Disagreements between the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) over the formation of a new government have led to the threat of two rival administrations emerging in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq, analysts say.

The dispute between the two dominant political forces in the semiautonomous Kurdistan Regional Government, which traditionally has operated under a power-sharing agreement, escalated after a parliamentary session was held last week in Erbil without the PUK’s participation.

PUK leader Bafel Talabani responded by withdrawing his party from the government, and a threat is growing that a rival administration could be formed in the party’s Sulaimaniyah base.

Independent Kurdish politician Yasin Aziz said the latest developments have deepened the historical divisions between the KDP and PUK.

“I believe the spectre of two administrations in Kurdistan is now very close, and the outlines of such a scenario are becoming clear. … The events have been painful and rapid. The differences between the two parties were significant and have now led to a breakdown in relations,” Aziz told Al Jazeera.

“There had been hopes that the two sides would reach an agreement, but activating parliament without the PUK deepened the divisions between the KDP and PUK.”

The KDP, which is led by Massoud Barzani, is the biggest party in the region, and its strongholds are in Erbil and Dohuk.

Two powers

Since the first Gulf War in 1990 and 1991 and the establishment of a US-led “no-fly zone” in northern Iraq, Iraq’s Kurds have largely governed themselves, separate from the national government in Baghdad.

The Iraqi Constitution enacted after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq recognised the northern Kurdish region as a federal entity with its own legislative, executive and judicial powers.

There is a historical precedent for the possible separation of powers in this region between two rival authorities. When a conflict erupted between elements of the KDP and PUK in the 1990s, the two parties formed separate local governments in Erbil and Sulaimaniyah, respectively.

While there have been no recent violent flare-ups between the two parties, political distrust remains deep.

During the sixth parliamentary elections in the region on October 20, 2024, the KDP won 39 seats and the PUK 23. This left a 16-seat gap between the two parties.

But the KDP’s ability to form a new government was still dependent on reaching an agreement with the PUK and other parties, such as the New Generation Movement, which secured 15 seats in the last election.

The PUK has so far refused to collaborate, so after a two-year wait, the KDP reactivated the regional parliament on Wednesday without its rivals.

Divisions but no conflict

Although the rivalry between the two parties is longstanding, Aziz argued that the current crisis is more serious and deeply rooted than previous political disputes.

“Given the political stubbornness of both parties, I do not expect an agreement or understanding to be reached soon,” he said. “Both sides must make concessions to each other. The party willing to make greater concessions will demonstrate greater concern for the Kurdistan region.”

Aziz was clear in laying blame for the deepening divide.

“The responsibility for deepening this conflict lies with the leaderships of Kurdistan’s two main parties,” he said. “Their failure to recognise the risks posed by continuing these disputes is one of the reasons we have reached this point.”

Subhi Mandalawi, a member of the KDP, blamed the current impasse on the refusal of the PUK to form a new government with the KDP.

“Following the Kurdistan parliamentary elections, the PUK delayed the formation of the new government. They were counting on the KDP being unable to secure the legal quorum needed to convene a parliamentary session,” Mandalawi told Al Jazeera. “But we held a parliamentary session without the PUK in 2018 as well, and they subsequently joined the government and parliament.”

Mandalawi insisted that the door remains open for the PUK and other political parties but warned that prolonged divisions would lead to deeper problems for the Kurdish region.

“Continuing to obstruct legislative institutions two years after the elections is unacceptable and harms the Kurdistan region domestically, regionally and internationally,” he said.

“Threatening to divide the Kurdistan region is a hasty, ill-considered and unrealistic decision. No party leader can take such a step, and the PUK would be the biggest loser if it went ahead with it.”

Despite the differences, there is little risk of a return to conflict between the two parties. “We are brothers, and there can be no fighting among us,” Mandalawi said.

Separation threats

Mahmood Khoshnaw, a senior PUK official, said the KDP’s decision to convene parliament without his party has worsened political tensions in the region.

“Activating parliament without the PUK represents a departure from the principle of partnership and from political realities, and there will be consequences. If a prime minister is appointed in Erbil, we will take the same step in Sulaimaniyah. Whatever the KDP does, we will do the same in Sulaimaniyah,” Khoshnaw warned.

“The situation in the Kurdistan region is heading towards chaos unless the crisis is addressed rationally and realistically. Activating parliament without reaching an understanding with the PUK has had a negative impact on relations between the two parties.”

Despite this, there are questions about whether Sulaimaniyah could legally separate from the Kurdish regional government.

Ramadan Albadran, an independent political analyst and constitutional affairs expert, said the dispute is not a constitutional issue about the KDP’s convening of parliament but a deep political crisis with the potential to create security repercussions for the region.

The Iraqi constitution also provides no mechanism for dividing the region into zones of influence between the KDP and PUK.

“If the PUK moves to separate Sulaimaniyah from the Kurdistan region, that would not be a legal or constitutional act,” Albadran said.

“If it takes place without a mandate from the elected Kurdistan Regional Government, it would be closer to an act of rebellion since there is no legal provision permitting withdrawal from or the dismantling of a region in this manner.”

ROBBIE WILLIAMS has come under fire after he ‘threw shade’ at popstar Olivia Rodrigo. 

The singer, 52, received backlash from fans who branded him as ‘pathetic’, following the online buzz from his hit track being compared to her new Christmas song.

Olivia, 23, sent fans into a frenzy after releasing a brand new Christmas track titled Take Me Home 4 Christmas.

The single was written by the star herself and is her first holiday song ever.

Alongside it she posted a music video inspired by The Family Stone featuring Cynthia Nixon and Ben Marshall. 

The track has been a big hit with fans with the video sitting at over three million views online. 

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But some listeners have now compared the song to the hit Robbie Williams single Candy. 

There have been many videos uploaded of the tracks overlapping to what some people think are similar notes and melodies. 

The videos caught the attention of Robbie himself who has taken to X to have his say on the discourse. 

In a post he simply wrote: “Happy Christmas @oliviarodrigo x”

Fans rushed to the comments convinced the Angels hitmaker was throwing shade at Olivia. 

One user commented: “You’re grown a** man shading a 23yo on twitter, aren’t you pathetic.”

Another added: “No shade because I love candy, but I doubt Olivia has ever even heard it?”

“You didn’t have to step so low. Shading a 23 years old girl is embarrassing as hell,” penned a third. 

Others agreed that the song was in fact copied, with one fan commenting: “Could be a great Christmas for you Rob, get those copyright lawyers on speed dial! 

“I love you @robbiewilliams !! Ask for sampling rights,” said another.

“How’s this shade ? am I missing something,”replied a third.

It wasn’t that long ago that campaign strategist Estevan Montemayor was an enthusiastic booster for Karen Bass.

During her first run for mayor in 2022, Montemayor was working with Communities United for Bass, a campaign committee that spent $6 million on television ads, text messages and other voter outreach efforts.

The 35-year-old political consultant took on another expensive outside campaign this year — this one to support Councilmember Nithya Raman and oppose Bass. Asked about the change in allegiances, he said he became disenchanted with the mayor over her handling of homelessness, the city budget and finally, the Palisades fire.

“That’s when I came to realize on a personal level that she was not capable of serving in an executive role,” Montemayor said.

Bass, a 22-year political veteran, spent much of her failed reelection campaign touting her ability to work with others. She locked down support from labor unions, business groups and immigration advocates. She frequently pointed out 14 members of the City Council lined up behind her and not for Raman, who won Tuesday’s election and will be sworn in next month.

Yet some of Bass’ political relationships disintegrated during her four-year term, at times in dramatic ways. Those key colleagues and supporters turned against her, then went on to help orchestrate her political demise.

Early on in Bass’ term, Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath supported the mayor’s work on homelessness and even introduced her at her State of the City address. But she eventually became one of Bass’ fiercest critics and, behind the scenes, encouraged Raman to run. Horvath publicly endorsed Raman two weeks before the election.

The Western States Regional Council of Carpenters put nearly $2.3 million into efforts to elect Bass four years ago, producing TV ads and campaign signs promoting her. This time around, the group sponsored a committee that spent five times that amount in support of Raman, posting content on the website “Burned by Bass.”

Then there’s Raman herself. The councilmember supported many of the mayor’s initiatives and campaigned with her while running for reelection in 2024. Even though she had endorsed Bass for mayor, she later launched her own last-minute mayoral bid, saying the city “can’t seem to manage the basics.”

Bass said she was blindsided.

“I didn’t have any reason to see it coming,” Bass replied when The Times asked about Raman’s decision to challenge her. “Why would I see it coming if somebody has publicly endorsed me?”

Supporters of Bass say that in some ways, she actually broadened her coalition this time around, drawing support from individuals and organizations who opposed her in 2022, including real estate developer Rick Caruso, her onetime opponent, and the Los Angeles Police Protective League.

Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez (D-Los Angeles), who endorsed Bass and campaigned with her, said it’s unfair to say that “because she lost a few friends, that that’s why she lost the race.”

“Losing the trust of her voters, that was the bigger loss,” Gonzalez said. “Voters basically did not feel that they were better off than they could have been or should have been.”

The opposition from Montemayor, the carpenters and other former supporters was just part of the struggle facing Bass as she waged her campaign. She had consistently high disapproval numbers that stemmed from key events during her administration.

The mayor faced voter outrage over the Palisades fire, which broke out in January 2025, destroying thousands of homes and leaving 12 people dead. Residents in Pacific Palisades voiced special fury that Bass left the country days earlier, as weather forecasts predicted dangerous winds and elevated fire conditions. But she also drew the ire of Boyle Heights residents exasperated over the noxious smells that lingered in the wake of a massive fire at a cold-storage warehouse.

Bass also attracted criticism over her handling of city spending — giving a series of raises to the workforce and then encountering a $1-billion shortfall, which led to the elimination of more than 1,500 vacant city jobs. One of those pay packages gave thousands of civilian city workers raises of about 24% over five years.

