博客

Trump claims 2020 election ‘rigged’ at least 107 times in six months as midterms loom

2026-05-26T10:05:21.055Z / Reuters

Summary

Trump repeats debunked 2020 election claims to push voting changes and rally supporters
Some Republicans and election experts warn rhetoric undermines trust
Polls show many Republican voters believe fraud claims

WASHINGTON, May 26 (Reuters) – President Donald Trump has repeated his false claim that the 2020 election was stolen from him at least 107 times in the last six months, keeping the grievance front and center even as he faces new political risks from the war with Iran and looming midterm elections.

Trump devotes near-daily attention to ​the issue, a Reuters review of his public events, interviews and online posts found, and his comments often come in waves. One Saturday in April, amid a fragile ceasefire with Iran, Trump posted allegations about the ‌2020 election – when he lost to his predecessor Joe Biden – seven times on his Truth Social account.

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He has rehashed his claims during at least six meetings with world leaders, two celebrations of professional sports teams and the White House observances of Hanukkah and Christmas. In unscripted remarks at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January, he said “people will soon be prosecuted for what they did.”

He reiterated his claims of a rigged election at a White House picnic for lawmakers last week and again while speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One.

“If we had Jesus Christ come down and ​count the votes, I would have won California,” Trump said of the reliably Democratic state he lost by 29 percentage points in 2020 and more than 20 percentage points in 2024. “But it’s a rigged vote.”

Aides and interviewers often shrug off ​his comments, and critics dismiss them as the musings of a sore loser.

But Trump’s relentless focus on 2020 points to a forward-looking strategy aimed at justifying new voting restrictions, reinforcing party loyalty ⁠and energizing supporters ahead of November elections that will determine control of Congress, according to two White House officials and two people familiar with the matter who were granted anonymity to speak candidly.

By casting the 2020 election as illegitimate, he is also laying the ​groundwork to challenge Republican losses and undermine Democrats if they win back power, multiple election experts said.

“He’s not looking back; this is about the midterms,” said Alexandra Chandler, an election expert at the nonpartisan advocacy organization, Protect Democracy. “He’s trying to create a ​fog of disinformation with this. So then if he dials it up further with federal interference, the public will not react as surprised.”

In April, despite having kicked off a national redistricting war months earlier, Trump denounced the results of Virginia’s election to redraw U.S. congressional district maps as “rigged,” without providing evidence of fraud.

“President Trump is committed to ensuring that Americans have full confidence in the administration of elections, and that includes totally accurate and up-to-date voter rolls free of errors and unlawfully registered non-citizen voters,” White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement.

REPUBLICAN VOTERS SYMPATHETIC TO FALSE CLAIMS

Trump’s rhetoric ​has gained traction among Republican voters. A Reuters/Ipsos poll in April found that 63% of Republican voters believe Trump’s false claim that the 2020 election was stolen, a share that has remained largely unchanged in recent years.

An even bigger share of Republicans – 82% – ​said they agreed large numbers of fraudulent ballots are cast by non-citizens in U.S. elections.

By comparison, only 9% of Democrats and 21% of independents said they believed Trump lost in 2020 due to wrongdoing, and 18% of Democrats and 38% of independents shared concerns about non-citizens ‌casting fraudulent ballots.

Multiple courts, ⁠state officials and prior reviews found no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

Even so, Trump last year tapped an election-security czar to re-investigate his 2020 loss. Those fresh probes have turned up no new evidence, Reuters reported in April. Administration officials also sought last year to ban voting machines used in more than half of U.S. states as they brainstormed about how the federal government could take control over state-run elections, Reuters reported last week.

Trump’s 2020 rhetoric intensified in December after he sought to pardon Tina Peters, a Colorado county clerk who was convicted by the state of tampering with voting machines after that election. He repeated the allegations as he pressed congressional Republicans to pass his Save America Act, which would require proof of citizenship for voting, and again while stepping up attacks ​on mail-in voting.

Though the U.S. Senate has failed to advance Trump’s ​nationwide voting changes, numerous states have implemented similar proof-of-citizenship requirements ⁠and stricter identification requirements. Trump has also signed executive orders trying to limit mail-in voting, but those actions are currently being challenged in court by Democrats.

SOME REPUBLICANS PUSH BACK

In the meantime, Trump has used his 2020 claims to deflect blame for intractable global conflicts and domestic policy disputes.

In December, as the war in Ukraine dragged on despite Trump’s 2024 campaign pledge to resolve it in a day, the ​U.S. president told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that the “rigged” U.S. election allowed for Russia’s 2022 invasion. In February, he told families who had lost loved ones in immigration-related crimes that ​they would be “home with your son, ⁠daughter” if the election had not been “rigged.”

The 2020 election has also become a loyalty test for many of Trump’s nominees for key federal roles, including judicial picks, who have refused under oath to tell Democratic senators that Biden won. Instead, they say only that Congress certified the election in his favor.

Nevertheless, some Republicans are pushing back.

RightCount, a group of Republicans in battleground states, recently relaunched a campaign to defend the integrity of state-administered elections and counter Trump’s efforts to nationalize them.

“All the accusations that have been made have all been ⁠refuted, but he ​doesn’t want to listen,” said former Arizona Governor Jan Brewer, a supporter of Trump and a member of the group.

After losing his Republican primary in ​Louisiana last week after Trump refused to back him, U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy took aim at the president’s election rigging claims in his concession speech. Cassidy drew the president’s wrath by supporting his impeachment after the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack by Trump supporters trying to stop the 2020 election certification.

“When you participate ​in democracy, sometimes it doesn’t turn out the way you want it to,” Cassidy said. “But you don’t pout. You don’t whine. You don’t claim the election was stolen.”

