The last two midterms where Democrats surged against an unpopular Republican president were in 2006 and 2018. They had notably different outcomes.

© Doug Mills/The New York Times

A voter enthusiasm gap provides another signal that Democrats are favored this fall, though Republicans still have key advantages.

© The New York Times

Academics and a former classification board director say Halloween: The Game’s ban due to ‘incentivised drug use’ highlights an incoherent set of standards

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Halloween’s Michael Myers is one of film’s most feared boogeymen, responsible for some of the most brutal on-screen deaths in horror cinema. The US video game developer Illfonic looked to reproduce those terrors in its upcoming title Halloween: The Game, with gruesome killings a major focus of the gameplay: for instance, you can stomp another player’s head through a toilet seat, or fry their brain by throwing them through a television screen.

But Australians will not be able to play Halloween, because it has been refused classification by the Australian Classification Board, which means it is banned from sale within the country. And it’s not because of the violence or murders.

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© Photograph: Illfonic

© Photograph: Illfonic

© Photograph: Illfonic

Each new attack, like the London stabbings last week, brings a heightened sense of caution to an already wary population.

© Justin Tallis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

“We are synagogues — we are houses of worship,” one rabbi said. “We are not Fort Knox.”

© Hilary Swift for The New York Times

The attack on Temple Israel is just the most recent in a string of attacks. They have taken place in the United States and around the world.

© Sarah Rice for The New York Times

With California’s political machine on the wane, nobody has emerged as a clear front-runner. Democrats worry that nine of their candidates could split the vote and hand Republicans a win.

© Mike Kai Chen for The New York Times