Politics

Donald Trump’s choice for Pennsylvania governor has won his primary, and his Senate pick is locked in an exceedingly close contest as the former president works to expand his hold on the Republican Party. Trump’s late endorsement helped put the already surging far-right state senator Doug Mastriano over the top Tuesday in the GOP governor’s primary in one of the nation’s premier battleground states. But Mehmet Oz, the celebrity heart surgeon endorsed by Trump, is locked with former hedge fund manager David McCormick in a race that is too early to call. On the Democratic side, progressive Lt. Gov. John Fetterman easily secured his party's Senate nomination. 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is taking an increasingly tough line against the NATO membership bids of Finland and Sweden despite far less strident statements from some of his top aides. U.S. officials are trying to determine how serious the often mercurial leader is and what it might take to get him to back down. In the meantime, the Biden administration is focusing not on Erdogan's comments but those made in closed-door meetings by lower-ranking Turkish officials. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet his Turkish counterpart on Wednesday in New York in a new effort to clarify Ankara’s position. Finland and Sweden submitted formal NATO applications Wednesday.

Britain’s inflation rate has risen to the highest level in 40 years as Russia's war in Ukraine fueled further increases in food and fuel prices. The Office of National Statistics says consumer price inflation accelerated to 9% in the 12 months through April. The agency says that's the highest rate since 1982, when inflation reached 11%. Millions of households across Britain were hit with a 54% jump in gas and electricity bills last month after regulators boosted the energy price cap to reflect increases in wholesale prices. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has put further pressure on food and energy prices.