Reporting by Bo Erickson; Additional reporting by Nandita Bose; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and Deepa Babington

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Bo Erickson is a White House reporter based in Washington, DC. He focuses on the Trump administration’s domestic, political, and cultural agenda, as well as daily news throughout the world. Previously, he covered Congress and US politics for Reuters, and before that, at CBS News. He is proud to be a Minnesotan at heart. Please send story ideas to: Bo.Erickson@thomsonreuters.com

在印度新德里举行的“四方安全对话”外长会议结束后，（从右到左）美国国务卿鲁比奥、日本外务大臣茂木敏充、印度外长苏杰生以及澳洲外长黄英贤出席记者会。 （路透社）

美国、日本、印度和澳大利亚举行“四方安全对话”后，中国外交部说，任何合作都不应针对第三方，或损害地区国家之间的互信和合作。

据路透社报道，美日印澳四国外长星期二（5月26日）在印度举行会谈，同意共同在斐济建设港口，并签署涉及关键矿产与能源安全的合作协议。四国还在联合声明中指出，仍严重关切东海和南中国海局势，以及南中国海争议岛礁的“军事化”问题。

对此，中国外交部发言人毛宁同日在例行记者会上说，中国已经多次就四边机制阐明立场，并始终认为国与国之间的合作应当有利于促进地区的和平稳定和繁荣，不应当针对第三方。

毛宁并指，中国也不支持搞排他的小圈子，不支持搞阵营对抗，任何合作都不应当损害地区国家之间的互信和合作。

John Cornyn makes his last stand against Ken Paxton, and other things to watch in Tuesday’s Texas runoffs

2026-05-26T09:00:07.722Z / CNN

Republican Sen. John Cornyn’s uphill battle for renomination from his party reaches its conclusion Tuesday as voters head to the polls in the Texas primary runoffs.

President Donald Trump’s endorsement of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week shifted the race dramatically against Cornyn.

Several other contentious runoffs highlight deep divisions within both parties, including a Republican battle over the attorney general’s office and Democratic primaries for three House seats.

AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.

Republican Sen. John Cornyn’s uphill battle for renomination from his party reaches its conclusion Tuesday as voters head to the polls in the Texas primary runoffs.

Cornyn’s race against state Attorney General Ken Paxton was considered highly competitive until a week ago, when President Donald Trump abruptly backed Paxton and made him the front-runner for the nomination.

Now, Paxton is shifting gears to the general election, where state Rep. James Talarico awaits as the Democratic nominee. Cornyn has refused to drop out and is still fighting through Tuesday, arguing a Paxton nomination puts Republicans at risk of losing his seat in November.

There are several other notable races on Tuesday’s ballot that show off deep divides inside the two major parties. At stake are the political futures of three Democratic members of the House as well as the direction of one of the most consequential statewide offices.

Here’s what to watch:

With Paxton running for Senate, the attorney general’s seat is open for the first time since 2014. The office is highly influential in the national conservative movement and a stepping stone to higher office in Texas.

There has been a fierce runoff between US Rep. Chip Roy and state Sen. Mayes Middleton. While Trump has not endorsed between the two, they have fought extensively over their pro-Trump credentials.

Middleton, an oil-and-gas heir who is self-funding his campaign, has branded himself “MAGA Mayes” and seized on Roy’s profile as a conservative agitator who has occasionally upset Trump. Middleton has noted that Roy accused Trump of “clearly impeachable conduct” after the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol, though Roy voted against impeaching Trump.

Roy, who held multiple high-profile legal jobs before joining Congress, has countered that Middleton lacks the experience to serve as the state’s top lawyer. Roy has run ads emphasizing Trump’s visit to Texas last year after catastrophic flooding in which the president said Roy is “not easy, but he’s good.”

“Yeah, I drive a hard bargain,” Roy says in one runoff ad, “because I do what’s right for Texas.”

Some of the president’s allies have sharply escalated their attacks on Roy in recent days. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, Trump’s three-time state campaign chairman, has lambasted Roy’s claims of being pro-Trump, while Trump adviser Alex Bruesewitz traveled to Texas on Friday to campaign with Middleton.

The national debate over generational change inside the Democratic Party factors heavily into the primary runoff between Reps. Al Green, 78, and Christian Menefee, 38. But it has been a bit more nuanced in this Houston-based district.

While Menefee as pitched himself as a next-generation leader, Green has argued he is more aligned with Democrats’ current desire for a more aggressive approach to Trump. Green has repeatedly sought to impeach Trump, dating back to the president’s first term. He was removed from the House chamber last year and censured after heckling Trump during his address to a joint session of Congress.

“I’m the real fighter,” Green said during one runoff debate, holding up campaign literature that depicted Menefee as a boxer. “This is a fake fighter.”

Menefee has lamented the nastiness of the race, saying at the debate that it is “exactly what (Texas Republicans) wanted” when they drew a district that pitted the two Black lawmakers against one another. He has defended his strategy for taking on Trump, suggesting that he prefers to “fight strategically – not to be seen, not to be heard – but to be effective.”

The runoff is a major test for the cryptocurrency industry, which views Green, a member of the House Financial Services Committee, as unfriendly to its agenda. A super PAC aligned with the industry began spending in the primary and has continued in the runoff, dropping $5 million to help Menefee and hurt Green.

Another intraparty battle is playing out in the 33rd Congressional District, a solidly blue district in the Dallas area. Rep. Julie Johnson is up against former Rep. Colin Allred in a matchup triggered by the redrawing of Johnson’s current 32nd District and Allred’s decision to abandon his US Senate campaign last year.

