Up First briefing: Haley Stevens; Iran war; SCOTUS religious freedom : NPR

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Today’s top stories

Democratic Rep. Haley Stevens stunned the political landscape by endorsing GOP Michigan Senate candidate Mike Rogers for Michigan’s open Senate seat, breaking with her party less than 48 hours before Election Day. The surprise defection followed weeks of deteriorating relations with her former primary opponent, Democratic nominee Abdul El-Sayed. In her endorsement of Rogers, Stevens cited El-Sayed’s ties to political streamer Hasan Pikerwhose remarks concerning Jewish people and Israel sparked backlash in August. El-Sayed sought to distance himself from the controversy, but Stevens has criticized him for not doing enough to reassure Black and Jewish voters who backed her in the primary.

• 🎧 NPR’s Sam Gringlas tells Up First that he has met Democrats who didn’t support El-Sayed in the primary and are struggling with their votes this fall. The latest drama may not sway late deciders, but it’s not the discussion the El-Sayed campaign wanted. Many Democrats are angry and now rallying behind El-Sayed. Stevens’ longtime chief of staff and many other staff members have quit, and the Michigan Democratic Party chair announced that Stevens is no longer a member. This turmoil exposes deepening fault lines within the partynot just over Israel but also regarding its future identity, Gringlas says. Even if Democrats reclaim one or both chambers of Congress on Tuesday, questions about the party’s future are expected to linger, especially as they prepare to choose a presidential nominee in 2028.
• 🎧 Voters are unhappyNPR’s Tamara Keith says, which has shifted a favorable election landscape for Republicans into a challenging position for President Trump and his party. Democrats are urging voters to give them a chance to drive change. Meanwhile, the GOP — as summed up by House Speaker Mike Johnson — has framed the midterms as a “contrast election between common sense and crazy.” Keith says midterms typically serve as a referendum on the sitting president and his party, rather than a contrast.
• ➡️ Here are six things to watch for on election night to see who will end up controlling Congress. NPR has a guide on when polls close and where to watch the results come in.
• ➡️ Ahead of Election Day, NPR political correspondents answer listeners’ biggest questions about the midterms’ potential outcomes and what it’s like to cover the excitement of politics.
• ➡️ In every election, a key group of voters influences which candidates prevail. NPR’s Politics team shares five insights from a year of engaging with voters who supported former President Joe Biden in 2020 and then switched to Trump in 2024.
• ➡️ The NPR App has all of NPR’s election coverage in one place — from the biggest stories across the country to the issues that matter close to home. Browse headlines, playlists, podcast episodes, videos and more, all on the 2026 Election tab.

After tomorrow’s elections, Trump may choose to bomb Iran again — an option he has discussed with Israel. The U.S.’ partners in the Gulf are on edge and bracing for potential conflict. Qatar has been actively leading negotiations with Iran over the past 72 hours to prevent further fighting.

• 🎧 Qatar has been tight-lipped about the negotiationsbut Iran says there’s a two-day plan to stop attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and resume talks with the U.S., depending on the U.S. response. Trump said that the U.S. has neutralized key components of Iran’s military but has a couple of targets left, according to NPR’s Aya Batrawy. Gulf states worry that further attacks will destabilize the region and disrupt global energy supplies.

The Supreme Court will hear arguments tomorrow in a case between the Catholic Church and Colorado’s taxpayer-funded pre-K programs. The case questions whether religious schools can refuse admission to children of gay and trans parentswhich would violate a state law against discrimination. For decades, the Supreme Court upheld the separation of church and state. But in the past 10 years, the court’s conservative majority has increasingly shifted focus to the First Amendment’s protection of religious freedom. This shift complicates Colorado’s inclusive pre-K initiative aimed at ensuring that virtually all 4-year-olds in the state get a pre-K education. To meet its goal, the state included religious schools in its program, as long as they comply with state laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.