump’s agenda.

PARIS (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump and leading Republicans are trying to leverage widespread riots in France ahead of midterm congressional elections by making unsubstantiated claims that the social unrest in Europe is caused by Muslim migrants. France has been rocked by violence during nationwide demonstrations over the high cost of living and in support of students’ grievances over underfunded schools. Trump says immigrants to France are to blame. French authorities do not make that connection. It is difficult to know the exact sociological makeup of the protesters. But accounts of the protests and images of the unrest seem to show they are representative of France’s diverse society.

STARKE, Fla. (AP) — Florida has carried out its 18th execution of the year under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis’ aggressive use of the death penalty in his final term. Seventy-seven-year-old William Reaves was pronounced dead Tuesday evening after a lethal injection at Florida State Prison near Starke. He was convicted of first-degree murder in the 1986 shooting death of Indian River County Deputy Richard Raczkoski. Reaves was Florida’s eighth prisoner over age 70 to be executed this year in the nation’s busiest death chamber. Last year, Florida set a state record with 19 executions for a single year. It’s set to tie that mark if another execution is carried out next month as scheduled.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australian federal lawmaker Helen Haines had had both legs amputated after she was rammed repeatedly by a driver on Monday outside her electorate office, her husband says. The 65-year-old independent politician remains in a critical condition on Wednesday in a Melbourne hospital where she was flown by helicopter within hours of an apparent escalation in political violence that has shocked Australia. Phil Haines gave the family’s first public comments on her condition since she was hit by a Toyota Land Cruiser SUV in her hometown of Wangaratta. He said her left leg was amputated on Monday and the other leg was amputated on Wednesday.