Allred finished 11.5 percentage points ahead of Johnson in the March primary, a major warning sign for the incumbent. He had seized on her stock trading in Congress and promoted himself as a more trustworthy advocate for banning the practice.

In the runoff, Allred has won the support of Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who gave up her seat in the 33rd District to wage an unsuccessful Senate primary campaign. Allred dropped his Senate bid hours before Crockett entered the race.

One of the biggest sources of tension has been where the candidates stand on immigration under Trump. While Allred has backed abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Johnson has argued he is rebranding himself after taking a more moderate stance on immigration enforcement under President Joe Biden and in his 2024 Senate campaign.

“While Colin Allred helped Republicans open the door for ICE, Julie Johnson is taking them on,” a narrator says in one of Johnson’s runoff ads, which features text on the screen asking if Allred is “MAGA’s favorite Democrat.”

As recently as a month ago, the runoff for Texas’ 35th Congressional District was relatively sleepy. But after a mysterious super PAC began boosting Maureen Galindo, a sex therapist who has made antisemitic comments, the race became one of the most closely watched in the nation. Galindo faces Johnny Garcia, a public information officer for the Bexar County Sheriff’s Office.

Democrats from House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on down have condemned Galindo’s rhetoric and the apparent meddling by the super PAC, Lead Left PAC. The group has spent nearly $1 million in the runoff, including on ads that promote Galindo as a fresh face for Democrats who will abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

“To embrace and uplift a fringe candidate with antisemitic — and extremely dangerous — rhetoric and views in order to win an election is beyond the pale,” House Democratic leaders said in a recent statement.

Democrats are especially interested in nominating the right person because the general election in the district, which runs from San Antonio to Austin, is expected to be competitive. It is one of the five new seats that Texas Republicans drew for themselves, and Trump would have carried it by 10 percentage points in 2024. But Democrats believe it is within reach given Trump’s decline in popularity and his plummeting standing with Latinos.

Republicans also have a runoff in the district Tuesday. They are choosing between Trump-endorsed Carlos De La Cruz, an Air Force veteran and brother of Rep. Monica De La Cruz, and state Rep. Jon Lujan, a moderate Republican with a record of running in battleground districts.

Trump dealt a crushing blow to Cornyn by endorsing Paxton. Now many political observers expect Paxton to win – and potentially by a lot.

It would be a devastating outcome for Cornyn, who has spent decades in Texas politics and was a key player in Trump’s first-term agenda as Senate majority whip. Trump not only endorsed Paxton last week but also followed up Sunday with a social media post criticizing Cornyn as “very disloyal” and not supportive enough of the Save America Act, a Trump legislative priority.

Speaking with reporters at his final get-out-the-vote stop of the runoff, on Friday in Corpus Christi, Cornyn predicted he would disapprove his doubters much like he did when he finished ahead of Paxton in the March 3 primary. And while he continued to tout himself as a Trump ally, he told supporters, “Texans get to choose our senator and no one else.”

Paxton’s side is already moving on to the general election. His campaign and a pro-Paxton super PAC stopped running negative ads about Cornyn last week after Texas GOP Chairman Abraham George asked both teams to start uniting for the November election. (Cornyn refused.)

Still, some Paxton allies are trying to keep his supporters energized through the runoff.

“We know the endorsement of our president is going to give him a big leg up, but we can’t take it for granted,” Trever Nehls, a Republican candidate for House in Texas, told the crowd at a Paxton rally Wednesday in suburban Houston.

教宗发表4万字通谕 提醒慎防AI使反人类愿景常态化

2026年5月26日 19:45 / 联合早报

AI摘要

• 教宗良十四世发布4万字通谕《伟大的人类》，警告AI可能使“反人类愿景常态化”，将人简化为效率系统中的齿轮。
• 他批评数据与算力集中于少数私企，呼吁政府加强监管、保护劳工、推动AI去武装化，并确保人类主导武器决策。
• 通谕强调AI背后存在“新型奴役”，包括矿工、数据中心员工及遭网络剥削青年的付出常被忽视。
• 教宗宣布与AI公司Anthropic合作以引导技术发展，但梵蒂冈否认背书，称旨在促进对话。

本摘要由AI辅助生成，仅供参考

教宗良十四世5月25日在梵蒂冈发表他的首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica humanitas），重点针对人工智能对人类的影响发出警告。 （路透社）

（梵蒂冈城综合讯）教宗良十四世发通谕警告，在新技术迅速发展的趋势下，人类文明未来面临着风险，巨大的数码权力不能继续由少数私企掌控。他特别针对人工智能说，它“会使一种反人类的愿景常态化”，人类可能被简化为“不断追求更高效率的系统中的一个齿轮”。

他说，当“效率”变成衡量价值的终极标准时，人就容易把自己当成一个需要不断优化的“项目”，而不是一个需要和别人建立关系、彼此连接与共融的真实的人。

教宗良十四世星期一（5月25日）发表他的首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica Humanitas）。这份有4万多字的通谕向硅谷科技领袖和人类社会郑重发出警惕。

教宗说，他在撰写通谕的过程中，听取了科学家、工程师、政治领袖、家长和教师的意见，从中听到“令人不安的声音”和“无法发声者的沉默”。

他指出，人类正为了在地缘政治或商业中占上风，而竞相争夺更强大的算力和更庞大的数据集。此外，巨大的数据权力集中在少数私人企业手中，这情况必须制止。

教宗尤其针对人工智能（AI）发出警戒，称它对劳动者构成新威胁，导致的大规模失业前景是“一场真正的社会灾难”。

他说，这场科技革命已催生出“新型奴役”，例如为开采科技所需稀土的矿工、低薪数据中心的员工，以及被网络犯罪团伙剥削的年轻人。每一个看似即时且完美的AI回应，其实都有赖于数百万人的默默付出，他们“伤痕累累、身心俱疲，只为确保计算流程不间断地运行”。