Then there was the mayor’s fight against homelessness. Bass made it a top priority from the outset, launching an expensive program to bring people indoors. By August, 42% of the program’s participants had returned to the street.

Bass declared a citywide emergency on homelessness on the day she took office, promising she would lock arms with the region’s political leaders, including the L.A. County Board of Supervisors.

Two years later, over Bass’ protest, the supervisors voted to pull nearly all of their money out of a joint city-county agency created to address the crisis.

Bass told The Times she was initially caught off guard by the supervisors’ proposal to remove the money and funnel it into a new county homelessness department.

Leading the charge was Horvath, who had served alongside Bass on regional homelessness boards. Horvath, appearing with Raman last month, dismissed the mayor’s messaging about relationship building, saying she “promised to lock arms but only demanded loyalty.”

On election night, Horvath said there wasn’t one specific moment when she turned against the mayor.

“I did put forward my best effort to build a relationship with the mayor. It wasn’t one issue,” she told The Times. “I mean, the truth is, this mayor has made clear she doesn’t respect the voices and perspectives of young people.”

Stuart Waldman, who heads the Los Angeles County Business Federation, offered a different take. He said Bass was good at cultivating relationships, meeting with business leaders and taking their calls. But in many instances, Bass would embrace a proposal only to have it languish in her office, he said.

“Bass would say she wanted to do something, and then it would end up in her staff’s hands and never see the light of day,” said Waldman, whose group supported Bass on Tuesday.

Last year, business leaders reached out to the mayor’s team to express their fears that the City Council’s plan to raise the minimum wage for hotel and airport workers to $30 per hour would wreak financial havoc on the city’s hospitality industry.

After the council approved the increases, those business leaders responded with a ballot proposal that sought to repeal the city’s business tax, which generates more than $800 million per year for city services. They used the measure as leverage to persuade the mayor and council to roll back the wage hike.

When Bass learned about the business tax repeal, she was “genuinely shocked at the depth of our frustration,” said Areen Ibranossian, a political strategist who represented hotels and airlines during the talks.

“It didn’t seem like she was aware of continued pleas from the business community on that issue,” he said.

Worried about losing the business tax and having to make huge cuts to city services, Bass and the council struck a deal to postpone the $30 wage hike by 18 months. Although business groups were pleased with the compromise, leaders of Unite Here Local 11, the hotel workers union, were furious.

The union, which supported Bass in 2022, endorsed Raman in August.

Kurt Petersen, co-president of Unite Here Local 11, cited the minimum wage rollback as one of the reasons his union abandoned Bass.

“She signed the law that took money out of people’s paychecks,” he said.

Petersen said his union knocked on 20,000 doors as part of Estamos Con Nithya, a pro-Raman campaign committee set up by the carpenters union. That group was also frustrated with Bass, saying she failed to require certain labor standards for construction workers in Executive Directive 1, her initiative to fast-track the construction of affordable housing.

“There were no labor standard requirements or worker protections in Karen Bass’s ED1, resulting in worker exploitation, including unpaid wages, cash pay, the use of unlicensed contractors, labor brokers and nonpayment of the LA city minimum wage,” said Pete Rodriguez, second general vice president with the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, in a statement.

Alex Stack, a Bass spokesperson, said the requests being made by the carpenters would have driven up the cost of affordable housing production, while also slowing down approval at City Hall. A mayor’s job, he said, is to “do what’s right for all of Los Angeles, not just what group backs her.”

“She sat down with the Carpenters and Unite Here, listened, and made decisions that benefited L.A. — not just one particular group,” Stack said. “Nobody got everything they wanted. That’s what governing looks like.”

Montemayor, who had worked on the pro-Bass committee in 2022, supervised the carpenters’ campaign, spending nearly $12 million on efforts to promote Raman and tear down Bass. Prior to that, he had been Horvath’s chief of staff, overseeing the supervisor’s office during and after the Palisades fire.

In the wake of the disaster, tensions erupted between Horvath’s office and the mayor’s team. In a series of text messages, Horvath and Montemayor expressed frustration with Bass’ office over what they viewed as a lack of coordination and communication on the wildfire recovery efforts from City Hall.

At one point, Montemayor voiced irritation after the mayor’s team announced the removal of security checkpoints on Pacific Coast Highway, then reversed course amid an outcry. “What you have done is create more chaos not less,” Montemayor wrote.

Earlier this year, hours after Raman announced her surprise campaign to unseat Bass, Montemayor posted an image from “Game of Thrones” on Instagram, one that serves as a shorthand for icy revenge: “Tell Cersei .. I want her to know it was me.”

On election night, when Bass was starting to trail Raman in the vote count, Montemayor posted the meme again.

Fulham striker Rodrigo Muniz has spoken of the struggles he endured last season, revealing his wife suffered a miscarriage.

Muniz scored the equaliser for the Cottagers in a 1-1 draw against Newcastle United on Saturday for his first league goal since their opening top-flight match of last season.

“Last season was really difficult for me because, now I can say it, but I had the surgery,” said the 25-year-old Brazilian, who had an operation on a hamstring injury, external in November and was out until early February.

“My wife was pregnant last season and, unfortunately, we lost the baby, but God is good all the time and now she’s pregnant again.

“The goal was for my baby, and I hope this season will be different than last season.”

Muniz also scored in wins over AFC Wimbledon and West Ham in the Carabao Cup this season.

Overall, he has 19 goals and three assists in 86 Premier League appearances for the London club since joining from Flamengo in 2021.

“I train hard every week to get opportunities to play and I want to play more,” said Muniz, whose eight Premier League appearances under manager Alvaro Arbeloa this season have all come off the bench.

“I cannot control the gaffer, but I showed the gaffer I want to play more. I have to keep training hard, for him to say, ‘OK, now is your time’, and then I’m ready.”

The Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) has decided not to propose its Freedom Jet design for the U.S. Navy’s Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS) competition. The field of contenders for UJTS, which aims to find a replacement for the aging T-45 Goshawk jet trainer, has narrowed significantly already this year. The Beechcraft M-346N, put forward by U.S. firm Textron and Italy’s Leonardo, is now the only known major design left in the running.

SNC’s decision on UJTS was first reported by Breaking Defense and has since been further confirmed by Aviation Week. In September, Northrop Grumman had announced it was dropping out of its partnership with SNC on the Freedom Jet proposal. General Atomics has also been named in the past as being part of this team. The Navy’s deadline for bids for its jet trainer competition had come up on October 30. The service’s stated goal has been to acquire 216 new trainers to replace the just under 200 T-45s that are in its inventory today.

Freedom Family of Training Systems (FoTS)

“With great respect for the Navy and PMA-273, SNC could not responsibly bid the UJTS program under the current contract structure,” SNC said in a statement to Breaking Defense. “We do remain committed to naval jet training and stand ready to re-engage if the approach is revisited.”

Textron Aviation Defense separately confirmed to that outlet that it submitted the M-346N, a navalized version of the Leonardo-developed M-346 Master advanced jet trainer, and said that it was “ready to support the U.S. Navy and its future training needs.”

TWZ previously flew aboard the M-346, providing a firsthand look at the aircraft Textron is pitching to the service.

M-346 Jet Trainer Walk-Around Tour With Its Test Pilot.

Whether or not any other serious bids have been submitted for UJTS is unknown. What impact SNC’s decision not to put forward a proposal may now have on the competition is unclear. TWZ has reached out to SNC and Textron Aviation Defense, as well as the Navy, for additional details.

“Proposals were due on 30 October 2026,” the Navy’s UJTS program office said in response to our queries. “The Government is in source selection with the intent to award the UJTS procurement in 4QFY27 [the fourth quarter of Fiscal Year 2027].”

A competition that has steadily narrowed

As mentioned, SNC’s announcement follows decisions by several other major aerospace companies to pull out of the running for UJTS.

Lockheed Martin announced in April that it would not submit a proposal for UJTS. The company had previously planned to submit the TF-50N, a navalized version of the T-50 developed with Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). Neither firm appears to have given a detailed explanation for this decision.

Boeing followed suit in June, saying it would not put forward a proposal due to issues tied to the General Electric F404 turbofan and UJTS engine qualification requirements. The company had been expected to submit a bid involving a version of the T-7A Red Hawk being built now for the U.S. Air Force, which is powered by a single F404.

After Boeing’s announcement, the Navy’s competition looked to be down to just two established teams: Textron and Leonardo with the M-346N, and SNC with its Freedom Jet. It is important to note that the M-346N and Freedom Jet are twin-engine aircraft, while the TF-50N and T-7A are single-engine types. SNC had also been the only one in the running with a clean-sheet design.

Now the field has dwindled to just one major contender, the Textron/Leonardo team, at least that we know of, barring the emergence of a surprise entrant. The Navy has not confirmed how many bids it ultimately received for UJTS. The service could also potentially reopen the UJTS competition or otherwise restructure its T-45 replacement plans.

A changing naval aviation training landscape

Since the early 1990s, the Navy has been using variants of the T-45 Goshawk to train future naval aviators destined to fly tactical jets and other carrier-based aircraft. This includes members of the U.S. Marine Corps and foreign student aviators. The Goshawks are currently the service’s only fast jet trainer aircraft.

Despite having received various upgrades over the years, the T-45 fleet continues to age and has faced significant struggles. This includes a spate of reported hypoxia-like physiological episodes among pilots that led to the development of a new oxygen system. There have been several Goshawk crashes in recent years due to a variety of factors, the most recent of which came just this past May. The pilots of that aircraft involved in that mishap thankfully survived.

As such, there has been a growing imperative to replace the T-45s, which led to the UJTS program. UJTS also reflects broader changes to how future naval aviators are trained.

One of the most significant developments already has been the elimination of carrier qualification requirements, including touch-and-goes and full landings, from the syllabus for students in the tactical air aviator training pipeline. Those individuals can still get carrier qualifications in T-45s, if there is time and space available. There is currently still a carrier qualification requirement for future E-2 Hawkeye pilots and foreign student aviators in order to graduate and earn their coveted wings of gold.

