: Americans for Prosperity Action, the political wing of the powerful Koch conservative network, is launching a multi-million dollar ad blitz across battleground states targeting vulnerable incumbent Senate Democrats and boosting their Republican opponents ahead of the November election. 

The influential conservative group is spending $5.75 million on ads across Wisconsin, Montana, Nevada, Ohio and Pennsylvania. 

Tim Sheehy, a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Montana, will get $1 million in ads in support of his bid, as will Sam Brown, the Republican candidate for Senate in Nevada. Republican candidates Bernie Moreno in Ohio, Dave McCormick in Pennsylvania and Eric Hovde in Wisconsin will each get $1.25 million in ads supporting them. 

The digital ads will also air on TV in the pivotal battleground states. 

The buy is part of AFP Action’s ‘firewall strategy’ to support candidates to prevent ‘One Party Progressive rule.’

There are 10 different video ads featured in the ad campaign, two for each state. 

In one Wisconsin ad, ‘Betrayed,’ residents detail how the Inflation Reduction Act passed under President Biden has failed them. 

‘Tammy Baldwin spent a trillion dollars on an Inflation Reduction Act. It did not help us,’ Jackie B. said in a testimonial. 

‘They put a fancy name on spending money,’ Dale G. added in the video. 

Bobbie S. claimed, ‘Things have definitely gotten worse. It makes me feel betrayed.’

The spot will debut in Wisconsin, targeting Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., and boosting her opponent, Republican businessman Eric Hovde. 

In a statement on the multi-state ad buy, AFP Action Director Nathan Nascimento said, ‘Voters are tired of Washington doubling down on failed policy and then handing them the bill. But that’s what every incumbent senator has done during their time in office — some of them for decades. The pain is very real for Americans still deciding who to vote for in November, but when you look at their record, it’s very clear that senators Brown, Baldwin, Casey, Rosen and Tester can’t be trusted to vote the right way when it comes to reducing inflationary spending or securing the border.

‘Any one of these senators were the deciding vote to push the Biden-Harris administration’s massive influx of spending forward, forcing inflation into overdrive – and every single one put their party ahead of their constituents. Americans across the country are paying the price. The last thing our country can afford is to send these senators back to Washington for more of the same failed policies.’ 

In a Montana video against Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., David D. claimed, ‘After 35 years in politics, we are worse off than we were when you started.’

‘Ohio families are struggling, and, after three decades, Sherrod Brown’s failed policies caught up with us,’ a narrator told viewers in a spot against Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio. 

‘Bernie Moreno and his special interest allies are attacking Sherrod to distract from Moreno’s record of refusing to pay his own workers the overtime wages they earned and then shredding evidence that a judge ordered him to keep to get out of it,’ Brown campaign spokesperson Matt Keyes told Fox News Digital in a statement. 

‘While Sherrod is fighting to lower costs for Ohio workers, Bernie Moreno can’t be trusted and only looks out for himself.’ 

‘Career politician’ Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., is slammed in one of the Nevada ads, with footage of her touting the IRA and claiming ‘help is on the way.’

A Pennsylvania ad similarly targets Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., for his vote in favor of the IRA, with a narrator saying, ‘Bob Casey isn’t working for Pennsylvania families.’

‘Bob Casey lowered the cost of insulin and is leading the charge against corporate greed and greedflation, while David McCormick defends corporations that are raking in profits while raising prices on middle-class families,’ Casey spokesperson Maddy McDaniel told Fox News Digital. 

‘David McCormick has the support of the Koch family and his Wall Street billionaire backers, but Bob Casey has the support of working people in Pennsylvania.’

The ads also tout the Republican contenders for each Senate seat, promoting each of them as a better solution for struggling families in their respective states. 

Campaigns for Tester, Baldwin and Rosen did not immediately provide comment to Fox News Digital. 

According to AFP Action, it has reached out to more than 7.5 million voters to date this election cycle.

There are 90 days until Election Day on Tuesday, Nov. 5.

But if Americans vote like they did in the last two election cycles, most of them will have already cast a ballot before the big day.

Early voting starts as early as Sept. 6 for eligible voters, with seven battleground states sending out ballots to at least some voters the same month.

It makes the next few months less a countdown to Election Day, and more the beginning of ‘election season.’

States have long allowed at least some Americans to vote early, like members of the military or people with illnesses. 

In some states, almost every voter casts a ballot by mail.

Many states expanded eligibility in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic made it riskier to vote in-person.

