By DARLENE SUPERVILLE

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump wants to leave his mark on the nation’s capital by building a Paris-style arch just west of the Lincoln Memorial.

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Trump unveiled the plan at a White House dinner on Wednesday for the wealthy businesspeople who have pledged money toward the $250 million cost of adding a massive ballroom to the Executive Mansion. Trump did not put a price tag on the cost of the arch.

“It’s going to be really beautiful,” the Republican president said. “I think it’s going to be fantastic.”

Many presidents and first families try to leave their imprint on the White House, and Trump is already doing that with many of the design and construction changes he’s made to the property, perhaps most notably by converting the Rose Garden into a stone-covered patio.

But the arch goes far beyond the White House, giving Trump a chance to leave another lasting monument in a city known for them. It would expand on his earlier talk of sprucing up the city by replacing its “tired” grasses, and broken signage and street medians.

Trump seems to draw inspiration from the French.

The proposed arch bears a striking resemblance to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, the famous monument at the end of the Champs-Élysées honoring those who fought for France during the French Revolution and Napoleonic wars.

A military parade held in Washington earlier this year to mark the Army’s 250th birthday was inspired after Trump witnessed a similar event down the famous Parisian boulevard eight years ago as a guest of France’s president, Emmanuel Macron.

The White House did not immediately respond Thursday to an emailed request for more information on the arch, including the timeline for completing it.

Harrison Design, a local firm, is working on the project, according to a weekend social media post from Trump. A representative for the firm did not respond to an emailed request seeking comment Thursday.

It was unclear if the White House has presented the proposal to the National Capital Planning Commission, which has responsibility over planning and siting monuments, memorials and statues in the city. The commission’s offices have been closed during the government shutdown.

L. Preston Bryant Jr., a former chairman of the commission, said in an email that federal law requires that the proposed arch be put through the commission’s review and approval process.

The arch would stand at the Washington end of Memorial Bridge, which spans the Potomac River from Arlington, Virginia. At the dinner, Trump showed off three different sized models of the arch, which will feature a statue of Lady Liberty on top, and acknowledged that the largest one was his favorite.

President Donald Trump addresses a dinner for donors who have contributed to build the new ballroom at the White House, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

Trump thanked his dinner guests for being “so generous in your contributions” to pay for the ballroom and said there might be enough money left over to cover the cost of building the arch.

“It’s fully taken care of now and, in fact, we’ll have money left over and we’ll use that for something,” he said. “We’ll use that probably maybe for the arch or something else that will come. But we love to fix up Washington.”

The White House has said it will disclose information on who has contributed money to build the ballroom, but has yet to do so. That project was announced in late July.

Associated Press video journalist Mike Pesoli contributed to this report.

By JOSHUA GOODMAN

MIAMI (AP) — Federal prosecutors have charged voting technology firm Smartmatic with money laundering and other crimes arising from more than $1 million in bribes that several executives allegedly paid to election officials in the Philippines.

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The payments, between 2015 and 2018, were made to obtain a contract with the Philippines government to help run that country’s 2016 presidential election and secure the timely payment for its work, according to a superseding indictment filed Thursday in a Florida federal court.

Three former executives of Smartmatic, including co-founder Roger Pinate, were previously charged in 2024 but at the time South Florida-based Smartmatic was not named as a defendant. Pinate, who no longer works for Smartmatic but remains a shareholder, has pleaded not guilty.

The criminal case is unfolding as Smartmatic is pursuing a $2.7 billion lawsuit accusing Fox News of defamation for airing false claims that the company helped rig the 2020 U.S. presidential election in which Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump.

Smartmatic in a statement denied the allegations and said it believed the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Miami had been misled and politically influenced by unnamed powerful interests.

“This is again, targeted, political, and unjust,” the company said. “Smartmatic will continue to stand by its people and principles. We will not be intimidated by those pulling the strings of power.”