At present, prospective naval aviators training to fly fixed-wing carrier-based aircraft do still have to conduct so-called Field Carrier Landing Practice (FCLP) at facilities ashore. FCLP is structured in such a way that it “simulates, as near as practicable, the conditions encountered during carrier landing operations,” per the Navy.

F-18 Field Carrier Landing Practice (FCLP). Touch-and-Go Landing.

This is all set to change further with the acquisition of new trainers through UJTS. Unlike the T-45, the Navy’s future jet trainers are not required to have features to support full carrier-based operations, touch-and-goes on those ships, or even FCLP training at bases on land.

The Navy’s decision to alter what have long been considered vital aspects of the naval aviator training pipeline has been and continues to be controversial. Concerns and criticisms have been raised about safety and other ramifications of cutting carrier qualification and other requirements.

For its part, the Navy has argued that other modernization efforts have fundamentally changed what is necessary to train naval aviators. The service regularly points to the development of new live, virtual, and constructive training capabilities and associated constructs, as well as assisted carrier landing capabilities, such as Magic Carpet and its successors.

Flight Ready: Magic Carpet

Flight Ready: Live, Virtual, Constructive

The Navy has also said that the changes help move student aviators through training faster, helping to address chronic pilot shortages. There is a cost-benefit argument to be made here, too.

It is important to note here that with Freedom Jet, SNC had made an explicit and deliberate decision to develop an aircraft that could still perform carrier qualifications and FCLP training. The company said it did so to preserve those capabilities and give the Navy flexibility to alter its naval aviator training plans in the future.

The T-45 replacement schedule continues to slip

Beyond the further narrowing of the field of competitors, the UJTS program has already faced delays and other hurdles. The Navy had originally hoped to see its new jet trainers begin entering service in 2028. That schedule subsequently slipped multiple times. The stated plan earlier this year was to at least award the UJTS contract by March 2027. As mentioned earlier, the contract award timeline has now shifted again to sometime in the fourth quarter of the current fiscal cycle, which runs between next July and September.

Earlier this year, the Navy also confirmed that it had increased the total cost ceiling for the prospective UJTS contract from approximately $1.8 billion to $2.7 billion. “The cost structure has raised concerns as the Navy has detailed an initial award cost of $52.8 million in fiscal 2027 and $181 million for fiscal 2028,” according to Aviation Week’s report today.

With all this in mind, the M-346N does offer an option that is powered by established Honeywell F124 turbofan engines and that can leverage significant existing supply chains. Other versions of the M-346 are already in service with multiple air forces globally, and more operators are on the horizon.

At the same time, SNC’s withdrawal and other prior setbacks for the UJTS program can only raise questions about how the competition might now proceed with only one major entrant left. SNC’s statement to Breaking Defense makes clear the company is willing to re-engage with the Navy if there is a further shake-up in the T-45 replacement plans.

For the Navy, acquiring a successor to the T-45 is only becoming an ever-more pressing priority. That being said, with how the UJTS effort has already proceeded to date, another change of tack cannot be entirely ruled out.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

The “blue tsunami” in the 2026 midterm elections flipped control of both the House and the Senate last week, bringing a wave of Democrats, some with backgrounds in the arts.

The influx of newly elected officials — artists, musicians, dancers and even a former Prada model among them — comes just weeks before Congress will take another look at the Trump administration’s proposed 2027 budget, which requests $1.5 trillion in defense spending and, once again, seeks to nix funding for the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Last year, Congress intervened against some of the arts cuts, but that didn’t stop the administration from terminating hundreds of NEA grants worth more than $27 million nationwide.

Next year’s massive reconfiguration of power, however, brings with it a number of elected officials with creative backgrounds, some of whom even incorporated music, dance and art into their campaigns and promises to constituents.

U.S. Representative-elect Claire Valdez, says art is the first language she knew. “It is a language that crosses all kinds of divides and gives voice to something that is otherwise inexpressible and has tremendous power to change,” she said. “I think that transformation is needed now more than ever.”

Here’s a look at some of the elected officials who have a little razzle-dazzle on their resumes.

Iowa Governor-elect Rob Sand

Then-model Rob Sand walks the runway in the Prada menswear spring 2003 ready to wear runway show in Milan, Italy.

(Davide Maestri / Penske Media via Getty Images)

It’s been 20 years since Iowa chose a Democrat to govern the state, but Iowans just elected a former Prada model to strut into office next year. The New York Times profiled Sand in 2019, noting that the Brown University and University of Iowa College of Law graduate doesn’t like to talk about his days modeling in Paris and Milan. Back then, he worked his way through college and ultimately earned a J.D. degree.

The cat’s out of the bag, though, and Sand seems to have surrendered to the social media attention and even leaned in. “I’m disappointed to learn images of me modeling for Prada are circulating,” he wrote alongside a grayscale fashion editorial. “Because this shot from Italian Vogue is much better.” He also launched a “My Model Governor” tee, featuring a chic twenty-something Sand showing off his sought-after bone structure.

It’s been about two decades since Sand, repped by IMG Models at the time, graced the catwalk for Giuliano Fujiwara and other high fashion designers. After college, he traded the runway for a courtroom, and in 2018, was elected state auditor as a Democrat, serving two terms. The now 44-year-old governor-elect appealed to Iowan voters using a campaign centered on public education, affordable living, anti-corruption and bipartisanship. His campaign slogan is: “Not redder or bluer, but better and truer.” He’s a Jesus-loving hunting enthusiast whose first job was catching chickens, and he insists that he’s more interested in public service than two-party politics.

Texas’ new Attorney General-elect Nathan Johnson

Texas state Sen. Nathan Johnson speaks against a bill that would add new abortion restrictions in Austin, Texas.

(Eric Gay / Associated Press)

From the top of the ballot to the bottom, Republicans lost their long-held grip on Texas last week. Democrat Nathan Johnson was elected Texas attorney general, an office held by Republicans for 28 years. This isn’t the first time Johnson flipped Texas either. Back in 2018, he was elected to the Texas state Senate, and while he’s impressed Texans with promises to root out corruption, restore traditional consumer protection and shift away from the high-profile culture wars of prior officeholders, he claims glory for something else:

“In the 2000s, I wrote the musical scores wall-to-wall of 67 episodes of ‘Dragon Ball Z’ and five of the movies,” he told Texas Sen. Taylor Rehmet in a video posted to Facebook. “It was a lot of fun … And even then, it got me street cred with my kids’ friends, and it gave me a creative outlet and a cultural connection that very few people had the opportunity to have.”

The Texas Attorney General-elect worked on “Dragon Ball Z: The World’s Strongest,” “Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might,” “Dragon Ball Z: Broly — Second Coming,” “Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn” and “Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon.” He also ran a music production company and composed classical stage music.

Speaking to Texas Standard after the midterm results were in, Johnson chalked up the blue wave to a “national revolt against meanness, against hateful speech and divisiveness.”

“People indulge in those sorts of things when everything else is feeling great,” he said. “But at a time when corruption is confronting us in the face and people are super anxious about their economic future, there was a whole-scale rejection of Republican leadership.”

U.S. Representative-elect Bobby Pulido

Bobby Pulido, a Latin Grammy winner, sings during his last concert, La Última Desvelada, at the Bert Ogden Arena.

(Gabriel V. Cardenas/For The Times)

Another Democrat elected in the Lone Star state is the Latin Grammy-winning Tejano music star Bobby Pulido, who will represent Texas’ 15th Congressional District. Pulido said he’s willing to trade his three-decade stage career and take a hefty pay cut to step into public service. He won 62% of the total vote of Texans across the Rio Grande Valley and central Texas on a platform of affordability, healthcare access, immigration reform and reconnecting with working-class Latino voters.

“I give you my word tonight that I will never forget where I came from,” Pulido recently said during an Oct. concert, “La Última Desvelada” (The Last Restless Night), in his hometown of Edinburg, Texas, per TejanoNation. “I did music for me, but I’m running for Congress for you … Because I’m not going to Washington to serve a political party, I’m going to serve you.”

Pulido defeated Republican incumbent Monica De La Cruz, who took jabs at his showbiz background during her campaign. “This election isn’t about who you want performing at your niece’s quinceañera,” she said earlier this year, according to the Texas Tribune.

The Tejano star responded by performing at quinceañeras across the congressional district, which only boosted his popularity in the region. “In south Texas, a quinceañera isn’t just a pachanga. It’s a rite of passage that brings family and neighbors together,” said Pulido in a TikTok clip in March. “And honestly, that’s exactly what this campaign is about. We want to bring people together, not tear them apart.”

U.S. Representative-elect Claire Valdez

Congressional candidate Claire Valdez won her race against Brooklyn borough President Antonio Reynoso in the New York 7th District to succeed retiring Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-N.Y.).

(Michael M. Santiago / Getty Images)

Valdez, a visual artist and union organizer, was elected to represent New York’s 7th Congressional District with a campaign message that espoused the need for artists to “change our political, our economic, and our social order.” Valdez’s political aspirations are personal: She moved to New York to pursue a career as an artist and quickly realized the financial realities of making art under capitalism. Art should never be a luxury for the rich, she argues, but a necessity for all.

“This district represents more artists than almost any other district in the country, and yet we live in a city where it’s almost impossible to have the studio space, the time off, the money, the resources, the healthcare to make the art that we need in our society to shine,” Valdez said in a campaign speech earlier this year.

“I did not come to politics through electoral ambitions … I came to this place via my union. My union taught me that when people come together, we can organize for incredible things. We can move literal mountains, and we can beat back all the other people who make our lives a living hell, who have made this city unaffordable and impossible to thrive in, impossible to be an artist in. We deserve and demand a life of dignity, beauty for every single person, no matter where you are from. That’s what’s on the table, my friends.”

Valdez worked as a program assistant in the visual arts department at Columbia University, where she became a union leader. In 2024, she was elected to the New York State Assembly to represent the 37th District in Queens. Last week, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani backed the candidate, who won 83% of the vote.