That year, the Fox News Voter Analysis found that 71% of voters cast their ballots before Election Day, with 30% voting early in-person and 41% voting by mail.

Early voting remained popular in the midterms, with 57% of voters casting a ballot before Election Day.

Elections officials stress that voting early is safe and secure. Recounts, investigations and lawsuits filed after the 2020 election did not reveal evidence of widespread fraud or corruption. 

The difference between ‘early in-person’ and ‘mail’ or ‘absentee’ voting.

There are a few ways to vote before Election Day.

The first is , where a voter casts a regular ballot in-person at a voting center before Election Day.

The second is , where the process and eligibility varies by state.

Eight states vote mostly by mail, including California, Colorado, Nevada and Utah. Registered voters receive ballots and send them back.

Most states allow any registered voter to request a mail ballot and send it back. This is also called mail voting, or sometimes absentee voting. Depending on the state, voters can return their ballot by mail, at a drop box, and/or at an office or facility that accepts mail ballots.

In 14 states, voters must have an excuse to vote by mail, ranging from illness, age, work hours or if a voter is out of their home county on lection day.

States process and tabulate ballots at different times. Some states don’t begin counting ballots until election night, which delays the release of results.

Voting begins on Sept. 6 in North Carolina, with seven more battleground states starting that month

This list of early voting dates is for guidance only. For comprehensive and up-to-date information on voter eligibility, processes, and deadlines, go to Vote.gov and your state’s elections website.

The first voters to be sent absentee ballots will be in North Carolina, which begins mailing out ballots for eligible voters on Sept. 6.

Seven more battleground states open up early voting the same month, including Pennsylvania, Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan and Nevada.

September deadlines

In-person early voting in bold.

Sept. 6

North Carolina – Absentee ballots sent to voters

Sept. 16

Pennsylvania – Mail-in ballots sent to voters

Sept. 17

Georgia – Absentee ballots sent to military & overseas

Sept. 19

Wisconsin – Absentee ballots sent

Sept. 20

Arkansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah, Wyoming – Absentee ballots sent to military & overseas
Minnesota, South Dakota – In-person absentee voting begins
Virginia – In-person early voting begins
Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia – Absentee ballots sent

Sept. 21

Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, Washington – Absentee ballots sent to military & overseas
Indiana, New Mexico – Absentee ballots sent
Maryland, New Jersey – Mail-in ballots sent

Sept. 23

Mississippi – In-person absentee voting begins & absentee ballots sent
Oregon, Vermont – Absentee ballots sent

Sept. 26

Illinois – In-person early voting begins 
Michigan – Absentee ballots sent
Florida, Nevada – Mail-in ballots sent
North Dakota – Absentee & mail-in ballots sent

Sept. 30

Nebraska – Mail-in ballots sent

Oct. 4

Connecticut – Absentee ballots sent

Oct. 6

Michigan – In-person early voting begins 
Maine – In-person absentee voting begins & mail ballots sent
California – In-person absentee voting begins & mail ballots sent
Montana – In-person absentee voting begins
Nebraska – In-person early voting begins 
Georgia – Absentee ballots sent
Massachusetts – Mail-in ballots sent

Oct. 8

California – Ballot drop-offs open
New Mexico, Ohio – In-person absentee voting begins
Indiana – In-person early voting begins
Wyoming – In-person absentee voting begins & absentee ballots sent

Oct. 9

Arizona – In-person early voting begins & mail ballots sent

Oct. 11

Colorado – Mail-in ballots sent
Arkansas, Alaska – Absentee ballots sent

Oct. 15

Georgia – In-person early voting begins
Utah – Mail-in ballots sent

Oct. 16

Rhode Island, Kansas, Tennessee – In-person early voting begins
Iowa – In-person absentee voting begins
Oregon, Nevada – Mail-in ballots sent

Oct. 17

North Carolina – In-person early voting begins 

Oct. 18

Washington, Louisiana – In-person early voting begins
Hawaii – Mail-in ballots sent

Oct. 19

Nevada, Massachusetts – In-person early voting begins 
Alaska, Arkansas, Connecticut, Idaho, North Dakota, South Carolina, Texas – In-person early voting begins 
Colorado – Ballot drop-offs open

Oct. 22

Hawaii, Utah – In-person early voting begins 
Missouri, Wisconsin – In-person absentee voting begins

Oct. 23

West Virginia – In-person early voting begins

Oct. 24

Maryland – In-person early voting begins

Oct. 25

Delaware – In-person early voting begins

Oct. 26

Michigan, Florida, New Jersey, New York – In-person early voting begins 

Oct. 30

Oklahoma – In-person early voting begins 

Oct. 31

Kentucky – In-person absentee voting begins

President Biden was briefly seen Monday walking from Marine One to the Oval Office, ignoring reporters’ questions, and the 81-year-old president has not been seen publicly since. 