教宗还警惕，由AI驱动的武器系统可能降低动武的道德门槛，使战争更容易发生且更难受人类控制，因此AI应被“去武装化”，防止人类被技术主宰。

“任何算力都不能让战争在道德上变成可接受……仅仅抽象地谈论伦理是不够的，我们需要健全的法律框架、独立监督、知情的用户，以及不推卸责任的政治体系。”

因此，他呼吁政府监管AI业者、保护和重新培训工作受威胁的员工、教育学生对AI持有批判性思考、保护儿童免受AI生成的暴力、色情或虚假信息所伤害，以及确保人类继续主导所有关于动用武器的决策，而不是交给AI。

美国AI巨头Anthropic联合创始人奥拉出席了教宗的通谕发布会。奥拉坦承：“AI公司在一套激励与约束机制中运作，而这些机制有时会与做正确的事情相冲突。”因此，他欢迎来自教会领袖等的外部意见，以推动事态朝更好的方向发展。

教宗在会上宣布，将与Anthropic合作，目的是“在AI时代共同引导人类”。

教会邀请奥拉出席通谕发布会却也引来批评，被指有为Anthropic背书之嫌；梵蒂冈否认有其他意图，而只希望借此推动与业界之间对话。

教宗良十四世于5月15日签署这份通谕，明确是受到教宗良十三世1891年5月15日签署的《新事》（Rerum Novarum）的启发。百多年前的那份通谕倡导工人权益和公平薪酬，在工业革命时期为保护工人提供了重要指引。

教宗发表4万字通谕 提醒慎防AI使反人类愿景常态化

2026年5月26日 19:45 / 联合早报

AI摘要

• 教宗良十四世发布4万字通谕《伟大的人类》，警告AI可能使“反人类愿景常态化”，将人简化为效率系统中的齿轮。
• 他批评数据与算力集中于少数私企，呼吁政府加强监管、保护劳工、推动AI去武装化，并确保人类主导武器决策。
• 通谕强调AI背后存在“新型奴役”，包括矿工、数据中心员工及遭网络剥削青年的付出常被忽视。
• 教宗宣布与AI公司Anthropic合作以引导技术发展，但梵蒂冈否认背书，称旨在促进对话。

本摘要由AI辅助生成，仅供参考

教宗良十四世5月25日在梵蒂冈发表他的首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica humanitas），重点针对人工智能对人类的影响发出警告。 （路透社）

（梵蒂冈城综合讯）教宗良十四世发通谕警告，在新技术迅速发展的趋势下，人类文明未来面临着风险，巨大的数码权力不能继续由少数私企掌控。他特别针对人工智能说，它“会使一种反人类的愿景常态化”，人类可能被简化为“不断追求更高效率的系统中的一个齿轮”。

他说，当“效率”变成衡量价值的终极标准时，人就容易把自己当成一个需要不断优化的“项目”，而不是一个需要和别人建立关系、彼此连接与共融的真实的人。

教宗良十四世星期一（5月25日）发表他的首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica Humanitas）。这份有4万多字的通谕向硅谷科技领袖和人类社会郑重发出警惕。

教宗说，他在撰写通谕的过程中，听取了科学家、工程师、政治领袖、家长和教师的意见，从中听到“令人不安的声音”和“无法发声者的沉默”。

他指出，人类正为了在地缘政治或商业中占上风，而竞相争夺更强大的算力和更庞大的数据集。此外，巨大的数据权力集中在少数私人企业手中，这情况必须制止。

教宗尤其针对人工智能（AI）发出警戒，称它对劳动者构成新威胁，导致的大规模失业前景是“一场真正的社会灾难”。

他说，这场科技革命已催生出“新型奴役”，例如为开采科技所需稀土的矿工、低薪数据中心的员工，以及被网络犯罪团伙剥削的年轻人。每一个看似即时且完美的AI回应，其实都有赖于数百万人的默默付出，他们“伤痕累累、身心俱疲，只为确保计算流程不间断地运行”。

教宗还警惕，由AI驱动的武器系统可能降低动武的道德门槛，使战争更容易发生且更难受人类控制，因此AI应被“去武装化”，防止人类被技术主宰。

“任何算力都不能让战争在道德上变成可接受……仅仅抽象地谈论伦理是不够的，我们需要健全的法律框架、独立监督、知情的用户，以及不推卸责任的政治体系。”

因此，他呼吁政府监管AI业者、保护和重新培训工作受威胁的员工、教育学生对AI持有批判性思考、保护儿童免受AI生成的暴力、色情或虚假信息所伤害，以及确保人类继续主导所有关于动用武器的决策，而不是交给AI。

美国AI巨头Anthropic联合创始人奥拉出席了教宗的通谕发布会。奥拉坦承：“AI公司在一套激励与约束机制中运作，而这些机制有时会与做正确的事情相冲突。”因此，他欢迎来自教会领袖等的外部意见，以推动事态朝更好的方向发展。

教宗在会上宣布，将与Anthropic合作，目的是“在AI时代共同引导人类”。

教会邀请奥拉出席通谕发布会却也引来批评，被指有为Anthropic背书之嫌；梵蒂冈否认有其他意图，而只希望借此推动与业界之间对话。

教宗良十四世于5月15日签署这份通谕，明确是受到教宗良十三世1891年5月15日签署的《新事》（Rerum Novarum）的启发。百多年前的那份通谕倡导工人权益和公平薪酬，在工业革命时期为保护工人提供了重要指引。

Here’s what to watch for in the Texas primary runoff election today

2026-05-26T06:00:17-0400 / https://www.cbsnews.com/news/texas-primary-runoff-ken-paxton-john-cornyn-al-green-christian-menefee/

The most expensive Senate primary in history will finally come to a close on Tuesday when Texas Republicans choose between incumbent Sen. John Conryn and state Attorney General Ken Paxton in the runoff.

