SC House passes new congressional map despite ongoing election, pending lawsuit

COLUMBIA, S.C. — Despite objections over the expedited process to redraw congressional districts, the South Carolina House passed a new map aimed at electing seven Republicans to the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 midterms.

After just three days of floor debate, lawmakers opted against any changes to the proposed map. The proposal heads to the state Senate.

It took the reading clerk narrating detailed geographic data for more than three hours, a hastily adopted rules resolution that may have violated the open meeting law and dozens of failed amendments, but Republicans pushed the new map and election date through the lower chamber after midnight early Wednesday morning.

The proposal faces an uncertain future as the potentially more skeptical Senate still has to approve a map, a pending lawsuit could plunge the House’s actions into question and voters head to the polls for early in-person voting in less than a week with current congressional district elections on the ballot. More than 2,000 absentee ballots have already been returned.

The bill, which passed 74-37 on the final vote, pushes congressional elections to Aug. 18 and necessary runoffs to Sept. 1. Statewide, state House and local elections would still be held June 9.

Two weeks ago, House Republican leaders announced the lower chamber would attempt to redraw the state’s congressional maps, just over a month before the June primary elections. President Donald Trump and White House staff asked South Carolina to look at redrawing maps with the intention to create seven districts favoring Republican candidates and oust U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn.

—The State (Columbia, S.C.)

Florida International University suspends former campus Republican leaders for 2 years over racist group chat

MIAMI — Two former campus Republican leaders have been barred from stepping foot on Florida International University’s campus, after the school suspended the students for two years over a racist group chat created by the Miami-Dade GOP’s then secretary.

Abel Carvajal, the creator of the group chat and a third-year law student, was found responsible for an “affirmative act which aids, attempts, promotes, conceals, or facilitates” violations of the Student Code of Conduct after a sanctions hearing last month, according to court records. He told the Miami Herald he has filed an appeal with the school contesting the decision.

Dariel Gonzalez, who was the FIU College Republicans’ recruitment chairman at the time, was found responsible for violating a part of the conduct code that bars “verbal or written abuse, threats, intimidation and/or coercion that objectively endangers the health, safety or well-being of others” and for driving while under the influence of alcohol and smoking marijuana on campus.

Gonzalez did not respond to a request for comment, but his attorney Anthony Sabatini said the charges related to marijuana and alcohol also stem from comments he made in group chats. Sabatini is representing the students in a federal lawsuit against FIU President Jeanette Nuñez accusing her of violating their First Amendment right to free speech.

The suspensions mark the most significant action the university has taken over the WhatsApp group, which was started last fall and within three weeks was filled with racist slurs, someone wrote dozens of ways of violently killing Black people and the chat was renamed after what one member described as “Nazi heaven.”

—Miami Herald

18 bodies found in hidden room at Pueblo mortuary identified, Colorado officials say

DENVER — State investigators now know the names of 18 people whose remains were left to decompose in a hidden back room of a Pueblo mortuary for over a decade, Colorado Bureau of Investigation officials said Wednesday.

All of the remains identified from Davis Mortuary so far are from people who died between 2010 and 2012, the CBI said in a news release. The remains of six people have still not been identified, and investigators are continuing to use forensic genetic genealogy — working with a private lab to match DNA to public databases and find distant relatives — to try to identify them because of the lack of mortuary records, the poor condition of the remains and degraded DNA.

State inspectors found the room of human remains at Davis Mortuary in August during their first inspection of the facility after state lawmakers beefed up Colorado funeral home regulations in the wake of other, similar scandals.

The CBI is still investigating “multiple containers of bones, cremains and probable human tissue representing an unknown number of deceased individuals” that were also found at the mortuary.

Investigators discovered 24 bodies behind a hidden doorway at the mortuary operated by then- coroner Brian Cotter in August. Cotter later resigned as coroner but has not been charged in connection with the case.

“The CBI has worked in concert with the 10th Judicial District Attorney’s Office every step of the way in this complex investigation,” agency officials said Wednesday. “The case information will be presented to the District Attorney’s office for review and filing of charges.”

—The Denver Post

Xi and Putin wrap talks showcasing ties amid global unrest

Russian President Vladimir Putin left Beijing after a day of talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, with the two leaders seeking to underscore the strength of their relations amid global tensions over wars in Ukraine and Iran.

“It was successful, fruitful and intensive work,” Putin said at a meeting over tea with Xi late Wednesday. Xi said they had reached a “new important consensus” on advancing their partnership.

The two leaders signed a pact on deepening strategic cooperation during the visit, while Russian and Chinese officials also inked a series of other documents on topics ranging from trade and technology to railway construction. Putin said approximately 40 agreements had been reached, even as they didn’t mention a key gas pipeline project.

“We have built a stable system of mutual trade that is protected from external influence and negative trends in global markets,” Putin said after talks between the two sides.

Discussions between the two leaders at the Great Hall of the People included the Middle East, state news agency Xinhua reported, with Xi adding urgency to his earlier calls for a ceasefire in a conflict that started with the U.S.-Israeli bombing of Iran and then spread across the region. Hours earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump— who held a summit with Xi in Beijing last week — threatened to resume strikes on Iran in the coming days as part of the push for a deal to end the war.

“A comprehensive ceasefire is imperative,” Xi said in Beijing. “Restarting war is even more unacceptable, and adhering to negotiations is particularly important.”

—Bloomberg News