A lack of public appearances has become the new normal for the president since he dropped out of the 2024 race, allowing Vice President Kamala Harris to take the lead on the ticket. This comes as the administration is anticipating a possible attack by Iran on Israel.

When Fox News correspondent David Spunt asked why the American people have not heard directly from the president this week, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said, ‘We just put out two readouts today.’ 

‘Can we expect to see him this week? Because I know you guys have been putting out the schedule. You know, we’ve been getting it the night before,’ Spunt asked Jean-Pierre during Tuesday’s press briefing. 

‘So we are in a different time,’ Jean-Pierre responded. ‘As I’ve said many times before, and you will get to see the president, that I can say. Look, it is certainly the president’s priority, to make sure that we do everything that we can, to protect our national security, right?’ 

The press secretary said Biden’s focus was to ‘de-escalate tensions,’ adding that the two ‘readouts’ released by the White House indicated that Biden spoke with the leaders of Jordan, Qatar and Egypt. 

‘From that readout that we just put out, I was asked about the cease-fire deal and what the president – that last line – that was pointed out to me. That is something that the president has been focused on – getting that done. I don’t have anything beyond what we put out, but we’re monitoring the situation closely,’ Jean-Pierre said. 

The president declared a state of emergency in Florida and South Carolina this week ahead of Tropical Storm Debby. Meanwhile, several U.S. personnel were injured in a rocket attack at a military base in Iraq. 

Calling for calm in the Middle East, top U.S. national security leaders said Tuesday that they and allies are directly pressing Israel, Iran and others to avoid escalating the conflict, even as the U.S. moved more troops to the region and threatened retaliation if American forces are attacked.

‘It’s urgent that everyone in the region take stock of the situation, understand the risk of miscalculation, and make decisions that will calm tensions, not exacerbate them,’ Secretary of State Antony Blinken said at the close of a meeting with Australian leaders at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. 

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin noted the attack Monday on U.S. forces in Iraq by an Iranian-backed militia group, which injured seven, and made it clear that the U.S. will not hesitate to respond.

‘Make no mistake, the United States will not tolerate attacks on our personnel in the region,’ Austin told reporters. ‘And we remain ready to deploy on short notice to meet the evolving threats to our security, our partners or our interests.’

Despite economic concerns, Biden claimed to have ‘cured the economy’ last week, just days before global stocks plummeted on Monday.

In a case disclosed by the Justice Department on Tuesday, Asif Merchant, a Pakistani man alleged to have ties to Iran, was charged in a plot to carry out political assassinations on U.S. soil, including potentially against former President Trump. Based on the ongoing DOJ investigation, Jean-Pierre told Spunt on Tuesday, no evidence suggests the defendant was connected to the July 13 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania. 

‘It’s an ongoing law enforcement DOJ indictment, so I’m going to be really mindful,’ she said. ‘But we have said many times that we have been tracking Iranian threats against former politicians. We’ve been very clear about that. These threats arise from Iran’s desire to seek revenge for the killing of Qassem Soleimani. We consider this a national and homeland security matter of the highest priority – the highest priority.’ 

Jean-Pierre said the administration has taken a ‘comprehensive response’ to these threats, including having ‘invested extraordinary resources in developing additional information about these threats, disrupting individuals involved in these threats, enhancing protective arrangements in potential targets of these threats, engaging with foreign partners and directly warning Iran.’ 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Israel is vowing to kill the new political leader of Hamas, with an IDF official saying the only place he belongs is beside the group’s slain military commander and the rest of the ‘October 7th terrorists.’ 

Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ top official in Gaza and one of the masterminds of the massacre that launched the Israel-Hamas war, has become Hamas’ new political chief following the July 31 assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Iran. 

‘There is only one place for Yahya Sinwar, and it is beside Mohammed Deif and the rest of the October 7th terrorists,’ Israel Defense Forces Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said in an interview with Saudi news channel Al-Arabiya, according to The Associated Press. 

Israel says it has killed Deif, the head of Hamas’ military wing and another Oct. 7 attack mastermind, in a strike in southern Gaza last month. Hamas has not confirmed Deif’s death. 

