Midterms live: early voting swells in several key states – latest updates

Eleven states have recorded more early votes than they did in all of 2014, with reports of high turnout in Florida, Texas and beyondSign up to the Guardian Us morning briefing 1.46pm GMT The Guardian’s Bryan Mealer reports on the Vote Common Good tour, which features a band of “Jesus freaks” upending the usual evangelical script and campaigning for progressive candidates: At each stop, local congressional candidates – mainly Democrats – are invited to give a short stump speech. In San Antonio, it’s rumored Beto O’Rourke will appear.The tour, funded by nearly $1m in private donations, started in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, on 2 October, and will conclude in Los Angeles just before the midterm elections. After the 2016 election, he and other clergy were shocked by the overwhelming support Trump received from white evangelicals – over 80%, according to polls – and felt they couldn’t sit idle. “We felt we had to do something, but what?” he says.Pagitt, who identifies as evangelical and is well-known in progressive Christian circles, started making phone calls and soon hatched a plan: a proper barnstorming that would sweep the country like the old-time tent revivals. “What we’re doing is inviting people into the good news by literally showing up, meeting them in their own place, and making it personal. That is truly the heart of the Christian story.” Related: ‘I’m not anti-Trump, I’m just pro-Jesus’: the evangelicals stumping for the Democrats 1.42pm GMT Oprah is headed to Georgia to stump for Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams.She’ll join Abrams, who if elected would be the first black female governor anywhere in the country, on the trail on Thursday, Buzzfeed reported. Continue reading…
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