Three news stories summarized & contextualized by analytic journalist Colin Wright.

Polish opposition leader Tusk declares win after exit poll shows ruling conservatives lose majority

Summary: The incumbent Law and Justice Party has seemingly, once again, pulled in the highest overall number of votes in last weekend’s Polish parliamentary election, but the 200-or-so seats it won, even when paired with the far-right Confederation party’s 12-or-so seats, wouldn’t be enough to form a government, which is likely to allow the country’s opposition—led by Donald Tusk—to form a more centrist government.

Context: If these results stand, this would mark a huge turning point for Poland, which has seen a significant turn away from the democratic rule of law toward a more authoritarian setup, which has eroded checks-and-balances at a pace that has alarmed human rights organizations and fractured relationships with other European Union nations, resulting in a hold-up of billions of euros in funding from the EU; the Confederation party was also campaigning on ending support for Ukraine, so this outcome—the result of a vote that saw the largest participation-rate in the country’s history, with nearly 73% of voters casting a ballot—could mean more funding for Kyiv, and the potential release of those funds from the EU for the Polish government.

—The Associated Press

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New Zealand National Party's Luxon to lead new government

Summary: New Zealand’s center-right National Party will form a government with the further-right ACT Party, replacing the government of the Labour Party that no longer holds enough seats in parliament following last weekend’s general election.

Context: The Labour Party led New Zealand through the COVID-19 pandemic, with some widely celebrated successes that eventually segued into broad discontent with a long period of lockdowns and persistent economic issues; the new government’s majority—which seems to be locked-in, but final results won’t be reported until November 3—is slim, and they may need to include the populist First Party in their coalition if they want to actually govern.

—Reuters

Zimbabwe bans large gatherings as threat of cholera outbreak grows

Summary: Large gatherings of 50 or more people have been banned by the Zimbabwean government, and food can no longer be served at public events as a wave of cholera cases have caused at least 100 deaths, and there are currently nearly 5,000 suspected cases spread across more than 40 districts.

Context: These cases and deaths have raised concerns that the country could see an epidemic similar to one that killed about 4,000 people across the country in 2008; the government has also increased surveillance at ports of entry, and they’ve advised that folks shouldn’t shake hands, as the cholera bacteria is most commonly spread via contaminated food or water, but can also be transmitted through human contact.

—The Guardian

While northern, more urban US cities get the majority of the crime-related press, a preponderance of gun-deaths in the country occur in relatively more rural, southern cities and towns (which makes sense, as cities tend to have sterner gun-safety laws, while southern, rural areas tend to be more gun-friendly).

—Axios

1,269

Number of documented attempts made to censor 2,571 different books in the United States in 2022—the higher number ever recorded.

Texas topped the list of states, in terms of the number of book-ban efforts, with 93 attempts made to ban more than 2,300 books.

Efforts to ban books in the US have been especially popular with conservatives in Republican-led states, of late, especially targeting those that feature queer characters or anti-racism themes.

—The Guardian

Trust Click

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