‘Yahya Sinwar is a terrorist, who is responsible for the most brutal terrorist attack in history — October 7th,’ Hagari added during the interview with Al-Arabiya. 

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that Sinwar has the power to ensure a cease-fire deal is reached in the Israel-Hamas war. 

Sinwar ‘has been and remains the primary decider when it comes to concluding the cease-fire, and so I think this only underscores the fact that it’s really on him to decide whether to move forward with a cease-fire that manifestly will help so many Palestinians in desperate need, women, children, men who are caught in a crossfire,’ Blinken said. ‘It really is on him.’ 

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has previously called Deif the ‘Osama Bin Laden of Gaza.’ 

‘Deif operated side-by-side with Yahya Sinwar, and during the war, he commanded Hamas’ terrorist activity in the Gaza Strip by issuing commands and instructions to senior members of Hamas’ Military Wing,’ the IDF said earlier this month while announcing his death. 

During the Oct. 7 attack, Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and abducted 251 hostages into the Gaza Strip. Sinwar is believed to remain in hiding in Gaza.  

Fox News’ Scott McDonald, Chris Pandolfo and The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Hamas has named Yahya Sinwar, its top leader in Gaza who masterminded the deadly Oct. 7 attack on Israel, as its new leader after his predecessor was killed during an airstrike in Iran. 

The move is certain to provoke Israel, which has put him at the top of its kill list after the Oct. 7 attack in which militants killed 1,200 people in southern Israel and took about 250 as hostages.

In a statement, Hamas announced ‘the selection of Commander Yahya Sinwar as head of the movement’s political bureau, succeeding the martyred leader Ismail Haniyeh, may God have mercy on him.’

Sinwar is close to Iran and has worked over the years to build up the strength of Hamas. His promotion came after the death of Ismail Haniyeh. Haniyeh was killed in an apparent bombing in Tehran, while a top Hezbollah commander was also killed in Beirut last week in a presumed Israeli strike.

The killings have raised fears of a wider conflict that could see Israel fighting on multiple fronts. 

Iran has vowed to retaliate. Israel has accused Sinwar of masterminding the deadly Oct. 7 attack. Israeli officials believe he has taken refuge in the terror group’s vast network of tunnels in the Gaza Strip and is surrounded by hostages as human shields. 

Last week, Israel said it had confirmed the death of the head of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif, in a July airstrike in Gaza. Hamas has not confirmed his death.

Hamas’ representative in Iran, Khaled Kaddoumi, called Sinwar a ‘consensus choice’ popular among all factions and involved in the group’s decision-making throughout, including in negotiations. In a voice message to the Associated Press, he said Sinwar knows the political aspirations of the Palestinians for a state and the return of refugees but is also a ‘fierce fighter on the battlefield.’

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sinwar ‘has been and remains the primary decider when it comes to concluding the cease-fire.’

He said Sinwar must ‘decide whether to move forward with a cease-fire that manifestly will help so many Palestinians in desperate need, women, children, men who are caught in a crossfire. … It really is on him.’

Sinwar has been Hamas’ leader inside Gaza since 2017, ruling with an iron grip.

In May, the International Criminal Court sought an arrest warrant against Sinwar on charges of war crimes over the Oct. 7 attack, as well as against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel’s defense minister for war crimes.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Former President Barack Obama released a statement Tuesday celebrating Vice President Kamala Harris’s selection for her running mate in the 2024 election.

Commenting on Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, who will be running for vice president alongside Harris, Obama took a swipe at former President Donald Trump’s running mate, Sen. JD. Vance from Ohio.

‘When a presidential candidate chooses a running mate, it says a lot about who they are and what kind of president they’ll be. Do they pick someone inexperienced and polarizing who will deepen our divisions?’ Obama asked. ‘Or do they pick someone with the judgment to make tough decisions, and the character to believe that every voice counts and everyone deserves an equal chance?’

The former president seemed to frame his statement in line with fellow Democrats’ accusations that Vance is ‘weird’ and out of touch with U.S. voters.

The freshman senator from Ohio has made headlines with his criticisms of ‘childless cat ladies’ running the federal government — a quip lamenting what Vance sees as anti-family policies.

Democrats have used that sound bite and others to paint Vance as a hostile or mean-spirited running mate.

‘Tim’s signature is his ability to talk like a human being and treat everyone with decency and respect,’ Obama said. ‘Not all that surprising considering the fact that he served in the National Guard for 24 years and worked as a high school social studies teacher and football coach before being elected to Congress.’