Los Angeles Mayor-elect Nithya Raman

Los Angeles Mayor-elect Nithya Raman arrives with supporters standing nearby to claim victory in the Los Angeles mayoral race.

(Mario Tama / Getty Images)

Los Angeles Mayor-elect Nithya Raman was first elected to the L.A. City Council in 2020, and last week, she became the first challenger to defeat an incumbent Los Angeles mayor in more than two decades. While Raman didn’t turn L.A. blue, the democratic socialist did beat Mayor Karen Bass, a more moderate Democrat, turning the city a deeper, more progressive shade of blue.

Raman campaigned on a platform centered on housing affordability, public transit expansion, street safety, and a major overhaul of how the city approaches homelessness, but she also has a unique inside perspective on issues that plague Angelenos who work in entertainment. Her husband, Vali Chandrasekaran, is a television writer and producer, with a resume stacked with popular shows including “Modern Family” and “30 Rock.” The two met as undergrads at Harvard, where Raman was active in the university’s arts scene, and contributed to student productions as a designer and choreographer. The two broke up but reconnected on the picket line during the 2007-08 Writers Guild Strike.

According to a profile in the Harvard Crimson, Raman studied classical dance with renowned Bharatanatyam dancer Leela Samson in Chennai, India, and toured with her dance company after she graduated in the early aughts. The mayor-elect told the outlet that she still follows dance when her schedule allows.

“I don’t just watch Indian classical dance, I watch all kinds of dance,” Raman said. “I’m a dance aficionado, and when I’m not busy on the campaign trail, I try and attend dance programs and performances.”

Raman took the stage late on election night during her party on the plaza outside the Greek Theatre, and asked the crowd: “Will you all get on the dance floor with me?” In response to the applause, she said, “Yes, we will dance. We will dance!”

Washington is attempting something remarkable in Venezuela. After spending more than two decades confronting the geopolitical ambitions of chavismo, the US is now helping to rebuild the industry that made those ambitions possible. 

Through a combination of military pressure and the promise of renewed oil production, foreign investment, and access to international markets, the Trump administration is seeking to secure the cooperation of Delcy Rodríguez’s interim government. But there is a paradox at the heart of that strategy: if it succeeds, Washington could end up restoring the very instrument of geopolitical power that Hugo Chávez once used against it.

The danger is not that Rodríguez is preparing to revive Chávez’s revolutionary foreign policy tomorrow. It is that the economic recovery of a government does not necessarily entail its political transformation. A regime that cooperates with Washington under military pressure and out of economic necessity may behave quite differently once those constraints diminish.

Understanding this risk requires revisiting a frequently misunderstood aspect of Chávez’s legacy. His oil diplomacy was not simply a collection of expensive ideological adventures, but a part of a coherent grand strategy that achieved much of what it set out to accomplish, even as it undermined the economic foundations of the Venezuelan state.

Revolutionary oil

That is the central argument of Petróleo y revolución: La geopolítica de Venezuela bajo Hugo Chávez y su desafío a Estados Unidos, a new book by Venezuelan political analyst Martín Rodríguez Rodríguez. Drawing on diplomatic documents, petroleum industry intelligence, and historical research, Rodríguez reconstructs how Chávez transformed Venezuela’s oil wealth into the principal instrument of an ambitious strategy to challenge American influence in the hemisphere.

Chávez did not invent petroleum diplomacy. Venezuelan governments had long understood that the country’s position in international energy markets provided diplomatic leverage beyond what its economic or military weight might otherwise suggest. But while previous governments generally employed that leverage to advance Venezuela’s commercial interests and international standing, Chávez subordinated it to the objectives of his revolution.

Rodríguez traces the development of this grand strategy through Chávez’s consolidation of power, the political takeover of PDVSA, the revitalization of OPEC, and the construction of an international network designed to diminish Washington’s influence.

New relationships with China, Russia and Iran allowed Chávez to position himself as a participant in an emerging multipolar order.

The Caracas-Havana alliance formed the backbone of this strategy. Cuba provided political experience, ideological affinity, and a regional partner with its own long history of confrontation with Washington. Venezuela supplied the resources that allowed the relationship to acquire a significance neither country could have achieved on its own. ALBA and Petrocaribe extended that logic across the Caribbean and Central America. By providing oil under preferential financing arrangements, Chávez cultivated governments whose diplomatic support helped complicate American efforts to isolate Caracas, while he established relationships that continued to provide diplomatic support to his successors even as Washington intensified its pressure.

The strategy extended beyond the hemisphere. China offered financing and an alternative market for Venezuelan crude. Russia provided military equipment and diplomatic backing. Iran became an ideologically compatible partner in Chávez’s confrontation with the United States. Together, these relationships allowed Venezuela to position itself as a participant in an emerging multipolar order.

Rodríguez’s contribution is to examine these initiatives not as disconnected episodes of revolutionary diplomacy but as instruments of a larger grand strategy. Chávez understood that control over petroleum resources could compensate, at least partially, for Venezuela’s limited military and economic weight. 

Rodríguez documents how repeated threats to interrupt oil shipments to the United States collided with transportation costs, refinery infrastructure, and commercial interdependence. In 2004, roughly two-thirds of Venezuela’s crude exports still went to the American market. Redirecting those shipments was neither as simple nor as economical as Chávez suggested.

Chávez succeeded in expanding the international influence of his revolution while weakening Venezuela’s capacity to sustain that influence. 

The relationship with China was similarly contradictory. Diversification reduced Venezuela’s exclusive dependence on the American market, but oil-backed financing arrangements created new obligations and dependencies. In attempting to escape one relationship, Chávez risked exchanging it for another.

More consequentially, the politicization of PDVSA, the deterioration of its technical capacity, and the subordination of commercial decisions to revolutionary priorities progressively undermined the industry that financed the strategy.

Chávez succeeded in expanding the international influence of his revolution while weakening Venezuela’s capacity to sustain that influence. His geopolitical accomplishments were real, even if their durability was limited. The success of a revolutionary project, Rodríguez demonstrates, should not be confused with the success of the state whose resources made it possible.

The 2026 irony

The Trump administration’s approach to Venezuela rests, at least in part, on a plausible proposition: a government facing American military pressure while benefiting from economic cooperation will have strong incentives to preserve its accommodation with Washington. Restoring oil production can create jobs, attract investment, increase revenues, and provide the economic stability necessary for a political transition.

There is nothing inherently misguided about pursuing economic recovery. Venezuela desperately needs to rebuild its petroleum industry, and a recovery that excludes American capital, technology, and markets would be considerably more difficult. Military coercion and economic incentives can secure compliance without necessarily producing lasting political change, but economic cooperation and political transformation are not interchangeable.

The administration is dealing with a government whose leading figures emerged from the same political movement that Chávez built. Delcy Rodríguez is not Chávez. She lacks his charisma, his popular mandate, and the extraordinary international circumstances that made his ambitions possible. Yet the institutions and networks of power through which chavismo governs have not necessarily changed simply because its relationship with Washington has.

The distinction becomes especially important when considering what a successful recovery would accomplish. Increased production would not merely strengthen Venezuela’s economy. It would increase the resources available to the government, expand its international commercial relationships, and potentially reduce its dependence on American support.

A weakened chavismo has good reasons to accommodate Washington. A revitalized chavismo might have more options.

These developments could support a democratic transition. But without corresponding institutional and political changes, they could also strengthen the governing establishment and give it greater room to maneuver. A weakened chavismo has good reasons to accommodate Washington. A revitalized chavismo might have more options. 

Of course, the circumstances are not those of the early 2000s. The United States possesses considerable military and economic leverage, as well as influence over Venezuela’s access to investment, technology, financial services, and energy markets. Chávez’s successors also face constraints that he never encountered. A return to his confrontational foreign policy is neither inevitable nor necessarily desirable to the current leadership.

But those differences do not eliminate the underlying question. What political and institutional changes must accompany Venezuela’s economic recovery to ensure that the resources generated by its petroleum industry serve the country rather than the preservation of a particular governing movement?

Chávez’s grand strategy demonstrated that Venezuela’s oil wealth could be used to challenge American influence, even without the economic or military power to confront Washington directly. His successors inherited the alliances, institutions, and political networks that strategy helped establish, although the deterioration of the petroleum industry progressively deprived them of the resources needed to sustain it.

None of this means that a recovered Venezuelan oil industry would inevitably produce a renewed confrontation with the United States. It does mean that Washington should be careful not to mistake cooperation obtained through coercion and economic necessity for a lasting change in the interests of those governing Venezuela.

For a time, Chad Bianco was one of the front-runners in the race for California governor — or at least as front-runnery as a Republican can get in this cobalt-blue state.

Polling in the primary showed the Riverside County sheriff drawing support in roughly the mid-teens, which — while nothing to shout about — was still enough in a jumbo-sized field to place Bianco among the top contenders.

His main rival among Republicans was Fox talk-show host Steve Hilton. The question was which of the two GOP hopefuls would President Trump bless, ensuring their advancement to certain defeat in November. That made their competition a bit like jousting for the last berth on the sinking Titanic, or elbowing for the opportunity to go before a firing squad.

But whatever.

Bianco, being a sheriff outfitted with a badge and gun and all, played his Trump card, mindful of the president’s monomaniacal obsession with nonexistent voter fraud. Acting on flimsy pretenses, Bianco arranged in February for the seizure of hundreds of thousands of Proposition 50 ballots, questioning the integrity of the election months after the fact.

Never mind that Riverside County voters approved the Democratic gerrymandering measure by a comfortable margin. Hitching himself to the president’s favorite hobbyhorse, Bianco’s performative policing was an obvious attempt to curry favor with the nation’s election denier in chief.

Alas for Bianco, the ploy didn’t work. Trump endorsed Hilton, who finished second in the June primary and was predictably crushed Tuesday by California’s governor-elect, Xavier Becerra.

Now the bill has come due.

Not surprisingly, Bianco’s unlawful actions resulted in litigation. Lawsuits brought by California’s attorney general and UCLA’s Voting Rights Project went all the way to the state Supreme Court, which scorched the sheriff in a September decision calling his actions illegal, perplexing and “a substantial risk to election integrity.”