Several other races from the March 3 primary are also on the runoff ballot Tuesday, including attorney general, state railroad commissioner and a number of congressional races.

Here are some of the major races to watch:

Texas Senate GOP

Cornyn and Paxton are facing off in the primary runoff after neither received a majority in the March primary. The race could have a seismic impact on the Senate — especially after President Trump last week threw his endorsement behind Paxton.

Cornyn, first elected in 2002, came out as the top vote-getter in the three-way primary in March but failed to secure at least 50% of the vote. The former Republican whip and chair of the Senate GOP fundraising arm, Cornyn had sometimes been at odds with Mr. Trump, although he has been an ally to the president in his second term. Paxton, meanwhile, had been a staunch supporter of Mr. Trump for years.

No Democrat has won statewide office in Texas since 1994, making whoever wins Tuesday’s runoff the favorite to win in November.

Mr. Trump’s lack of endorsement had been a defining feature of the race, with reports floating after the primary that he would back Cornyn. Two days after the primary, Mr. Trump said he would endorse “SOON”and called on whoever he chose not to endorse to drop out. Paxton, meanwhile, said he would only drop out after the Senate passed a voter ID law backed by Mr. Trump known as the SAVE America Act.

Mr. Trump held a rally in Texas in March, but did not throw his support behind any candidates at that time, allowing the deadline to be removed from the ballot to pass without making his endorsement. One day after early voting for the runoff started, and six days before voting day, he backed Paxton.

“The moment Donald Trump endorsed Ken Paxton, he took a somewhat unlevel playing field and turned it into a steep cliff,” said Rice University political science professor Mark Jones.

Mr. Trump’s endorsements have carried weight in Republican contests earlier this month. In Louisiana, he endorsed Sen. Bill Cassidy’s opponent, and the incumbent then failed to advance to the runoff. In Kentucky, frequent Trump antagonist Rep. Thomas Massie was defeated by a challenger backed by the president.

Republicans had generally viewed Cornyn as a stronger candidate against James Talarico, who won the March Democratic primary. The Senate Republican fundraising arm has invested millions to defeat Paxton, and Paxton overall has a weaker fundraising record than Cornyn — meaning Senate Republicans will have to spend more money on the general election race if Paxton wins the runoff, after already spending millions opposing him.

Paxton was first elected Texas attorney general in 2014, aggressively taking on the Obama administration when he assumed office. He then became a close ally of Mr. Trump’s, going so far as tofile the lawsuit challenging former President Joe Biden’s win in the 2020 election in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia and Wisconsin. That case was tossed out by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Paxton also has a history of legal issues related to his role as attorney general.

In 2015, he was indicted on securities fraud charges, but they were later dropped in 2024as part of a pre-trial diversion deal. In 2023, he was impeached on charges of bribery, dereliction of duty and disregard of official duties by the GOP-majority Texas House of Representatives in a 121-23 vote. He was later acquitted by the state Senate. Mr. Trump posted a message in support of Paxton after the trial.

The contest between Cornyn and Paxton is already the most expensive primary on record, with AdImpact reporting that spending across both the March primary and Tuesday runoff has topped over $120 million in advertising alone.

18th District Democrats

After Texas’ Republican-controlled Legislature redrew congressional districts to create five additional seats that are more favorable to the GOP, the Democratic primary runoff in the state’s 18th Congressional District now pits two incumbents against each other.

Rep. Christian Menefee and Rep. Al Green advanced to a runoff in March after neither secured more than 50% of the vote in the primary. Menefee was the top vote-getter in March, and a University of Houston poll from earlier this month showed Menefee winning over supporters of another candidate, Amanda Edwards, from the March race.

Green, 80, who has represented the 9th Congressional District since 2005 and is known as a Trump antagonist, opted to run in the 18th District after Republicans scrambled the boundaries of his district to make it more Republican-leaning.

Menefee, 38, won a special election earlier this year to replace Democratic Rep. Sylvester Turner, who died in March of last year.

The district is heavily Democratic, so the winner of Tuesday’s primary will be favored to win in November.

35th District Democrats and Republicans

Democrats are trying to stop Maureen Galindo, who isaccused of antisemitism, from winning the Democratic primary runoff in Texas’ 35th Congressional District.

Galindo, a sex therapist, is up against Johnny Garcia, a former sheriff’s deputy, in the San Antonio-area district that has shifted redder after Texas Republicans redrew the congressional map.

Galindo led the March primary, earning 29% of the vote compared with Garcia’s 27%.

After she called for the imprisonment of “American Zionists,” House Democrats condemned Galindo, with some saying they would force a vote to expel her if she prevails in the runoff and general election.

“If for some crazy reason she gets elected … I will vote and make a motion to expel her every single day that we’re here,” Democratic Rep. Josh Gottheimer of New Jersey, who is Jewish, said last week.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee got involved in the race last week,placing a last-minute ad buy as the House Democrats’ campaign arm sought to tip the scales in Garcia’s favor. The ad referred to Galindo as “MAGA Maureen,” in reference to support she’s received from a political action committee that has been linked to Republicans.

Talarico, Texas Democrats’ Senate nominee, has endorsed Garcia over Galindo and said he won’t campaign with Galindo if she becomes the nominee. Incumbent Rep. Greg Casar, who currently represents 10% of the district since it was redrawn and is instead running in the 37th District in Austin, has backed Garcia.

