Posts of Balkan Spectator - US Midterm Elections Balkan Edition

🇲🇪 Montenegro announced mass program to verify how true was the information submitted by people who applied for and received its residence permits. The government claims that as many as 80% of applications seem to include fake data. Montenegro - together with Cyprus - is the primary hub where upper-middle class Russians received their European residence permits.

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BREAKING: 🇺🇸 Democrats win both the US House and Senate, seizing control from Republicans. @WatcherGuru

#NEWS | 🇪🇺 — EU urges national authorities to prepare households for 72 hours without outside help The European Commission has issued new guidelines calling on member states to help citizens prepare to meet their basic needs independently for at least the first 72 hours of a crisis. Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib presented the non-binding recommendations today at the European Civil Protection Forum in Brussels. They form part of the EU Preparedness Union Strategy and focus on household self-sufficiency through essential supplies and emergency grab bags while public assistance is mobilised. The package also covers integrating preparedness into early childhood and primary school curricula, making measures more inclusive for people with disabilities, and improving risk communication. The Commission further proposed an annual EU Preparedness Day on 23 October, starting in 2027. The guidelines, set out in Commission Communication C(2026) 8250, emphasise practical steps such as stockpiling non-perishable food, water, medicines, cash, and communication tools, without imposing legal obligations on households. 🌐 — The Global Eye | Subscribe ✈️

—❗️🇷🇸/🇷🇺 BREAKING: A Moscow-bound Air Serbia flight JU134 turned back towards Belgrade after reaching southern Lithuania on Tuesday evening, Nova.rs reported. ➡️ Citing unofficial sources, the outlet said former intelligence chief Aleksandar Vulin had boarded without undergoing security screening, prompting airport security to request the aircraft’s return. ➡️ Srbijagas director Dušan Bajatović and politician Nenad Popović were reportedly also aboard. ➡️ Nova said the flight was expected to depart again following a thorough inspection and a crew change. 🔗 Nova.rs · Flightradar24 ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🗳🇺🇸/🇦🇱 One of the Albanian-American candidates has an unusual interest: UFOs ➡️ Joe Hoxha, Republican 🇺🇸 state representative from Connecticut, introduced a bill earlier this year proposing an official study of unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs), commonly known as UFOs. ➡️ A longtime UFO enthusiast, Hoxha argued that unexplained sightings deserve scientific investigation, proposing the involvement of the University of Connecticut and state agencies. ➡️ The bill advanced through committee but did not become law. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🗳🇺🇸/🇷🇸 Serbian-American former congresswoman seeks return to Washington in US midterms ➡️ Melissa Luburich Bean, a Democrat 🇺🇸 of Serbian descent, is running for Illinois' 8th Congressional District in today's US midterm elections against Republican Jennifer Davis. ➡️ Born in Chicago to a Serbian-American family, Bean previously served three terms in the US House of Representatives between 2005 and 2011. ➡️ After 15 years outside Congress, she is seeking to reclaim her former seat. Her campaign has also engaged with Chicago's Serbian-American community. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

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—🗳🇺🇸/🇷🇴 Three candidates with Romanian roots are contesting today's US elections: 🇺🇸 Republican Ionel Roiban for Florida's state House 🇺🇸 Democrat Mihaela Pleșa for the Texas House 🇺🇸 Republican Ciprian Ivanof for Washington DC's shadow representative position. ➡️ Roiban previously served as an adviser in Romania's government, while Pleșa is the daughter of Romanian immigrants and a sitting Texas legislator. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

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—🗳🇺🇸/🇦🇱🇽🇰 Four candidates of Albanian or Kosovar origin are on the ballot in today's US midterm elections: 🇺🇸 Peter Lumaj for Connecticut Secretary of State 🇺🇸 Joe Hoxha for Connecticut's state legislature 🇺🇸 Shpëtim Qorraj for the New York State Assembly 🇺🇸 Diamant Hysenaj for the federal House in New York ➡️ The pictures belong to each one of the candidates in the same order as the list above. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