The naming of the 60-year-old Walz was not a shocker, as his name was instantly thought to be in contention in the two weeks since Harris succeeded President Biden as the party’s standard-bearer.

Walz, a former congressman, is in his second term as governor of Minnesota, a state that Democrats have reliably won in presidential elections for decades but that the Trump campaign has aimed at flipping this cycle.

‘I am proud to announce that I’ve asked [Tim Walz] to be my running mate,’ Harris officially announced on X Tuesday. ‘As a governor, a coach, a teacher, and a veteran, he’s delivered for working families like his.’

‘It’s personal,’ she said. ‘He grew up in a small town in Nebraska, spending summers working on his family’s farm. His father died of cancer when he was 19, and his family relied on Social Security survivor benefit checks to make ends meet. At 17, he enlisted in the National Guard, serving for 24 years. He used his GI Bill benefits to go to college, and become a teacher.’ 

Having the plainspoken Walz on the national ticket not only helps Harris in Minnesota, it also benefits the vice president in the two neighboring Midwestern battleground states of Wisconsin and Michigan.

Walz, the chair of the Democratic Governors Association, may also help Harris when it comes to bringing in campaign cash, as he has helped steer the DGA to record-breaking fundraising this year.

Fox News Digital’s Paul Steinhauser, Brooke Singman, Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.

The Trump campaign blasted Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as a ‘dangerously liberal extremist,’ while warning that their vision for the country is ‘every Americans’ nightmare.’ 

Waltz was tapped as Harris’ vice presidential pick Tuesday morning. The 60-year-old is a former congressman and is in his second term as the governor of Minnesota – a state that Democrats have reliably won in presidential elections for decades but that the Trump campaign has aimed at flipping this cycle. 

Recently, Walz attacked former President Trump and his running mate JD Vance as ‘weird,’ a viral insult the Harris campaign has embraced.

The Trump campaign, though, blasted Walz for his liberal policies and views, which they say complement Harris perfectly. 

‘It’s no surprise that San Francisco Liberal Kamala Harris wants West Coast wannabe Tim Walz as her running-mate – Walz has spent his governorship trying to reshape Minnesota in the image of the Golden State,’ Trump campaign national press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News Digital. ‘While Walz pretends to support Americans in the Heartland, when the cameras are off, he believes that rural America is ‘mostly cows and rocks’.’ 

‘From proposing his own carbon-free agenda, to suggesting stricter emission standards for gas-powered cars, and embracing policies to allow convicted felons to vote, Walz is obsessed with spreading California’s dangerously liberal agenda far and wide,’ Levitt continued. 

She added: ‘If Walz won’t tell voters the truth, we will: just like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist, and the Harris-Walz California dream is every American’s nightmare.’

Walz can showcase a slew of progressive policy victories in Minnesota, including protecting abortion rights, legalizing recreational marijuana and restricting gun access to curb shootings. 

Walz was elected to the House in 2006 and re-elected five times, representing Minnesota’s 1st Congressional District, a mostly rural district covering the southern part of the state that includes a number of midsize cities. During his last two years on Capitol Hill, he served as ranking member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee. 

Walz won election as governor in 2018 and re-election four years later.

Walz has gained attention recently with his comments about Trump and Vance.  

‘These are weird people on the other side, they want to take books away, they want to be in your exam room, that’s what it comes down to,’ he said on MSNBC last month. ‘Don’t get sugarcoating this, these are weird ideas.’

Walz, however, has faced criticism for his handling of COVID-19 and riots that rocked Minneapolis in 2020, Fox News Digital previously reported. 

‘[H]e’s been a disaster for Minnesota and is by far the most partisan governor that I can remember having,’ Minnesota GOP Chairman David Hann told Fox News Digital last week. ‘Going back to 2020, certainly – he did nothing to try to stop the riots going on in Minneapolis. I think he was fearful of alienating his ‘progressive’ base, who were supporting the riots. Kamala Harris was raising money for the rioters.’

Some critics point to Walz’s memorandum mandating indoor masking during the coronavirus pandemic, as well as setting up a hotline to report residents who violated COVID-19 mandates, as FOX 9 Minneapolis reported at the time.

He has also taken heat for telling a group of Democrats that socialism is what some people would call ‘neighborliness.’

‘Don’t ever shy away from our progressive values,’ he said on a ‘White Dudes for Harris’ call on Monday night. ‘One person’s socialism is another person’s neighborliness.

Harris and Walz are scheduled to kick off a campaign swing through all seven crucial battleground states starting on Tuesday, with an event in Philadelphia.