## AOC calls for more Democrat-leaning states to redraw election maps after Supreme Court ruling and GOP push

Authored by independent.co.uk

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) suggested that Democratic-leaning states respond to Republican efforts to gerrymander their congressional maps by doing the same.

Ocasio-Cortez, the democratic socialist congresswoman, made the comments after the Supreme Court significantly weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

“The Democratic caucus has tried to pass nonpartisan gerrymandering for ten years,” Ocasio-Cortez told The Independent.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court announced that Louisiana relied to heavily on race when it redrew its congressional map in 2024.

That essentially opens the door to Republican-leaning states to redraw their congressional maps to expand the number of Republicans without fear of violating the Voting Rights Act.

In addition to Texas and North Carolina, Republicans have attempted to redraw the congressional maps in states like Missouri, though a Trump-backed effort to do so in Indiana failed.

But Republican efforts have prompted them to support temporary gerrymandering in states that have nonpartisan redistricting boards. »

### Ukraine accuses Steven Seagal of receiving weapons from illegal Russian trafficking network

Authored by kyivindependent.com

Ukrainian authorities said they have dismantled an illegal arms trafficking network that allegedly funneled weapons to pro-Russian public figures and politicians, including U.S. actor Steven Seagal and North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un.

The National Police of Ukraine said in an April 28 statement that the network sourced weapons from temporarily occupied Ukrainian territories and through illegal imports from Slovakia.

Some of the weapons were distributed as so-called "prizes" by Denis Pushilin, the head of the Russian-installed administration in occupied Donetsk Oblast. »

### Jonathan Ross - the ICE officer who fatally shot Renee Good - moved state and resumed work, report says

Authored by independent.co.uk

The ICE agent who fatally shot a Minnesota protester in January has been reassigned to a different state and allowed to continue working for the federal government, according to a new report.

The incident sparked widespread protests across the U.S. in major metropolitan cities, including Chicago, New York and Los Angeles.

Just 17 days later, another protester – Alex Pretti – was also shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis. »

### $500 million superyacht linked with Russia’s richest man just passed through blockaded Hormuz Strait

Authored by fortune.com

The vessel, valued at about $500 million, is the 12th largest superyacht in the world.

It is unclear how the Nord was able to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

In 2022, the Nord was able to avoid U.S. seizure after sailing from Hong Kong to Cape Town. »

### ‘She’s opening the bees!’ US beekeeper jailed for trying to save friend from eviction

Authored by theguardian.com

A beekeeper has been jailed for six months after she set swarms of her insects on sheriff’s deputies attempting to carry out an eviction at a friend’s house.

Several officers were stung on their heads and faces, and one required hospital treatment, the New York Times reported.

One deputy is seen frantically waving his arms, trying to shoo the insects away. »

## In pictures

## Also in the news

#### Supreme Court limits Voting Rights Act in historic decision

#### Oil price briefly hits $120 after reports of 'extended' Iran blockade

#### An hour after SCOTUS guts Voting Rights Act, Florida House passes GOP gerrymander

#### ‘They left me no choice’: Powell isn’t going anywhere—blocking Trump from another Fed appointee

#### Putin Proposes May 9 Ceasefire in 90-Minute Trump Call on Ukraine