As part of the criminal case, prosecutors in August sought the court’s permission to introduce evidence they argue shows that revenue from a $300 million contract with Los Angeles County to help modernize its voting systems was diverted to a “ slush fund” controlled by Pinate through the use of overseas shell companies, fake invoices and other means.

They also accused Pinate of secretly bribing Venezuela’s longtime election chief by giving her a luxury home with a pool in Caracas. Prosecutors say the home was transferred to the election chief in an attempt to repair relations following Smartmatic’s abrupt exit from Venezuela in 2017 when it accused President Nicolas Maduro ’s government of manipulating tallied results in elections for a rubber-stamping constituent assembly.

A hearing on the purported evidence tied to Los Angeles and Venezuela will be held next month however none of the accusations are mentioned in the superseding indictment signed by Jason Reding Quinones, the new Trump-appointed U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida.

Smartmatic was founded more than two decades ago by a group of Venezuelans who found early success running elections while the late Hugo Chavez, a devotee of electronic voting, was in power. The company later expanded globally, providing voting machines and other technology to help carry out elections in 25 countries, from Argentina to Zambia.

But Smartmatic has said its business tanked after Fox News gave Trump’s lawyers a platform to paint the company as part of a conspiracy to steal the 2020 election.

Fox said it was legitimately reporting on newsworthy events but eventually aired a piece refuting the allegations after Smartmatic’s lawyers complained. Nonetheless, it has aggressively defended itself against the defamation lawsuit in New York — arguing that the company was facing imminent collapse over its own internal misconduct, not due to any negative coverage.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 4, but you can vote early if you want. Times and locations vary for early voting, so check online with your county elections office.

General information about the Nov. 5 election is online at twincities.com/news/politics/elections, where you can find information on candidates and ballot questions for Ramsey, Dakota and Washington counties. Go here for candidates running for school boards. Ramsey County has municipal elections in White Bear Lake and Falcon Heights. Go here for information on those races.

We will be adding more information on school levy referendums in the three counties in coming days.

Here’s information on how to vote in 2025 elections in Ramsey, Dakota and Washington counties.

How to register

Pre-registration is now closed for the Nov. 4 election. However, voters can register at polling places on Election Day or when they vote early with an absentee ballot.

Check your registration status and find more information at the Minnesota secretary of state’s voter registration page.

Sample ballot

To see who’ll be on your ballot, check the Secretary of State’s Minnesota sample ballot page.

How to vote on election day

As long as you haven’t already voted early, the vast majority of Minnesotans — and everyone in the metro — can vote in person at their designated polling place.

To find out where to vote, visit the Minnesota Secretary of State’s online polling place finder at pollfinder.sos.state.mn.us.

Polls typically will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., except possibly in some very small communities, which are allowed to open later.

How to vote absentee

You can go online to request an absentee ballot be mailed to you. You can return it by mail, or deliver it in person to your local elections office before Election Day. Mailed ballots must be postmarked no later than Election Day. You can track the status of your absentee ballot online.

You can vote early with an absentee ballot at your local elections office. Some cities and towns also offer in-person absentee voting. If you are not registered, you can do so in person if you show proof of residence.

All voters have at least one location where they can vote early in person with an absentee ballot. To see a list of voting locations before Election Day go to here or contact your county election office.

More election news:

Bookmark our Elections page for the latest news and features on races in Ramsey, Washington and Dakota counties as well as other political news.

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By FRANKLIN BRICEÑO

LIMA (AP) — Peru’s new President José Jerí refused to resign on Thursday following the death of a protester during a massive demonstration led by Gen Z activists demanding he step down.

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About 100 people were also injured, including 80 police officers and 10 journalists, according to authorities, who said they were investigating the shooting and killing of the protester.

“My responsibility is to maintain the stability of the country; that is my responsibility and my commitment,” Jerí told the local press after visiting Peru’s Parliament, where he said he would request powers to combat crime.

The protests began a month ago calling for better pensions and wages for young people and expanded to capture the woes of Peruvians tired of crime, corruption and decades of disillusion with their government.