There is also a runoff for Republicans in the district, which now covers parts of San Antonio and some suburbs. State Rep. John Lujan is facing off against Carlos De La Cruz, the brother of Rep. Monica De La Cruz of the 15th District.

33rd District Democrats and Republicans

Democratic incumbent Rep. Julie Johnson is facing former Rep. Colin Allred in the newly-redrawn Dallas-area 33rd District, the final act in what has shaped up to be a nasty primary matchup.

Johnson was first elected in 2024, when Allred, who had flipped the former 32nd District in 2018, opted to instead run for Senate against Ted Cruz. Allred ultimately lost, but finished five points ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris statewide in that cycle.

But Johnson’s current district, which includes parts of Dallas and its suburbs, had been altered during Texas Republicans’ 2025 redistricting push, turning it from a district that was 62% Democratic in 2024 to one that’s projected to be 41%. Longtime Rep. Marc Veasey’s 33rd District, which now only includes Dallas County, remained strongly Democratic, but he decided not to run for reelection, and Johnson is now vying to replace him.

Allred, meanwhile, had initially jumped into the U.S. Senate race again. He dropped out after Rep. Jasmine Crockett, who had represented another Dallas-area district that was redrawn, decided to run in that race. Allred then got his paperwork in on the filing deadline to run against Johnson and two others in the 33rd Congressional District.

Allred received the most votes in March, coming out more than 10 points ahead of Johnson but failing to secure the 50% of the vote needed to avoid a runoff. Since then, Allred and Johnson have blasted each other’s records in Congress. Allred has enlisted Crockett on the campaign trail, while Talarico is backing Johnson.

The district is heavily Democratic. There is runoff between Republican candidates Patrick David Gillespie and retired police officer John Sims in the district, but neither would be expected to win the general election.

Texas attorney general Republicans and Democrats

With Paxton running for Senate, conservatives statewide are split in the runoff for attorney general. Even before the race headed into the runoff, it was already the most expensive attorney general race in the country’s history.

U.S. Rep. Chip Roy finished second in the March primary to state Sen. Mayes Middleton. Although Mr. Trump has not weighed in, Middleton has attempted to depict Roy as not being loyal enough to the president and his agenda. Roy was one of a handful of Texas Republicans to vote against Cruz’s attempt to object to the 2020 election results in Arizona and Pennsylvania, and he delivered a speech after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol criticizing Mr. Trump. But he voted against impeaching him one week later.

Roy served as Paxton’s first assistant attorney general before being elected to Congress and has criticized Middleton for working as an executive in the oil and gas industry. Middleton has said he is a practicing attorney in oil and gas law.

A statewide poll from the University of Houston earlier this month had Middleton leading 48% to 39%, although 13% remained undecided. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the second-highest statewide official, is backing Middleton, while Roy is backed by Cruz.

Democrats are also in a runoff for their nomination, with state Sen. Nathan Johnson facing off against former Galveston Mayor Joe Jaworski.

Texas railroad commissioner Republicans

Texas’ railroad commissioners regulate the state’s oil and gas industry, making the three-person commission one of the most powerful agencies in the state — and one that attracts a lot of money. The commissioners are elected to staggered six-year terms.

Chairman Jim Wright is being challenged by Bo French, the former Tarrant County GOP chair. Republican leaders had asked French to step down last year after he posted a poll on social media asking whether Jews or Muslims are “a bigger threat to America.” French, whose family owns an oil company in Midland, resisted those calls and only stepped down this year to focus on running for railroad commissioner. He has focused part of his campaign on what he called the “Islamic invasion of Texas,” while also calling for the U.S. to deport 100 million people, including Native Americans.

In the March primary, Wright received 32.1% of the vote and French received 31.75%, according to The Associated Press.

Wright has been backed by the other two railroad commissioners, as well as Gov. Greg Abbott, Patrick, a slew of other elected Republicans and the Texas Oil and Gas Association Good Government Committee. French has received the backing of Turning Point Action and two GOP congressional nominees — state Rep. Steve Toth, who defeated Rep. Dan Crenshaw in the March primary, and Brandon Herrera, the nominee in the 23rd District.

“You know Bo French has crossed the line on the ideological spectrum when Gov. Abbott and Lt. Gov. Patrick consider him to be an extremist,” Jones, the political science professor, said.

Jones said French generally does better with Paxton voters than Cornyn voters — meaning if Cornyn voters don’t show up on Tuesday, there’s a chance French wins the nomination.

Iranian hackers responsible for Los Angeles transit system breach, Israeli researchers say

2026-05-26T10:08:21.386Z / reuters.com

The website used by the Handala Hack Team, an Iran-linked hacker group which has claimed credit for the breach of FBI Director Kash Patel?s personal email, is shown on a screen in Washington D.C., U.S., March 27, 2026. REUTERS/Raphael Satter/File Photo

• Summary
• Companies

• Israeli firm links breach to Iranian state-backed hackers
• Hackers claimed to have wiped large amounts of the transit system’s data in March cyberattack
• Ababil group also claimed hacks against Tri-Rail, Vyncs, and Unimac

May 26 (Reuters) – Iranian hackers were responsible for a disruptive computer breach in March that forced Los Angeles’ transit system to shut down parts of its network, Israeli researchers ​say.

The saboteurs stole at least 700 gigabytes of emails, backups, and other files from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), according to Gambit Security, ‌a Tel Aviv-based cybersecurity firm that said it discovered the misappropriated data after it was inadvertently exposed online.

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In a report
published on Tuesday, the company said a digital trail of evidence tied the server where the data was discovered to a previously known hacking operation that Israeli officials and researchers attributed to Tehran.

Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not return messages seeking comment. Israel’s National Cyber Directorate did ​not return messages.

The Los Angeles transit authority didn’t respond to questions about the findings. In a statement shared last month, its officials said they were working with law ​enforcement and cyber specialists as they brought their systems back online. “Attribution is part of the investigation and we will not speculate,” the ⁠statement said.

Digital security specialists have suspected an Iranian hand in the operation against the LACMTA ever since responsibility was claimed by an obscure pro-Iran outfit calling itself Ababil of ​Minab. The group’s name refers to the bombing of a girls’ school in the Iranian city of Minab that officials there say killed more than 175 children and teachers, and ​its rhetoric and modus operandi are characteristic of self-styled vigilante hacker groups that U.S. and Israeli researchers allege are cut-outs for Iranian spies.

Eyal Sela, Gambit’s director of threat intelligence, said a connection between Ababil and the Iranian state “has been a working assumption.”

“What our research adds is the forensic evidence to support it,” he said.

Gambit, a security startup founded in part by veterans of Unit 8200, Israel’s equivalent of ​the U.S. National Security Agency, said it had alerted relevant authorities to its findings.

Ababil did not return messages left via a form on its website. The FBI said it ​was aware of the LACMTA incident and was “coordinating with partners in response.” The FBI declined further comment. The U.S. civilian cyber defense body, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, did not return messages seeking comment.

IRANIAN ‌HACKERS ALLEGEDLY ⁠ACTIVE SINCE START OF WAR

The intrusion at LACMTA was detected around March 16, its officials said in their statement. About two weeks later, Ababil materialized online and claimed to have wiped an enormous amount of data in a destructive cyberattack, publishing a video that purported to show them rampaging through the transit system’s network.

Although Los Angeles transit officials said the breach did not interrupt circulation of trains or buses,

local media said
it disabled at least some arrival screens and prevented customers from putting money on their transit cards.

Ababil also has claimed ​credit for hacks affecting South Florida’s Tri-Rail commuter ​transit system, vehicle tracking company Vyncs, and ⁠Saudi infrastructure firm Unimac.

In a statement, Tri-Rail confirmed it had been hacked “about a month ago,” but said that none of the affected data was critical. Vyncs owner Agnik said it had detected its breach on April 2 but declined to comment on the nature ​of the data stolen by the hackers. Both Tri-Rail and Agnik said the FBI was involved, with Agnik saying in an ​email that the bureau “has ⁠a pretty good understanding of who these criminals are.” Unimac did not return messages seeking comment.

The group behind Ababil has hacked other organizations whose identity it has not publicized, Gambit Security said, citing its analysis of other data left online by the spies. Sela said they included a media organization and educational institution in Israel and an insurance brokerage in Turkey, but he ⁠declined to ​identify them further.

Iranian hackers allegedly have carried out a drumbeat of digital operations since the U.S. and Israel ​launched a war against Iran in late February, including a damaging attack on the medical device company Stryker

(SYK.N)
and the leak of personal emails belonging to FBI Director Kash Patel. Iranian hackers also are suspected of having remotely tampered with ​fuel gauges at gas stations,

CNN reported earlier this month
.

Reporting by Raphael Satter in Washington and AJ Vicens in Detroit; Additional reporting by Jana Winter in Washington; Editing by Paul Simao

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

【早知】教宗通谕是什么？影响有多大？

2026年5月26日 19:50 / 联合早报 王英慧

教宗良十四世5月15日签署他首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica Humanitas），并于星期一（25日）发布。 （法新社）

教宗良十四世发布他去年5月就任以来的第一份教宗通谕《伟大的人类》，着重讨论在人工智能时代应保障人类权益。全球多国的决策者、商业领袖和宗教团体高度期待和重视这份通谕，作为各方面政策的道德指引。

什么是教宗通谕？

教宗通谕（papal encyclical）是教宗以书信形式发表的重要训导文件，用以阐述教义，并就当代社会议题和伦理提供指引。

通谕不是日常评论或个人意见，而是具有重要的教义权威，被视为理解天主教会立场的重要依据。

在早期，通谕主要只致给教会中各级主教的函件，后来扩大成为对所有天主教徒和全球民众发出的公开信。根据教会法，教徒应当接受通谕的教导是正确的，并真诚尊从指导内容。

自教宗本笃十四世于1740年发布第一份通谕《上主之圣言》（Ubi Primum）以来，历任教宗发布的通谕总数达300多份，议题涵盖工人权益、社会主义风险、避孕问题和生态保护等。

现任教宗发此通谕有何用意？

教宗良十四世于2025年5月当选就任，今年5月15日第一次签署通谕，选择这个日子显然有特别寓意。

1891年的5月15日，时任教宗良十三世颁布了划时代的通谕《新事》（Rerum Novarum）。他直接针对工业革命带来的严重社会危机，倡议支持劳动者的基本权益，被视为现代天主教社会训导的基石。

现任教宗选在《新事》问世135周年日发出《伟大的人类》是要在人类面临另一场由人工智能（AI）挂帅的工业革命大环境下，呼吁各方进行反思。

科技界会如何反应？

科技行业观察员认为，教宗有能力引领人们重新思考AI，并构建出AI发展应遵守的伦理框架。

美国加州圣克拉拉大学科技伦理主任格林说，一些科技领袖在某种程度上应认真对待这份文件，因为它给了他们一种“道德责任”，敦促他们承认并促进一切有利于人类尊严、社群活力与共同利益的事物。

