Democrats scored a win in the race to replace the late Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, narrowing the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. 

Fairfax County Supervisor James Walkinshaw (D) handily defeated Republican Stewart Whitson, a former FBI agent, in the heavily Democratic-leaning district on Tuesday. The race offered some insight on what to watch out for ahead the state’s gubernatorial elections in November. 

Additionally, Boston held its nonpartisan mayoral primary, setting up a November showdown between incumbent Mayor Michelle Wu (D) and nonprofit executive Josh Kraft, who is the son of New England Patriots own Robert Kraft. 

Here are key takeaways from Tuesday’s special elections: 

House Republican majority narrows 

While Walkinshaw’s victory is no surprise, it’s notable because it will impact the Republican majority in the House of Representatives. Connolly’s seat was one of three Democratic vacancies, leaving Republicans with a 219-212 majority. 

Those vacancies have likely helped Republicans during crucial votes this year, including the vote to pass the GOP spending megabill, also known as President Trump’s “big, beautiful bill,” in May. That legislation passed by just one vote. 

However, Walkinshaw’s victory will narrow the GOP majority to 219-213 once he’s sworn in, meaning Johnson will only be able to lose two votes from his conference. Johnson and House Republicans are already grappling with an upcoming government funding deadline. 

The remaining two Democratic vacancies in the House are the seats held by the late Reps. Sylvester Turner (D-Texas) and Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), who both passed away earlier this year. Former Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.) resigned earlier this year, leaving Republicans with one vacancy. 

Democrats add to their special election streak 

While Democrats have struggled to unify during the first year of Trump’s second administration, the party has seen a number of special election wins across the country. 

Like in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, the party has seen widely expected wins in safe Democratic strongholds. In January, Democrats predictably came out on top in two special state legislature elections in Northern Virginia. 

But Democrats have also pulled off some upsets this year, winning contested state legislature races in Iowa and Pennsylvania, as well as a Wisconsin state Supreme Court race. The next contested special election to watch will take place later this month in Georgia, where a Democrat will face off against a Republican in a runoff election to fill a state Senate seat. The Republican in that race, however, is heavily favored.

Democrats argue that the string of special election wins prove there is enthusiasm from their base despite frustrations with their party.

“Rep-elect Walkinshaw’s victory continues the dominant trend we’re seeing so far this year – Democrats are massively overperforming in nearly every race,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said in a statement. 

However, Republicans note that off-year special elections are rarely indicative of turnout in major election years. 

Win adds to Dem enthusiasm for governor’s race

While the margins in the race are likely to change slightly after Tuesday, Walkinshaw’s win appeared to surpass former Vice President Harris’s (D) margin of victory in the district last year. 

Harris won the district by 34 points in November, but as of Tuesday night, with 57 percent of the vote reported, Walkinshaw led Whitson by over 50 points.

It’s a promising sign for Virginia Democrats running in November’s races, which include contests for governor and lieutenant governor. While Northern Virginia is not considered the most competitive portion of the state, strong Democratic turnout in the region is essential for a statewide win for the party. 

Washington, D.C.’s suburbs, as well as other portions of Virginia, have been heavily impacted by the Trump administration’s cuts to the federal workforce under the Department of Government Efficiency. Virginia Democrats, including Walkinshaw and gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger, have made the impact of the cuts one of the central parts of their campaign messaging. Tuesday’s special election win for Democrats could be the first sign that messaging is energizing the Democratic base. 

Boston readies for Dem face-off in November

Wu will face off against Kraft in the city’s mayoral race this November after both Democrats advanced to the general election.

Wu, who is seeking a second term, and Kraft each advanced out of Tuesday’s nonpartisan primary. 

Wu held a commanding 65 percent lead on Tuesday evening while Kraft trailed at 30 percent. Candidates Robert Cappucci and Domingos Darosa came in at 3.2 and 1.7 percent support respectively. 

An Emerson College survey released last week showed Wu leading Kraft 72 percent to 22 percent. Another 24 percent said they were undecided. 

The election comes as the Department of Homeland Security targets Massachusetts in an immigration crackdown dubbed “Patriot 2.0.” The department has said the operation is aimed at targeting “the worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens living in the state of Massachusetts.” 

Wu has vocally spoken out against the Trump administration’s efforts in Boston, saying she will push back against federal immigration enforcement in the city. 

The Polish Armed Forces said its airspace was “repeatedly violated’ by drone-like objects during a Russian attack on Ukraine, adding that a military operation was underway to neutralize the objects.