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—🗳🇺🇸/🇬🇷 NEW: Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis said today that relations between Athens and Washington enjoy broad bipartisan support and should not be negatively affected by a possible change in congressional control. ➡️ He also linked American voters' concerns to the cost of living and warned that further military escalation involving Iran could increase pressure on energy prices. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—💸 NOTE: According to FEC data collected by Ballotpedia, Ocasio-Cortez had reported approximately $38 million in campaign income compared to $446,000 for Hysenaj, as of October 14. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🗳🇺🇸🇺🇸/🇽🇰 Kosovo-born Republican challenges Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York ➡️ Diamant Hysenaj, a Kosovo-born businessman who immigrated to the United States at the age of nine, is challenging Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in New York's 14th Congressional District. ➡️ Running as a Republican, Hysenaj has focused his campaign on affordability, public safety, immigration and support for small businesses. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇺🇸 NOTE: Pappas, co-chair of the Congressional Hellenic Caucus, has played an active role in US congressional initiatives concerning Greece 🇬🇷, Cyprus 🇨🇾 and Türkiye 🇹🇷 ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

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—🗳🇺🇸/🇬🇷 Two candidates with Greek ancestry face off in New Hampshire Senate race ➡️ Democrat Chris Pappas and Republican John E. Sununu are competing for New Hampshire's open US Senate seat in today's midterm elections. ➡️ Pappas is a descendant of Greek immigrants, while Sununu has a mixed Lebanese, Palestinian, Greek and Central American family background. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

🗳🇺🇸 US MIDTERMS BALKAN EDITION!

—🇭🇷 NEW: Rail projects worth €1.7 billion are underway in Croatia, with approximately €6 billion in additional investment planned by 2035. ➡️ The programme aims to shorten journey times, improve safety and reliability, and strengthen freight links to Croatian ports. ➡️ Major projects include the €900 million upgrade of the Dugo Selo–Novska line, adding a second track and enabling speeds of up to 160 km/h. 🔗 HRT · HŽ Infrastructure · Daily Croatia ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🗳🇷🇸 SERBIA ELECTS | Following its defeat in the snap parliamentary election on 25 October, the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) is moving closer to a decision not to contest the upcoming presidential election. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇫🇷/🇷🇸 NEW: French President Emmanuel Macron said he spoke with Ilija Srdanović, the Student List’s lead candidate, congratulating him on its decisive parliamentary election victory and hailing the historic turnout. ➡️ Macron reaffirmed France’s friendship with Serbia and its commitment to supporting the country’s path towards EU membership. 🔗 Emmanuel Macron ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—❗️🇷🇸 Bloomberg: "Serbian police reportedly arrested Davor Macura, the owner of Alta Banka whose license was revoked and offices closed over the weekend" ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

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—🇸🇮❌🇪🇺 Slovenian PM Janez Janša: When we decided to join the EU, no one imagined that in any of its member states and in the union as a whole, the following could happen without consequences: 1. Invalidate presidential elections (Romania); 2. Abolish the informational program on national RTV (Hungary); 3. Send police to the Constitutional Court (Poland); 4. Send the leader of the party leading in polls to prison three weeks before elections (Slovenia); 5. Seize national RTV with police and replace the leadership (Poland); 6. Terminate the mandates of the national RTV leadership and carry out a purge of employees (Slovenia); 7. Send members of the previous government to prison without the possibility of defense (Hungary); 8. Grant nearly one million citizenships to illegal migrants through a fast-track procedure (Spain); 9. Close the new Nuclear Power Plant and build a pipeline to Russia (Germany); 10. Tax carbon energy sources while simultaneously closing the NPP and relocating industry to countries with low environmental standards under the pretense that this is how we are saving the planet. An EU has emerged that must resolve its own issues. ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇲🇰/🇦🇱 WATCH: Arkin Jahiji, representing the DUI-led National Alliance for Integration, won Sunday’s runoff in Brvenica, defeating VMRO-DPMNE’s Stojančo Radičevski by 265 votes, according to results reported by local media. ➡️ DUI leader Ali Ahmeti hailed the victory as historic, declaring: “Macedonia does not belong to Hristijan or Branko Crvenkovski; Macedonia is the homeland of Albanians who are indigenous.” 🔗 KOHA · Ahmeti’s remarks ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English

—🇧🇦/🇫🇷 Milorad Dodik: "The Arc de Triomphe is a symbol of national victories. A short break and a walk along the Champs-Élysées on the way to America." ✅ @balkanspectator — the leading Balkan news channel in English