Naturally, that legal skirmishing cost money, so Bianco asked the county Board of Supervisors to pony up and pay the bills arising from all his sheriffy swaggering, ballot confiscating and Trump pandering. The board said no, in a 4-1 vote in April. So last month, Bianco filed a claim seeking damages.

“If the County rejects the claim, Sheriff Bianco will have the right to sue the County … which he intends to do,” Bradley Hertz, Bianco’s attorney, wrote in an email to Times reporter Iris Kwok. Bianco’s actions, Hertz said, “arose out of his official actions.”

Which they most certainly did, if one defines “official actions” as going before a judge who touted Bianco’s endorsement when he ran and securing a warrant based on the claims of nutty political activists, all so Bianco could promote his political interests and advance his long-shot run for governor.

Does Bianco have a leg to stand on?

“In California, officers are entitled both to the cost of representation and to settlements and judgments against them for conduct in the course and scope of their employment,” said Joanna Schwartz, a professor at UCLA Law School and an expert on indemnification and qualified immunity, to use the legal terms. “How that gets sorted out in individual cases depends.”

Which suggests the case of Bianco vs. the County of Riverside will very likely wind up before a judge. (And result in more needless, court-clogging litigation.)

One of the most insidious aspects of Trump’s ruinous rule is the use of public office, taxpayer dollars and the color of authority to advance the president’s personal and political self-interests.

His thoroughly corrupted Justice Department blatantly acted to subvert Tuesday’s balloting. His Interior Department installed new signage in national parks to present Trump’s whitewashed version of history. His Federal Communications Commission has persecuted TV networks and sought to muzzle late-night comedians who bruise the president’s ever-so-fragile feelings.

And on it goes.

Judges around the country, that thin, black-robed line of defense, have repeatedly pushed back on Trump’s false election claims. And they’ve sanctioned some who’ve used their office or breached the rules of professional conduct to aid and abet the president’s reckless attempts to despoil our democracy.

Tina Peters, the former Colorado elections clerk who allowed tampering with her county’s election machinery in a harebrained scheme to show the 2020 election was “rigged,” received a stiff prison term and served 20 months before Gov. Jared Polis commuted her sentence and freed Peters to cause more mischief.

Attorneys have been fined and sanctioned for peddling Trump’s stolen election claptrap and presidential factotums Rudolph W. Giuliani and John Eastman were disbarred for their efforts to overturn the 2020 result. Giuliani was also slapped with a $148-million libel verdict for smearing two election workers in Georgia.

Despite those sanctions, the administration continues pressing phony claims of rampant voter fraud. Although Tuesday’s vote went smoothly and Trump accepted the results — as well he should — more of his enablers need to be held to account, as a means of deterrence. That’s a concept that Bianco, a law enforcement professional, surely understands.

There’s a saying in the retail industry, dealing with those who damage the merchandise: You break it, you buy it.

Grasping to advance his political ambitions, Bianco recklessly used and abused his authority as county sheriff to vandalize California’s election system and betray the public trust.

He broke it, he owns it.

Now Bianco needs to pay up.

Upon hammering her 19th kill on a cross-court attack, Westley Matavao leaped into the arms of her teammates to celebrate Mater Dei’s 24-26, 25-23, 25-21, 25-23 triumph over Sierra Canyon in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 girls’ volleyball final Saturday night at Cerritos College.

Having avenged a loss in the section finals last season, the Monarchs’ next goal is to defend their state championship, and they will be the top seed when the Southern California Regional Open Division bracket is released Sunday.

Westley Matavao goes on the attack for Mater Dei against Sierra Canyon in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 girls’ volleyball championship match on Nov. 7, 2026.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

“This season it’s important for us to win everything because I’ve been here all four years, this is my last one and I wasn’t going to take losing as an answer,” said Matavao, a senior outside hitter headed to UCLA.

The Monarchs (39-1) have dealt Sierra Canyon (32-2) its only losses this season and the top two programs in the nation could meet for a third time, but for now Mater Dei reigns supreme after earning its second section title in three years. It swept the Trailblazers in the finals two years ago.

Freshman Jimin Seung had 14 kills, Cal-bound middle blocker Emma Kingston had 11 kills and sophomore libero Sienna Cicero finished with a match-high 23 digs, diving all over the floor to keep points alive.

“It was definitely tougher this time around — over half of them are high Division I level players — so you can’t underestimate a team like that,” Cicero said. “Our blockers played great and funneled the ball perfectly for me. My mentality is we’re going to win no matter what.”

Mater Dei beat Sierra Canyon, 25-18, 25-17, in the gold division final at the Durango Fall Classic in September before suffering its only loss to Trinity League rival Santa Margarita 11 days later.

Katherine Nowak, center, celebrates a kill with Mater Dei teammates Jael Smith, left, and Riley Stringer against Sierra Canyon in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 final on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Sierra Canyon trailed by seven points midway through the first set but rallied to take an 18-17 lead on an ace by McKenna McIntosh, who blasted through a left-side block on the Trailblazers’ first set point. McIntosh, a hitter headed to USC, finished with 10 kills and 19 digs and Nebraska-bound middle blocker Kendall Omoruyi had a match-high 22 kills.

The Monarchs were clinging to a 21-20 lead in the second set when Matavao took control, hammering spikes for her team’s last four points. An ace by Kalea Lee gave Mater Dei a 21-19 lead in the third set and another by Matavao had the Trinity League champions one set away from victory.

Lee (22 assists) and fellow setter Riley Stringer (25 assists) ran the Monarchs’ offense with precision and Matavao, the cousin of Trailblazers setter Lucky Fasavalu, who is committed to Missouri, added 14 digs.

Sierra Canyon’s Kendall Omoruyi hits over Mater Dei blockers Emma Kingston, center, and Jimin Seung in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 championship on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Concentrating on the task at hand, Matavao said the two did not talk before the match.

“I’m grateful to be part of this team,” Matavao said. “We did all this together.”

In the preceding Division 2 final, Long Beach Poly trailed 14-12 in the fifth set before reeling off the last four points to beat Redondo Union, 25-19, 20-25, 25-18, 23-25, 16-14. It marked the second section title in three seasons for the Jackrabbits, who won the Division 3 title in 2024.

Avery Milburn had 18 kills for second-seeded Poly (29-7) and blocked the Sea Hawks’ top hitter, Asofiafia So’oto, on match point.

“I could see her approach going angle and I knew I had to get my right hand on it and make it the best block ever,” said Milburn, who got a kill to thwart the first of the Sea Hawks’ two chances to end it.

Long Beach Poly’s Alison Wetteland plays a ball at the net in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 girls’ volleyball final against Redondo Union on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

McKennah Iamaleava had 29 kills, 15 digs and two aces and teamed with Alison Wetteland for a block to level the final set at 14-14. Mina Orbiso finished with 32 assists, Cedra Talaga had 20 digs and Aleeya Salima added 18 kills and seven digs for Poly.

So’oto had 17 kills, Abigail Hairrell had 11 kills and Leah Blair had nine kills and 14 digs and Addison Uphoff had five blocks, including one to end the fourth set for Redondo Union (22-12), which had upset No. 1-seeded Newport Harbor in the quarterfinals and No. 4 San Juan Hills in the semifinals.

In the Division 3 final, Corona del Mar outlasted Newbury Park 24-26, 25-20, 25-15, 22-25, 15-13 to capture its first section title in 22 years and the eighth in program history.

Corona del Mar’s Sofia Dajnowiec, right, tips the ball over two Newbury Park blockers in the CIF Southern Section Division 3 girls’ volleyball championship on Saturday.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

“I’m glad I was able to score that final point,” said senior outside hitter Sofia Dajnowiec, who pounded her 36th kill to end the match. “To win this means everything, it’s the best thing that could happen. We really worked hard in practice and stuck together as a team.”

Isabella Spinella dished out 44 assists, Savannah Dennis had 14 kills and 18 digs, Olivia Rosowski had 25 digs and Dajnowiec added 17 digs for the Sea Kings (26-9), who served 13 aces.

Charley Knupp had 18 kills and 15 digs, Emmery Reynolds had 10 kills and 10 digs, Olena Harasymowycz added 29 digs and Keira Overbeck handed out 32 assists for the Panthers (34-10), who were making their second finals appearance in three seasons, having lost the Division 4 title match to Campbell Hall in 2024.

Taft takes City Section Open Division title

Making its fourth finals appearance in five seasons, Taft defeated West Valley League rival Cleveland in five thrilling sets at Birmingham High to claim the Open Division championship — its seventh City title under coach Arman Mercado since he took over the program in 2000.

The fourth-seeded Toreadors (34-7) avenged two league losses to the third-seeded Cavaliers (31-12), who were vying for their first section crown after going 10-0 in the West Valley League to capture their first outright league title since 2004.

Mercado piloted the Toreadors to the City championship in 2006, the Invitational title in 2008, Division II titles in 2009, 2013 and 2014 and their first Open Division championship in 2024.

Second-seeded Granada Hills Kennedy upset top-seeded Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies in four sets in the Division I final.

The Argentinian scored 26 goals in regular season, topping the charts and leading Inter Miami to the MLS Cup playoffs.

Lionel Messi has become the first player to win back-to-back Golden Boot awards in Major League Soccer after leading his club Inter Miami to a second-place finish in the Eastern Conference.

MLS defending champions Miami earned a wasteful 3-3 draw against Charlotte on the final day of the regular season on Saturday.

The Argentinian superstar did not score but set up the first two goals at Miami’s Nu Stadium, both from corners, to help secure home advantage for his club in the first two playoff rounds.

Ian Fray, Luis Suarez and Rodrigo De Paul racked up three first-half strikes for Inter Miami before Liel Abada’s brace soon after the break led to a comeback sealed by Rodolfo Aloko’s late strike.