“Attention, during today’s attack by the Russian Federation carrying out strikes on targets located in the territory of Ukraine, our airspace was repeatedly violated by drone-type objects,” the Polish Operational Command of the Armed Forces said in a statement early Wednesday local time, according to a translation.

“An operation is underway aimed at identifying and neutralizing the objects,” the statement continued. “On the orders of the Operational Commander of the Polish Armed Forces, weapons have been deployed, and services are actively working to locate the downed objects.”

The statement urged the public to stay home as the military operation continued.

“We emphasize that the military operation is ongoing, and we urge people to stay at home. The most threatened areas are the Podlaskie, Mazowieckie, and Lubelskie voivodeships. The Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces is monitoring the current situation, and the forces and resources under its command remain fully prepared for immediate response.”

An earlier statement said the Polish Armed Forces had activated “all necessary procedures” as the “massive attack” on Ukraine was underway.

“Polish and allied aircraft are operating in our airspace, and ground-based air defense and radar reconnaissance systems have reached the highest state of readiness,” the earlier statement read, noting that “These actions are preventive in nature and are aimed at securing the airspace and protecting citizens, especially in areas adjacent to the threatened region.”

Multiple airports in Poland, including the largest one in Warsaw, were temporarily shut down amid reports of Russian drones in Polish airspace, according to local reports.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed in a social media post that “an operation is underway related to multiple violations of Polish airspace.”

“The military used armaments against the objects. I am in constant contact with the President and the Minister of Defense. I received a direct report from the operational commander,” Tusk added in his statement.

The development sparked concern about the potential for Russian encroachment on NATO territory.

Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.), who sits on the House Foreign Affairs and Armed Services committees, called the drone activity “an act of war” and urged President Trump to respond with sanctions.

“Russia is attacking NATO ally Poland with Iranian shared drones less than a week after President Trump hosted President Nawrocki at the White House,” he wrote on the social platform X. “This is an act of war, and we are grateful to NATO allies for their swift response to war criminal Putin’s continued unprovoked aggression against free and productive nations.”

“I urge President Trump to respond with mandatory sanctions that will bankrupt the Russian war machine and arm Ukraine with weapons capable of striking Russia,” he added.

Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said the incident “cannot be ignored.”

“Repeated violations of NATO airspace by Russian drones are a fair warning that Vladimir Putin is testing our resolve to protect Poland and the Baltic nations. After the carnage Putin continues to visit on Ukraine, these incursions cannot be ignored,” he wrote on X.

A federal judge late Tuesday temporarily blocked President Trump’s attempted ouster of Federal Reserve board of governors member Lisa Cook.

U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb acknowledged that the firing and Cook’s subsequent legal challenge raise “many serious questions” that the courts have not mulled before, but said that at this preliminary stage, Cook made a “strong showing” that her removal violated the Federal Reserve Act’s “for cause” provision.

The judge explained that the “best reading” of the provision is that the premise of a Fed governor’s removal is limited to grounds concerning their behavior in office and whether they have been “faithfully and effectively” executing their statutory duties.

““For cause” thus does not contemplate removing an individual purely for conduct that occurred before they began in office,” Cobb wrote in a 49-page ruling.

Trump announced Cook’s dismissal last month, citing allegations of mortgage fraud raised in a criminal referral from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) as “cause” for her removal. 

The move threw into question the Fed’s longstanding independence from political influence, though the White House insisted that Trump exercised his “lawful authority” to remove Cook for cause.  

The Aug. 15 criminal referral from FHFA Director Bill Pulte, cited by Trump, alleged that Cook deemed properties in Michigan and Georgia as both primary residences, weeks apart in 2021. Pulte later said he filed a second criminal referral for Cook, alleging she represented a third property as her “second home,” despite referencing it in other government documents as an investment or rental property. 

Cook’s lawyer, Abbe Lowell, argued in court papers that Cook could not be fired for mortgage information that was available during her confirmation process. The Senate confirmed her in May 2022, and her lawyer said the alleged contradictions were disclosed in documents sent to both the Senate and the White House before then.

In a statement to The Hill, Lowell said the ruling Tuesday reaffirms the importance of protecting the Fed’s independence from “illegal political interference.”

“Allowing the President to unlawfully remove Governor Cook on unsubstantiated and vague allegations would endanger the stability of our financial system and undermine the rule of law,” he said. “Governor Cook will continue to carry out her sworn duties as a Senate-confirmed Board Governor.”

The Justice Department signaled in previous court filings that it would appeal if Cobb prevailed. It argued that making contradictory statements in financial documents is “more than sufficient ground” for removing a senior financial officer, even if a criminal burden of proof could not be sustained.

The Hill requested comment from the White House.