By JOHN O’CONNOR

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — It figures that a billionaire would win big in Las Vegas.

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Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker reported a gambling windfall of $1.4 million on his federal tax return this week.

The two-term Democrat, often mentioned as a 2028 presidential candidate, told reporters in Chicago on Thursday that he drew charmed hands in blackjack during a vacation with first lady MK Pritzker and friends in Sin City.

“I was incredibly lucky,” he said. “You have to be to end up ahead, frankly, going to a casino anywhere.”

Pritzker, an heir to the Hyatt hotel chain, has a net worth of $3.9 billion, tied for No. 382 on the Forbes 400 list of the nation’s richest people. A campaign spokesperson said via email that Pritzker planned to donate the money to charity but did not respond when asked why he hadn’t already done so.

Pritzker, who intends to seek a third term in 2026, was under consideration as a vice presidential running mate to Kamala Harris last year. He has deflected questions about any ambition beyond the Illinois governor’s mansion. But he has used his personal wealth to fund other Democrats and related efforts, including a campaign to protect access to abortion.

His profile has gotten an additional bump this fall as he condemns President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement in the Chicago area and the president’s attempt to deploy National Guard troops there.

The Pritzkers reported income of $10.66 million in 2024, mostly from dividends and capital gains. They paid $1.6 million in taxes on taxable income of $5.87 million.

Pritzker is an avid card player whose charitable Chicago Poker Challenge has raised millions of dollars for the Holocaust Museum and Education Center. The Vegas windfall was a “net number” given wins and losses on one trip, he said. He declined to say what his winning hand was.

“Anybody who’s played cards in a casino, you often play for too long and lose whatever it is you won,” Pritzker said. “I was fortunate enough to have to leave before that happened.”

Associated Press writer Sophia Tareen contributed from Chicago.

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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