Runaway overall leaders Nashville broke the all-time MLS points record for a season with a whopping 77 after beating Cincinnati 2-0. At 23-3 with eight draws, Nashville won the East and broke the mark of 74 points set by Miami in 2024.

Miami finished second in the East on 60 points as third-place New England failed to take advantage of Inter’s draw with a surprise 1-0 loss at Orlando to end on 58.

At Miami, Messi’s 14th-minute corner fell unexpectedly to Charlotte’s Luca de la Torre, who spooned it up for Fray to open the scoring.

Another Messi corner in the 33rd minute found Suarez wide open at the near post. The Uruguayan glanced in his header for 2-0.

De Paul made it three before half-time, but Abada pulled back a goal for the visitors early and bagged a second in the 55th minute.

In the 90th minute, Aloko bagged the equaliser, reacting first to the ball as Smalls’s shot ricocheted off the post.

A visibly frustrated Messi hit the post in stoppage time before Aloko came inches from bagging an unlikely winner with a thunderous shot into the outside netting.

Messi’s 26 goals this season were enough to make him the first to successfully defend the top goal-scoring honour. Petar Musa of Dallas was second with 22 goals but did not score in his club’s 3-1 home victory over Colorado.

The 39-year-old finished with 29 goals the previous season, becoming the second player in league ⁠⁠⁠⁠history to score at ⁠⁠⁠⁠least 25 times in back-to-back years.

Messi recently retired from international football after an illustrious 21-year career with the 2022 world champions, but recently signed a contract extension ⁠⁠with the MLS club through 2028.

Inter Miami are the holders of the MLS Cup, which they won in Messi’s second season with the club in 2025.

Playoffs for this season’s MLS Cup begin ‌‌on November 19.

Messi’s men will face Columbus to begin the MLS playoffs. Other East matchups send New England against Philadelphia, Charlotte against Chicago and top seed Nashville against the wild-card winner, Orlando or Cincinnati.

Columbus took advantage of the Cincinnati loss with a 4-3 victory at Chicago to finish seventh and avoid the wild-card round.

The new series of I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! is just days away, with rumours already starting to swirl about a ‘secret alliance’ between two of the campmates

I’m A Celebrity…Get Me Out Of Here! fans can’t wait for the new series to start and there’s already some major gossip! Rumoured campmates Wayne Rooney and Chloe Burrows have already formed an alliance.

Speaking about the pair’s friendship ahead of the show, a source said to be close to Chloe told the Mail: “Chloe and Wayne bonded over their I’m A Celebrity booking back in May when they played in Soccer Aid together.

“Talks were well underway for the show at that time, so they both knew they were heading into the jungle. They were on the same team and got along really well.”

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Former footballer, Wayne, 41 – who was papped at the airport today en route to Australia – will be without wife, Coleen, 40, and their four sons while in the jungle. However, he’s said to have formed a secret alliance with fellow campmate and Love Island pal, Chloe Burrows, 30, who he met when they played in the charity football match, Soccer Aid.

Revealing Wayne and Chloe had chatted about how they were feeling about going on the iconic ITV show, they added: “It’s nice that they already have that connection going in. They had a catch-up about how they were both feeling about the show, and it will be great to watch their friendship grow even more once they’re in camp.”

Chloe shot to fame on Love Island in 2021 and proved a huge hit with viewers, eventually finishing runner-up alongside her then-boyfriend Toby Aromolaran. I’m A Celeb producers have been reportedly been keen to sign her up for the iconic show, with the Chloe Vs The World presenter said to be enthusiastic about swapping her home comforts for life in camp.

Influencer, Chloe, posed for a selfie with Wayne at the charity football match in Stratford, which she captioned: “What an amazing experience.”

She is said to have held a number of meetings with bosses behind the ITV jungle show ahead of its return to Australia this month.

Wayne, meanwhile, is following in his wife’s Coleen’s footsteps after the WAG appeared on I’m A Celeb two years ago and is said to be eager to get stuck into the BushTucker Trials to impress his sons.

He is set to be joined Down Under by stars including, Chloe, Joanna Page, Ade Adepitan, Claire Sweeney, Ricky Wilson, AJ Odudu, Sharky, Leigh Francis, Mariella Frostrup, Leomie Anderson, and Jack Skipper. The show is expected to run for approximately three weeks, ending with a live final in early December.

Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Threads.

The provided source discusses the historical background of Guatemala, focusing specifically on the political and economic turmoil brought on by the Great Depression in 1929. To prevent total societal collapse amidst widespread joblessness and public unrest, the nation turned to Jorge Ubico for firm leadership, leading to his unopposed election victory in 1931. Once in power, Ubico attempted to stabilize the economy by enforcing strict labor regulations and heavily militarizing the government by placing military officials in key administrative roles. Additionally, the text highlights his complex political alignments during the Second World War, noting his support for American interests while simultaneously expressing open admiration for European fascist leaders. Finally, the article reveals Ubico’s intense fascination with Napoleon Bonaparte, a personal obsession that led him to view himself as a modern counterpart to the historical French emperor.

Wales fans were looking for a statement performance against Japan. A marker to put down as the World Cup looms in under a year.

They were not provided with that but did witness a victory, however scratchy.

So Wales woke up on a Sunday morning with a Test victory to mark. That has not happened often in recent times.

Some of these Wales players will still remember the record-breaking 18-Test losing sequence between 2023 and 2025. If Wales players can take any positives this weekend, it will be victory.

As Tandy said afterwards, it is always easier to debrief a bonus-point victory.

Among the disjointed team performance, there were notable impressive individual displays from the usual suspects.

Back-row duo Aaron Wainwright and Jac Morgan excelled in attack and defence, full-back Blair Murray was a constant attacking threat and wing Josh Adams popped up with two tries.

Centre Eddie James showed glimpses of his power game in a new-look midfield partnership with Max Llewellyn.

While the centre combination did not set the world alight, it warrants further opportunites.

Tandy will not be content with Wales spending long periods defending and only having 40% in territory and possession.

This was emphasised in the tackle count as the hosts made 227 compared to Japan’s 115, with Wales finishing with the top eight tacklers in the game.

He will be encouraged by the resolve with Morgan topping the official Nations Championship charts with 24, followed by lock Dafydd Jenkins (23) and Wainwright (20).

Wales also forced 10 turnovers with Alex Mann gaining three, while there were crucial interventions from Lake, Adams and prop Nicky Smith when Japan seemed destined to score.

Kyiv, Ukraine – Kyrylo, a wounded drone technician from eastern Ukraine, does not care much about the results of midterm elections in the United States.

Tuesday’s vote brought on a “blue wave” of victories for the Democratic Party, which will control both houses in the new Congress and provide a check on President Donald Trump.

But it means little to the Ukrainian servicemen.

“We already learned how not to depend on America,” said the 37-year-old, who is recovering from a heavy contusion in a Kyiv hospital after a Russian glide bomb hit his bunker.

He asked Al Jazeera to withhold his last name in accordance with wartime protocol.

“Trump has let us down so many times, sold us to Russia and we’re still standing and kicking Russian [butt],” he said. “We no longer depend on American money and weaponry. The whole world wants to buy our drones now.”

Under Trump, Washington gradually stopped footing much of Ukraine’s wartime bills. While the amount of financial and military aid nearly reached $200bn from Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion to late 2024, since 2025, the US assistance has slowed to a trickle.

From October 2025 to March, Kyiv received a mere $8.2bn in military aid as part of “legacy pipelines” dating back to US President Joe Biden’s administration. The deals will have cost another $13bn when the supplies are over.

Even though Europe took over most of the financial weight, coughing up $83bn in 2025 alone, almost a third of all weaponry comes from US companies, according to the Kiel Institute, a German think tank.

Some aid may be restored, and the Democrats have pledged to scrutinise Trump’s ties to Russia and conduct sweeping investigations focused on alleged corruption within the Trump family.

The investigations will include their ties to Russian politicians, intelligence and oligarchs, such as Umar Kremlev, who reportedly paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for Donald Trump Jr’s wedding celebrations in the Bahamas in May.

The Democrats have already signalled their readiness to issue subpoenas and force the disclosure of executive branch records, including the ones related to Ukraine, once they take control of Congress on January 3.

“Ukraine’s positions may become stronger,” Volodymyr Fesenko, head of the Kyiv-based Penta think tank, told Al Jazeera. “But we need to keep bipartisan support.”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said of the midterm results, “We have bipartisan support.” He said he was “thankful to the Republicans, but Democrats very clearly state their support of Ukraine and providing aid to it.”

Loss of Ukraine-supporting Republicans

But getting more backing from the US Congress is not going to be easy as several Republicans who supported Ukraine have lost their seats.

The “blue wave” unseated Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, who cochaired the Congressional Ukraine Caucus and was one of Kyiv’s staunchest supporters.

Other notable pro-Ukrainian Republicans are Don Bacon of Nebraska, a self-described “Reaganite” staunchly opposed to Russia, and Mike Lawler of New York, who voted for the Ukraine Support Act.

At the same time, Kyiv needs to appoint a new ambassador to Washington. Olha Stefanishyna, a former deputy prime minister, was fired in August during a probe into her “illegal enrichment”.

The ambassador works with Congress and organises contacts with Kyiv and trips by lawmakers to Ukraine.

“That’s why first of all a new ambassador has to be appointed,” Fesenko said.

And while some supporters of the Democrats urge their party to impeach Trump, Kyiv would be on the losing side, analysts said.

“God forbid if Ukraine becomes the focus of a [third] impeachment because of the negative experience during Trump’s first presidency,” Fesenko said. “It made Trump form a stable negative attitude towards Ukraine.”

Trump’s first impeachment in 2019 concerned accusations that he pressured Kyiv to investigate Biden and Biden’s son Hunter, who had been on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian natural gas company implicated in corruption schemes.

The Democrats said Trump froze $390m in military aid to Ukraine as leverage at a time when Kyiv badly needed US arms to continue fighting Russia-backed separatists.

Now, before the new Congress takes office, Trump is likely to pressure Ukraine to accept a fast-tracked peace deal with Russia.

