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$1 million California Lottery winner strikes gold at South Bay supermarket

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. -- A San Diego-area supermarket was the lucky location for a California Lottery winner, officials announced Thursday.Victor Varela won the $1 million prize thanks to a Winter Riches Scratchers ticket he purchased at the Vallarta Supermarket in National City, the CA Lottery press release stated.It's not the first Vallarta Supermarket to be on luck's side. A store in Whittier, located near Los Angeles, sold a Scratchers ticket worth $5 million in April of last year. The cherry blossoms are back in Balboa Park. Here’s how to enjoy them Varela is one of five California Lottery Scratchers players who took home a combined $7 million in the Golden State, according to officials. Two in the Bay Area cashed in on top prizes of $2 million each while a $1 million ticket was sold in Mendota (Fresno County) and another $1 million prize received in Sherman Oaks (Los Angeles County)."Our stores do see an increase in traffic, particularly during the large jackpots, as custome...

Australia aims to bolster security, economic ties with India

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — Australia wants to strengthen security cooperation with India while also deepening economic and cultural ties, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Friday ahead of talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.“We are partners and building that partnership even stronger each and every day,’’ Albanese told reporters after a ceremonial reception at the Indian president’s palace in New Delhi.Both countries are working to strengthen the Quad, an alliance of Australia, India, Japan and the United States that aims to counter China’s rising influence in Asia.At a media briefing on Friday, Albanese was asked to explain his country’s position toward China after he described India as a “top-tier security partner.″“We need to ensure that Australia’s defense assets are the best they can be, and that we build our capability. At the same time, we need to build relationships. That’s what I’ve been doing. I’ve been doing that here in India, we’re doing that throu...

Many Ukrainians stuck in limbo with US permission expiring

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

SAN DIEGO (AP) — When U.S. officials at the U.S.-Mexico border stamped the Ukrainian passports of Mariia and her daughter last April and gave them permission to stay for a year, she figured she would return home within months.Now with that year almost up and the war that caused them to flee still raging, their permission to stay in the U.S. — known as humanitarian parole — is set to expire April 23. “The word `worry’ doesn’t capture what I’m feeling,” said Mariia, who spoke through an interpreter and asked that only her first name be used over concerns that speaking publicly would hurt their immigration case. “This is something that frightens me, mainly because of my daughter and my daughter’s future.”The 46-year-old woman and her daughter, now 13, are among 20,000 Ukrainians in a similar situation, according to resettlement agencies. Most arrived to the United States at its southern border after fleeing to Mexico, where it was easier and faster to get a visa to enter the country in...

Loyal and experienced, China’s other top leaders take posts

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — With Chinese leader Xi Jinping receiving a norms-breaking third five-year term as president on Friday, the other six men who serve with him on the ruling Communist Party’s all-powerful Politburo Standing Committee are beginning to take up their new portfolios. All are party veterans with close personal and professional ties to Xi, China’s most powerful figure in decades. Chief among them, the party’s second-in-command Li Qiang is widely expected to take over as premier, nominally in charge of the Cabinet and caretaker of the economy. Li is best known for ruthlessly enforcing a brutal “zero-COVID” lockdown on Shanghai last spring. Shortly after Xi received unanimous approval from the National People’s Congress, the party’s third-ranking official Zhao Leji was put in charge of the nearly 3,000-member ceremonial legislature. A member of the Politburo Standing Committee until October, Han Zheng was made vice president.Underscoring the overwhelmingly male makeup of ...

Is America a Democracy or a Constitutional Republic?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Q&A with Denver City Council District 7 candidate Nick Campion

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home pageNick CampionPROFESSIONSoftware CEOEDUCATIONMBA, BSEXPERIENCECEO for three private equity software companies; aircraft maintainer for the Colorado Air National Guard; event marketing tour manager, volunteer for the unhoused, entrepreneurs and the planet.WEBSITE • FACEBOOK • TWITTERBriefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.Homelessness. Right now, the city’s approach is piecemeal and patchwork at best. What we need as a city is a plan that is comprehensive. We need quality services to get the unhoused jobs, houses, and treatment, if they suffer with mental health problems. Part of the issue is the lack of affordability many Denver residents are facing.What should Denver leaders do to address the city’s lack of affordable housing?Denver leaders need to rework the antiquated zoning laws that make development unaffordable and inequitable. We need to work on ...

Q&A with Denver City Council District 5 candidate Amanda Sawyer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home pageIncumbentAmanda SawyerPROFESSIONDenver City CouncilwomanEDUCATIONBA – University of Colorado at Boulder, JD/MBA – American UniversityEXPERIENCEFour years as the current District 5 City CouncilmemberWEBSITE • FACEBOOK • TWITTERBriefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.It’s public safety. I’ve worked hard to create and fund new programs to address this in my first term. I partnered with DPD District 2 leadership and residents to design a community policing program in East Colfax. I created a program using CPTED studies to help small businesses address crime issues. In 2022, I took almost 1,000 weapons off our streets through a gun buyback program, which were turned into garden tools. I also partnered with Xcel Energy and DPD to deliver two lightbulbs to homes and add street lighting in problem areas.What should Denver leaders do to addre...

Q&A with Denver City Council District 1 candidate Amanda Sandoval

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home pageIncumbentAmanda SandovalPROFESSIONCity CouncilwomanEDUCATIONMetro State – BA of Political ScienceEXPERIENCECurrently serving as Denver City Council representative District 1 – Previously, Denver City Council aide. Also, I have worked at my family’s restaurant.WEBSITE • FACEBOOKBriefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.There is a myriad of issues that need attention to address the most urgent issue, quality of life and the vitality of the City of Denver. There are many tools that have been utilized to address the unhoused, safety, infrastructure, and economic challenges. The most effective tool is a comprehensive plan for land use which encourages prosperity and viability for the places that the citizens of Denver want to live, work and enjoy.What should Denver leaders do to address the city’s lack of affordable housing?There has been a...

Q&A with Denver City Council District 4 candidate Tony Pigford

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home pageTony PigfordPROFESSIONEducator and advocateEDUCATIONStudied Business Administration at Florida A&M UniversityEXPERIENCEI’ve worked in the business sector and founded several non-profit organizations. I have worked in Denver Public Schools focusing on youth leadership. I have led three successful ballot measures.WEBSITE • FACEBOOK • TWITTERBriefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.Housing is an issue I hear about every day. I think the city should be taking a more active role in the development of housing — I am closely following Seattle’s ballot initiative I-135 to create a social housing authority, and would like to see Denver follow suit. We also need to be thoughtful about housing as more than just warehousing people — we should be building walkable, complete neighborhoods with access to open space and parks, schools and child care, quality...

Q&A with Denver City Council District 1 candidate Ava Truckey

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:14:42 GMT

Go to: Denver Post Voter Guide • Candidate Q&A home pageAva TruckeyPROFESSIONMicro business ownerEDUCATIONTrade schoolEXPERIENCEI’m a parent, a baker, a writer, an ex-hairstylist, a community organizer, activist, and have used the systems as a kid, an adult, and now as a parent.WEBSITEBriefly describe the single most urgent issue facing the city of Denver and how it should be addressed.The city has become unaffordable for too many individuals and families who helped build it. We lose neighbors and community anchors every day to being priced out with nowhere close to land, outside of being criminalized when we find ourselves unhoused. We need to stabilize housing costs, increase housing access and development for the most vulnerable in our communities, end rampant displacement, and support our neighbors in maintaining the homes they have, sometimes for generations.What should Denver leaders do to address the city’s lack of affordable housing?We need to make sure ...