Charles Mahtesian

With every new Congress, power ebbs and flows for certain states. Some, like Michigan, will see a significant loss of congressional clout. Other states, like Texas, could see a surge of power.

Republicans stunned in several governor's races, winning in a number of reliably Democratic states.

For all the money spent, doors knocked, ads aired and miles traveled by candidates this year, the 2014 elections will likely come down to the votes cast by a relatively small universe of places.

Whether it's because of their size, demographic make-up, or the unique spot they occupy, these places ...

Workers at a salvage yard in Genoa, Italy, found the remains of the last victim still missing after the Costa Concordia capsized in January of 2012.

The BBC reports the workers handed the remains over to authorities, who believe the remains belong to Russel Robello, a waiter who ...

It's Election Day, and control of the Senate is on the line — as well as the large majority of governorships. Polls have shown the Republican advantage in many battleground states galvanizing.

With Election Day just over a week away, NPR politics editor Charlie Mahtesian and NPR congressional reporter Juana Summers join us for a look at the state of play in pivotal races across the country.

The end of August heralds the start to the final phase of the 2014 election season. As primaries wrap up and candidates ready themselves for November, NPR's Charlie Mahtesian lays out the political landscape.

Six weeks after the Mississippi GOP Senate primary, controversy still swirls around the outcome, as defeated challenger Chris McDaniel continues to dispute the election's results.

Veteran Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran squeaked by challenger Chris McDaniel on Tuesday in a bitterly contested Republican runoff that likely represented the Tea Party's best remaining chance to take down a longtime incumbent.

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, The Associated Press called it for Cochran, who had 51 percent ...

Shortly after Rep. Eric Cantor's surprise defeat in the Republican primary, Cantor announced his plans to step down soon from his position as House majority leader. This will leave a ...

Trailing his Tea Party-backed challenger by a razor-thin margin, Mississippi GOP Sen. Thad Cochran appeared early Wednesday to be headed toward a runoff with Tea Party-backed challenger Chris McDaniel.

In the latest test of GOP establishment strength against a vigorous Tea Party challenge, McDaniel led the six-term incumbent by less ...

A crowded primary election day unfolds Tuesday, with voters in six states going to the polls — Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Kentucky, Oregon and Pennsylvania.

One of the biggest political questions of the year will be answered: Can Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell withstand a vigorous Tea Party challenge?

And that's ...

North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis won the Republican U.S. Senate nomination Tuesday, a victory for GOP establishment forces over the Tea Party in a battleground state that will feature one of the nation's most competitive Senate races this fall.

Tillis, who avoided a runoff by winning more than 40 ...

Get ready for election season.

Tuesday's primaries in Indiana, North Carolina and Ohio serve as the kickoff for an intense two-month stretch that will go a long way toward outlining the shape of the midterm election landscape.

By the end of June, more than half the states will have conducted ...

For more on the effort to rescue the abducted Nigerian girls, Melissa Block speaks with Richard Downie, the deputy director of the Africa Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Three states go to the polls Tuesday, starting what will be an eight-week stretch of primaries in the U.S. For a look at the intra-party political landscape, NPR's Charlie Mahtesian has this overview.

Bill de Blasio was sworn in as the 109th mayor of New York City on Wednesday, marking the return of a Democrat to City Hall for the first time in two decades.

The public ceremony, which took place on the steps of City Hall, followed a formal swearing in at ...

Update at 6:34 p.m. ET: 14 Reported Injured

Minnesota Public Radio reporter Tim Nelson says 14 people are reported to have been injured, six in critical condition, in the blast and have been taken to area hospitals.

The building housed about 10 apartments, and MPR reports that the ...

Tuesday's elections are anything but dull. From the Eastern Seaboard to the Pacific Northwest, there's a colorful and compelling roster of political contests. Although there isn't anything close to the drama of an Election Day in a presidential year, many of the races have national implications.

In Boston and New ...

President Obama on Friday declined to say whether he'd go ahead with military action in Syria if Congress votes against it — a what-if scenario that's attracting growing attention in the wake of preliminary House head counts that suggest there's nowhere near enough votes for passage.

It's a question ...