“Because when Russia isn’t willing to concede, the fastest way to solve the matter – either through a truce or through freezing the war – is only possible if [Trump] twists Kyiv’s arms,” Kyiv-based analyst Igar Tyshkevych told Al Jazeera.

“That’s why the next two months will be rather complicated for Ukraine,” he said.

Because Trump at the moment has Republican majorities in both houses, he will “try to show the effectiveness of his policies to decrease the possible level of confrontation with the new Congress”, Tyshkevych said.

The new Congress will have to deal with a dilemma rooted in allegations of corruption involving top Ukrainian officials and their purported embezzlement of US aid.

“On the one hand, there’s a political conviction to keep supporting Ukraine and on the other hand the political necessity to put an end to questions, suspicions and accusations of Ukrainian leaders in corruption,” he said.

Pro-Kremlin voices are already counting Moscow’s possible losses.

“The Democrats will double down on their efforts to prevent Trump from establishing a dialogue with Moscow, demand the resumption of direct US military aid to Kyiv, insist on the restoration of transatlantic unity on the Ukrainian issue and propose new sanctions against Russia and its main trading partners,” Moscow-based political analyst Andrey Kortunov wrote in an opinion piece for the Kommersant daily.

The Democrats “will initiate investigations into how he negotiates with us”, Moscow-based analyst Malek Dudakov told the Gazeta.ru daily.

The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs dismissed the concerns, saying Moscow’s foreign policies “don’t depend on the fluctuations of the political barometer in other nations”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, meanwhile, spoke in flattering terms, saying, “President Trump continues to exercise his powers. We sincerely hope that he will continue his peacemaking efforts.”

Rybakina pulled out on the eve of the Indian Wells tournament, with Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk replacing the top seed.

Defending champion Elena Rybakina has pulled out of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Finals, saying she was not physically ready to compete, allowing Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk to take her place in the eight-player field at Indian Wells.

Organisers on Saturday cited a viral illness as the official reason for the world number one’s “disappointing” withdrawal, but said the world number one needs time to recover from the physical toll of a demanding year.

Tournament director Garbine Muguruza, a former world number one and two-time Grand Slam champion, said she had spoken with Rybakina and that the Kazakh had been unable to recover in time after struggling with physical problems late in the season.

“We love Elena, and we know that she was feeling so-so in Tokyo as well,” Muguruza told the Reuters news agency. “I spoke to her today, and she really couldn’t recover on time.

“What we want is for her to feel good, to go rest, to recover. We don’t want her to feel like she has to play — only if she’s ready to.”

Rybakina, who won two Grand Slam titles this year, also withdrew from ⁠the quarterfinals of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo last month because of a neck injury.

‘Amazing field’ despite Rybakina absence

Rybakina’s absence deprives the event of some star power, but Muguruza said the round-robin format and depth of the field would ensure a high-quality tournament.

“We have the best players,” said Muguruza, who triumphed at the WTA Finals in Guadalajara in 2021.

“I know our world number one is not going to be able to play, but we have an amazing field, the very best,” she added.

“Every match could be a Grand Slam final. You really need to be ready. You cannot give one inch.”

Kostyuk, who is making her WTA Finals debut after a breakthrough season that included the Madrid title and a rise into the top 10, was already in Indian Wells as an alternate and practising when Rybakina withdrew.

Muguruza said the Ukrainian, known for her signature post-match backflip celebrations, had earned her opportunity.

“Marta is great. She’s had a breakthrough year,” Muguruza said. “With this year, we have many first-time players in the Finals, and that’s very exciting. It’s very hard to qualify.”

Kostyuk has been outspoken about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and does not shake hands with Russian or Belarusian opponents. Muguruza said the tournament would support players in making their own decisions.

“They’re free to do whatever they feel,” she said. “We are open and supporting them.”

Opportunity for Sabalenka

Rybakina’s withdrawal could create an opening for world number two Aryna Sabalenka to make inroads in the rankings.

Sabalenka, who won the Indian Wells title earlier this year, has the chance to reduce the gap at the top of the rankings, according to Muguruza, who highlighted Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva as a player comfortable in the California desert.

“Of course, Aryna might be thinking that this can be a good opportunity,” she said.

The WTA moved the finals to Indian Wells from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, with Muguruza saying player safety had been the decisive consideration amid conflict in the Middle East region.

“It clearly felt no longer safe to be in a region where there is conflict,” she said. “Taking care of the players and looking ahead to what could be safe, comfortable and secure, relocating felt the best decision.”

Muguruza said players had responded positively to the switch to Indian Wells, where she competed regularly during her career.

“When we knew that Indian Wells could be the next venue, it was just a joy,” she said, adding that ticket sales have been strong. “The whole thing is just perfect.”

NAMED Europe’s best city 2026 by Travel + Leisure earlier this year, Florence’s easy-to-traverse streets make it an ideal weekend away.

You can find world-famous art and fantastic pizza just steps from each other. Here’s why a trip to the beautiful Italian city should be on everyone’s bucket list…

WHY SHOULD I GO?

Florence is now a bit easier to visit, with easyJet expanding its city break package destinations.

Two-hour flights, cheap package holidays and weather that is still warmer than the UK’s are just some of the many reasons it’s great.

STREETS MADE FOR WALKING?

Forget taxis and trains — Florence is insanely walkable, with its top attractions and restaurants all within spitting distance of each other.

Perfect if you love a mooch without having to work out how to use a foreign public transport system.

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ANYTHING FOR BUCKET LIST?

The city is known for its Renaissance art, so most people head straight to the Uffizi Gallery to see Botticelli’s most famous painting, The Birth Of Venus.

But I’d recommend heading over the river to Palazzo Pitti instead. Owned by the Medici family back in the 1500s, the palace was said to have inspired Versailles in France.

Now it is home to five separate museums, with 500 paintings across 28 ornately decorated halls.

The highlight is Italy’s largest Museum of Costume and Fashion, featuring pieces from Chanel, Dior and Schiaparelli. Speaking of fashion, make sure you don’t leave without a leather souvenir, as Florentine leather is world-famous.

There are more market stalls and shops than you can shake a stick at, so you’ll be spoilt for choice for bags, belts and even more leather pieces.

WHERE SHOULD I EAT?

The city is known for its Renaissance art, so most people head straight to the Uffizi Gallery to see Botticelli’s most famous painting, The Birth Of Venus.

But I’d recommend heading over the river to Palazzo Pitti instead. Owned by the Medici family back in the 1500s, the palace was said to have inspired Versailles in France.

Now it is home to five separate museums, with 500 paintings across 28 ornately decorated halls.

The highlight is Italy’s largest Museum of Costume and Fashion, featuring pieces from Chanel, Dior and Schiaparelli. Speaking of fashion, make sure you don’t leave without a leather souvenir, as Florentine leather is world-famous.

There are more market stalls and shops than you can shake a stick at, so you’ll be spoilt for choice for bags, belts and even more leather pieces.

I FANCY A DRINK

Florence is hardly short of wine bars, but my favourite is Oratio, in a tiny library dedicated to wine books where wines are organised into regions of Italy.

Service is friendly, the menu is affordable, and you can pick up a book or two if you want to learn more about what you are drinking.

There are also Florence’s famous wine windows — 300 portals in the city’s stonework which were used to serve wine and food to people during the plague without risking physical contact.

Glasses of wine are still passed through the windows, and a popular one is part of the restaurant Babae, where you can even keep the plastic souvenir wine glass.

WHERE SHOULD I STAY?

There’s no better stay than at the 4H Palazzo Monnalisa, a city-centre hotel, but in a quiet street.

The building dates from the 14th century but recently completed a two-year renovation, so rooms are modern and cosy yet arty and chic — think terracotta tiles and textured mural wallpaper showcasing famous Italian skylines.

The rooms surround a private garden courtyard, making it feel worlds away from the busy city.

Breakfast is small but enough to line your stomach for the day, in the form of fresh pastries and fruit, or a hot menu offering dishes such as eggs benedict.

The restaurant is here too, with the bar on the other side to grab a wine to take to the outdoor patio.

The hotel almost feels like a museum in itself, from the painted wooden ceilings to its time-worn stone steps.

Few of us living in Southern California fully grasp the pivotal role the area has played in the history of flight and space travel. It boasted about two-thirds of the nation’s aircraft companies by the end of World War II and later birthed moon-bound Apollo spacecraft and the Columbia, Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis and Endeavour space shuttles. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge is still where many of NASA’s robotic space missions are built and operated, and SpaceX has forged most of its rockets and spacecraft in Hawthorne.

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Take a tour of Endeavour’s new home at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, which features an awe-inspiring elevator ride, 115-foot slide and dozens of fun and educational exhibits.

Our region specializes in another kind of escape too: entertainment. At the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, the $450-million, 200,000-square-foot expansion of the California Science Center, which opens to the public on Nov. 13, our expertise in cosmonautics and creativity converge to produce a blockbuster — a people-pleasing, action-packed popcorn flick that’s a foil to the city’s newest museums such as LACMA’s indie art house and Lucas’ sci-fi saga.

The center, with its galleries dedicated to aviation, space exploration and the shuttle program, turns the miracle of flight into theater, building to a dazzling denouement: the space shuttle Endeavour, with its solid rocket boosters and enormous external tank displayed in launch-ready position for the first time.

The drama begins in a darkened room, where a film created by J.J. Abrams’ production company, Bad Robot, transports you into the rousing, aggressively optimistic world of space travel, with its grainy footage, scratchy voices and real-life heroes. Then the shuttle appears on screen, the music swells and the room shakes with the tearing, rumbling force of a launch. The music resolves and smoke rolls into the gallery before the screen opens up and the real Endeavour gleams in the distance, spotlighted like a mirage in the dark.

The Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. The cone-like top houses the Endeavour space shuttle in launch position.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

It’s all a bit much. But I defy you to experience this reveal without getting goosebumps, or even (like a few people I know) shedding a tear.