不过，神学学者认为，这份文件在教会内部是重要指导，但科技公司可能不会太在意。明尼苏达州圣约翰大学神学院的教授赫茨菲尔德说：“我不认为硅谷的科技大佬们会听进多少。不过，在教会内部，这会是对神父和主教们，以及我们这些教导神学学生和年轻人的教育工作者的参考资料。”

【早知】教宗通谕是什么？影响有多大？

2026年5月26日 19:50 / 联合早报 王英慧

教宗良十四世5月15日签署他首份通谕《伟大的人类》（Magnifica Humanitas），并于星期一（25日）发布。 （法新社）

教宗良十四世发布他去年5月就任以来的第一份教宗通谕《伟大的人类》，着重讨论在人工智能时代应保障人类权益。全球多国的决策者、商业领袖和宗教团体高度期待和重视这份通谕，作为各方面政策的道德指引。

什么是教宗通谕？

教宗通谕（papal encyclical）是教宗以书信形式发表的重要训导文件，用以阐述教义，并就当代社会议题和伦理提供指引。

通谕不是日常评论或个人意见，而是具有重要的教义权威，被视为理解天主教会立场的重要依据。

在早期，通谕主要只致给教会中各级主教的函件，后来扩大成为对所有天主教徒和全球民众发出的公开信。根据教会法，教徒应当接受通谕的教导是正确的，并真诚尊从指导内容。

自教宗本笃十四世于1740年发布第一份通谕《上主之圣言》（Ubi Primum）以来，历任教宗发布的通谕总数达300多份，议题涵盖工人权益、社会主义风险、避孕问题和生态保护等。

现任教宗发此通谕有何用意？

教宗良十四世于2025年5月当选就任，今年5月15日第一次签署通谕，选择这个日子显然有特别寓意。

1891年的5月15日，时任教宗良十三世颁布了划时代的通谕《新事》（Rerum Novarum）。他直接针对工业革命带来的严重社会危机，倡议支持劳动者的基本权益，被视为现代天主教社会训导的基石。

现任教宗选在《新事》问世135周年日发出《伟大的人类》是要在人类面临另一场由人工智能（AI）挂帅的工业革命大环境下，呼吁各方进行反思。

科技界会如何反应？

科技行业观察员认为，教宗有能力引领人们重新思考AI，并构建出AI发展应遵守的伦理框架。

美国加州圣克拉拉大学科技伦理主任格林说，一些科技领袖在某种程度上应认真对待这份文件，因为它给了他们一种“道德责任”，敦促他们承认并促进一切有利于人类尊严、社群活力与共同利益的事物。

不过，神学学者认为，这份文件在教会内部是重要指导，但科技公司可能不会太在意。明尼苏达州圣约翰大学神学院的教授赫茨菲尔德说：“我不认为硅谷的科技大佬们会听进多少。不过，在教会内部，这会是对神父和主教们，以及我们这些教导神学学生和年轻人的教育工作者的参考资料。”

南大研发4.4毫米微型机器人 可无线执行五手术功能

2026年5月26日 15:38 / 联合早报

南洋理工大学科研团队研发出一款仅有4.4毫米长的微型机器人，既能无线移动还可执行一系列外科手术。南大机械与航空航天工程学院副教授林国展（左）带领科研团队，博士生符永威是成员之一。 （南洋理工大学提供）

南洋理工大学科研团队研发出一款仅有4.4毫米长的微型机器人，既能无线移动，还可执行一系列外科手术，为精准医疗铺路。

南大星期二（5月26日）发布文告介绍，微型机器人由磁场远程控制，不用一秒就可切换不同手术功能，包括切割组织、释放药物、抓取和储存样本，以及产生热量用于热疗。

带领科研团队的南大机械与航空航天工程学院副教授林国展说，大多数磁性机器人只能执行一项到两项功能，而南大最新发明能执行五项功能。“我们长期目标是让医生在人体内使用这些微型机器人，引导它们到达目标位置，并用它们进行治疗。”

林国展在视频中提到，微型机器人目前长4.4毫米，有可能进一步缩小至1.5毫米。

世界各地都在研究微型机器人，希望它能使微创外科手术和医疗程序更安全、更无痛、更精准，让医生无需大切口或笨重的手术器械，就能在体内深处进行精准手术。

林国展正与外科医生合作，探索微型机器人最终如何融入实际临床工作流程。他说：“为了让这些机器人更接近实际应用，我们不仅需要了解它们在实验室中的运作方式，还要了解它们在真实的医疗环境中如何被引导、监测和控制。”

文告引述国立大学医院神经内科高级顾问姚亮立医生称：“这些毫米级的磁控机器人确实令人惊叹，它们能够穿越复杂的环境，并执行各种任务，例如将药物输送到指定位置、进行活检，以及远程热疗。我预见它们有潜力取代介入放射外科的许多方面，并成为医学领域的一种新型治疗方式。”

南大科研团队使用生物组织模型（包括鸡肝）以及模拟软组织的明胶基材料，测试机器人的外科手术功能。在实验测试中，机器人能够切割生物组织、释放模拟药物颗粒的粒子、抓取并存储组织样本，并在磁场作用下产生局部热量。

机器人由软磁材料制成，包括聚二甲基硅氧烷（PDMS）和Ecoflex，这些硅基材料因柔韧性好、可塑性强，常用于软体机器人领域。当机器人暴露于高频交变磁场，设备内部磁性材料便能远程产生热量，这与目前用于癌症治疗的磁热疗（magnetic hyperthermia）方法类似。

微型机器人研究耗时七年，获得南大创业基金、新加坡科技研究局和国立健保集团支持。这项研究已通过南大创意和企业公司NTUitive提交了技术披露，并在2026年5月15日的国际学术期刊《先进材料》（Advanced Materials）上发表。