I was recently reminded of the time our previous pastor’s mother was visiting from North Carolina and she shared the story of the day decades …

The nation's deep partisan divisions extend to trust in the vote tallies for this year's election. A new poll finds that Republicans are much more skeptical than Democrats that ballots will be counted accurately. The AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research survey found that voters generally show more distrust toward nationwide voting results compared to the tallies done by their own local election offices. The survey also found older voters have more faith in the vote count at all levels than younger voters. This year's election marks the first presidential race since former President Donald Trump began a campaign of lies about a stolen 2020 election. Election experts warn that Trump may be laying the groundwork to once again challenge the election if he loses.

California is hailed as a national leader for voting access, but visually impaired voters and their advocates say they still face unnecessary barriers. They argue that people should be able to return ballots electronically. Disability advocates are asking a federal judge to compel Secretary of State Shirley Weber's office to allow voters who have difficulty using printed materials to return their ballots via fax in the November election. Weber's office declined to speak about the lawsuit, but opposed a 2022 bill that sought to let voters return ballots electronically. Weber cited security concerns including the threat of cyber attacks. The case is set to be heard this month in U.S. District Court in San Francisco.