You may think you experienced the shuttle a few years ago, parked in a hangar-like building at the west edge of the Science Center. But witnessing the shuttle upright — an idea that emerged out of a Science Center master plan over 30 years ago — is an entirely different thing. The 20-story-tall Endeavour stack is, simply put, one of the greatest artifacts ever installed in a museum. Anchored, via just eight bolts, to a concrete pad a floor below the ground, it’s a mesmerizing monument that feels as if it’s emerging from the earth to burst into space.

Space is the key word. To its credit, Oschin architect ZGF has done its best to keep the shuttle gallery’s dark, cavernous architecture in the background; focusing attention on the Endeavour while transporting visitors to another realm. Above its three-story concrete lower walls the gallery’s structure becomes a lean, self-supporting steel diagrid (think of a giant Erector Set) that wraps around the orbiter without interior walls or columns. Its web of steel connectors reads like a constellation. Its cone-shaped surface consists of thousands of panels, merging support and weather protection, and serving, via steel clips, as a frame for the building’s outer stainless-steel tiles. Each panel is different, their subtly shifting shapes recalling those of the shuttle’s heat-shield tiles.

Former NASA astronaut John “Danny” Olivas watches a J.J. Abrams-produced film about the space shuttle program before entering the shuttle display area at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

From the upper deck, visitors can get a close-up view of the cockpit of space shuttle Endeavour inside the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery at the California Science Center in Exposition Park.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The building choreographs a series of changing paths and perspectives within this vast armature. From wrapping overlooks, anchored by a central stepped terrace, you can take in the Endeavour’s full presence, set against the ethereal diagrid, from all sides. Walk to the far end to get closer to the shuttle: Its open cargo bay, which shows off its 50-foot-long mechanical arm designed to launch satellites and snag spacecraft, looks enormous compared with the tiny cockpit and living quarters where floating astronauts somehow squeezed in together, literally sleeping against walls and ceilings.

You can descend stairs from here, or opt for a (very) fast ride down one of the gallery’s 115-foot-long tubular metal slides, which dive through the floor and curve, as if hurtling through the atmosphere, to the base of the shuttle. Looking up from the ground floor gives you a true sense of the scale of the behemoth orbiter, boosters and tank, which shoot up like skyscrapers.

The super-fast 115-foot-long Shuttle Descent Slides inside the Samuel Oschin Shuttle Gallery.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The “Launch Tower,” a 16-story-tall re-creation of the shuttle launchpad’s gantry, gets you even closer to the stack. You ascend quickly via its glass elevator, and the Endeavour and its components shift in size and sensation as you climb. Viewing decks at multiple levels help you draw alongside. At one moment the orbiter looks alive — with its black, doglike cone nose and deep nostrils. Then it resembles an alien probe, filled with weird nozzles and mysterious hatches. It may dawn on you that this heroic artifact is a vulnerable, handmade thing. Ceramic tiles closer to the front are darker, stained with the unreal heat of piercing the atmosphere. Some of the shielding consists of white, quilted silica fabric; literally handwoven.

At the top level, 140 feet up, you walk out onto a structural glass-floor ledge and stare down into the shuttle’s cockpit, through your feet. You, the tiny David, have eclipsed the Goliath and conquered space! Or you peer over a railing to study the external tank — literally the last of its kind — tracked down for this exhibit at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana. It’s fluted in places, like a colossal, Space Age column. Elsewhere it’s mottled and reddish, as if made of clay.

The experience is profound for reasons other than pure spatial and tactical wonder. The shuttle is a machine for nostalgia, embodying a space program that brought us miraculously closer to the heavens and distilled the promise — deeply American, for better or worse — that ingenuity and persistence could take us beyond what seemed possible. Visiting it brings back childhood memories of watching a launch in awe. It transports us to a simpler time when spaceflight felt like a shared public undertaking, led by NASA in pursuit of knowledge, not by billionaires in pursuit of ego.

Part science exhibit, part thrill ride, the shuttle gallery teaches most effectively via emotion. While it’s hard to pull your attention from the shuttle, the area is layered with dozens more evocative exhibits and artifacts, including a replica of the shuttle’s flight deck — housing more than 1,000 densely packed switches, dials and displays — and a simulator that allows you to move, weightlessly, through the International Space Station. A line of graphics along one wall outlines the details of each shuttle mission — 135 in all — as vertical stripes of information.

The Oschin’s Aviation and Space galleries, bridging the shuttle gallery and the Science Center’s towering lobby, share the same broad idea: let extraordinary artifacts lead, and use architecture to shape the views and journeys around them. They’re excellently executed, but they feel familiar — planes and spacecraft spread across several levels accompanied by oversize graphics and hands-on displays. They rarely reach the singular intensity of the shuttle gallery.

Several planes and jets, including an inverted Grumman F11F-1 Tiger, are on display inside the Korean Air Aviation Gallery at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The three-story aviation hall makes room for almost two dozen aircraft — including a replica Wright Brothers glider, a Grumman F11F-1 Tiger, inverted as if a Navy Blue Angel were still steering, and a Joby S4 Air Taxi — suspended via steel wires from extra-thick concrete beams. Large openings cut through each level’s floor plates help accommodate the impressive craft while providing perspectives from all angles, even above. Exposed structure and lighting give the area the spare feeling of a hangar, with upper-level clerestory windows and skylights providing natural light. The “Concourse,” a central bank of bleacher seating linking the first and second floors, provides a place to take it all in, or to watch occasional presentations and shows.

Dozens of exhibits, which don’t have to compete with a looming space shuttle, will make it hard for you to get your children to leave. You can explore the interior of a 747, embarking on a simulated flight to South Korea, learn the mechanics of flight through several manually controlled displays, or send drones on missions above a miniature model of Los Angeles.

The space galleries capture more of the shuttle exhibit’s sense of otherworldly drama: dark, amorphous, windowless spaces with graphics of glittering stars and planets on the walls and spotlights lending pop to each surreal artifact. You can gape at gargantuan rocket components and space vehicles — the Rocket Lab Electron Rocket, for instance, juts through multiple floors — or ogle space suits, shuttle thrusters and moon rocks. There’s the diminutive Mercury-Redstone 2 capsule, which carried a chimpanzee on a suborbital spaceflight; the scruffy Apollo-ASTP Command Module, which orbited the Earth; and a model of Mariner IV, the probe that took the first close-up pictures of Mars. The best interactive exhibits turn curiosity and fun into stealth learning, like a chance to control a Mars rover or practice repairing the Hubble Space Telescope.

A section of a Boeing 747 is displayed inside the Korean Air Aviation Gallery at the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center. Guests can take a simulated flight to Seoul.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Outside, the addition has its strengths, but it makes an uneven case architecturally. I don’t mind that it doesn’t rhyme with the rest of the center: Oschin is one of a kind, especially its shuttle gallery. Besides, I’ve never been a big fan of the main building’s postmodern agglomeration. The new wing’s irregular, mysterious form and overlapping stainless-steel panels catch unique swathes of glowing sunlight. Its tight curves and angled seams recall aeronautic skins, giving the surface a sense of buzzing movement — an appropriate preview for what’s inside. When the building wraps around the shuttle itself it reads as a gleaming, cone-shaped beacon, visible from far away; tracing the shuttle’s dimensions and anchoring the museum in Expo Park. But the remainder feels leftover — formless and aimless — like tinfoil stretched around a clunky, conventional mass. It’s an outgrowth of merging an entirely new kind of exhibit with a more traditional one.

Oschin’s scalelike steel panels, albeit part of a smart, efficient structural solution, inevitably read as a watered-down redux of Frank Gehry’s Bilbao-era work. The echo is especially ironic given the presence, just a few feet away, of Gehry’s 1984 Science Center Air and Space Gallery (which closed in 2011), now empty and deteriorating. That canted, seven-sided building boldly incorporated a Lockheed F-104 Starfighter jet into its sheet metal and stucco-clad architecture. Its neglected husk is a missed opportunity: Why echo Gehry from across the street when you could engage the work already there? Science Center President and Chief Executive Jeffrey N. Rudolph says there is hope to someday bring the building back into service, but that its small spaces, awkward circulation and constant leaking have made that difficult.

A drone view at sunset of the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

The larger missed opportunity is Expo Park itself. With the recent additions of Oschin, the Lucas Museum and BMO Stadium, two expansions to the Natural History Museum and the renovation of the California African American Museum, the area now arguably contains Los Angeles’ most impressive collection of cultural institutions. But despite decades of visioning, the buildings are still not connected in a meaningful, humane way. State Drive, an ugly black roadway, separates the Science Center and its new addition from the park’s Rose Garden, and serves as a sad connector to the rest of the park.

Expo’s most recent master plan, approved in 2020, called for, among many other unexecuted improvements, replacing State Drive with a soft, shaded pedestrian route called Museum Walk. Plans for such a connector date back as far as the 1984 Olympics. “If there was funding (and significant effort toward its delivery) we would indeed explore creating a green promenade,” Andrea Ambriz, general manager of the state-run Office of Exposition Park Management, wrote in an email. “We’d love to see it developed,” echoed Rudolph.

The state contributed $80 million to the Oschin Center’s creation, and it is spending another $450 million on Expo’s deferred maintenance, accessibility and a new park along the complex’s south edge. Why not a few million more to better connect its facilities? And why can’t the institutions themselves chip in? The park’s museums should no longer be treated as isolated islands — the spaces between them urban leftovers.

Ironically, while Expo Park desperately needs to connect, Oschin’s galleries succeed most when they disengage from the world. And that’s OK. Their darkness and surreality narrow your attention and enhance your connection to their stunning, futuristic artifacts, turning a familiar experience into a thrilling journey. These spaces are about wonder, perfect for a museum that, at its core, is about teaching and inspiring children.

Los Angeles has long known how to produce this kind of wonder, in its aerospace workshops, soundstages and sometimes, its architecture. Oschin reveals the power of uniting these strengths. But the reality outside shows how much work remains to bridge the gap between the remarkable things this city builds and the often neglected spaces between.