After Jerí, the seventh president in less than a decade, was sworn in on Oct. 10, protesters called for him and other lawmakers to resign.

Protests turn violent

Peru’s prosecutor’s office announced Thursday that it was investigating the death of 32-year-old protester and hip-hop singer Eduardo Ruíz, who prosecutors said was shot by firearm during the mass demonstration of thousands of young people. It wrote on the social media platform X that it has ordered the removal of Ruíz’s body from a Lima hospital and the “collection of audiovisual and ballistic evidence in the area where the incident occurred, in the context of serious human rights violations.”

A demonstrator sprays riot police with red paint near Congress during a protest against new President Jose Jeri in Lima, Peru, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

Local media and security cameras showed video of Ruíz collapsing in a Lima street after a man fleeing from several protesters fired a shot. Witnesses said the shooter was running away because he was accused of being a plainclothes police officer infiltrated among the demonstrators.

At least 24 protesters and 80 police officers were injured in the demonstrations, according to Peru’s Ombudsman’s Office. Six journalists were struck by pellets and another four were assaulted by police, according to the National Association of Journalists.

The president expressed regret over the protester’s death.

Global trend

The Peruvian protests comes amid a wave of protests unfolding across the world, driven by generational discontent against governments and anger among young people. Protests have broken out in Nepal, the Philippines, Indonesia, Kenya, Peru and Morocco, with protesters often carrying black flags with the “One Piece” anime symbol — a pirate skull wearing a straw hat.

In Lima’s main plaza 27-year-old electrician David Tafur said he decided to join the demonstration after learning about it on TikTok.

“We’re fighting for the same thing — against the corrupt — who here are also killers,” he said, referring to violent 2022 protests and government crackdown in which 50 people were killed.

Controversial new president

The escalating tensions come just days after Peru’s Congress ousted President Dina Boluarte, was known as one of the least popular presidents in the world for repressing protests and failing to control crime.

Demonstrators push a security railing near Congress during a protest against President Jose Jeri in Lima, Peru, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

Jerí, the 38-year-old president of Congress, then took office, promising to get a recent crime wave under control. He swore in Ernesto Álvarez, a ultraconservative former judge active on social media, as prime minister.

Álvarez has not yet commented on it, but previously claimed said that Peru’s Gen Z is a “gang that wants to take democracy by storm” and does not represent “the youth who study and work.”

Criticisms of Jerí and his government quickly emerged because he previously faced an investigation after being accused of a woman of raping her. The prosecutor’s office dismissed the case in August, though authorities continue to investigate another man who was with Jerí the day of the alleged rape. Protesters also condemned Jerí because as a legislator he voted in favor of six laws that experts say weaken the fight against crime.

Protesters demanded Jerí and other lawmakers resign and repeal the laws they say benefit criminal groups.

During the protest, more than 20 women shouted “The rapist is Jerí” or “Jerí is a violin” — a slang expression in Peru where “violin” means rapist. Protesters launched fireworks at police, who responded with tear gas and rubber pellets.

Frustrations grow

That anger was built upon decades of frustration by Peruvians, who have seen their leaders, year after year, plagued by corruption scandals, fueling a feeling of cynicism and deception in many of Peru’s youth.

Demonstrators clash with riot police near Congress during a protest against new President Jose Jeri in Lima, Peru, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Martin Mejia)

“After the pension issue, other frustrations followed — linked to insecurity, the erosion of state capacity in Peru, and corruption,” said Omar Coronel, a sociology professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru, who studies social movements.

Violent scenes from the protest drew back memories of violent protests in the early months of Boluarte’s government, when 50 protesters were killed.

Protesters held signs reading “Protesting is a right, killing is a crime.” One woman carried a poster that read “From a murderess to a rapist, the same filth,” criticizing the change in government.

“For me, it’s about outrage over abuse of power, corruption and killings,” said Tafur, the protester.