CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO (U.S. Senate).

UPDATE:  Nevada Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto has defeated her Republican rival Adam Laxalt, thereby retaining control of the Senate for the Democratic Party.

Her victory gives her party 50 seats, meaning that with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tie-breaking vote, it will control the upper house for the next two years.

With nearly all votes tallied, Masto has a roughly 5,000-vote edge over Laxalt.

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With the race for a pivotal U.S. Senate seat in Nevada proceeding at a slow pace, other election returns across the nation from Tuesday’s midterm general election are showing good news for both Democrats and Republicans.

Republican challenger Adam Laxalt has a lead of about 800 votes overincumbent Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto in the battle for that seat. but ballots remaining to be counted are believed to be mostly from the Las Vegas area, which leans Democratic.

If Masto can win, that would give Democrats 50 seats in the Senate and a “majority” since Vice President Kamala Harris can cast a tie-breaking vote.

In Arizona. a previously red state now turning blue, Democrat Katie Hobbs is maintaining a small lead in the race for governor over Republican Kari Lake. The margin is about 35,000 votes.

Lake has denied that Joe Biden was elected president in 2020 and has stated that – if she loses  – it would be the result of voter fraud.

In Nevada, Democratic Governor Steve Sisolak has lost to Republican Joseph Lombardo, sheriff of Clark County, which includes Las Vegas.

Space plane lands after long trip

SPACE PLANE LANDS in Florida (U.S. Space Force photo).

The robotic X-37B space plane came back to Earth on Saturday after spending 908 days in orbit.

According to United Press International, the spacecraft landed at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The plane is operated by the U.S. Space Force and was built by Boeing.

A feature of the flight was the use of an antenna module that can grab solar rays from outside of the Earth’s atmosphere and transmit power to the surface.

Sports: Bruins lose to Arizona, 34-28

Underdog Arizona rallied in the fourth quarter to upset UCLA 34-28 in a Pac-12 game at Rose Bowl Saturday night.

The loss dropped the Bruins’s record to 8-2 and 5-2 in conference play. Arizona is now 4-6 overall and 2-5 in the conference.

UCLA will play cross-town rival USC (9-1, 7-1) next Saturday at the Rose Bowl. The Trojans are in first place in the Pac-12 after Washington’s 37-34 win over Oregon

Weather: Sunny, for the most part

A cool weekend, gradually warming a bit after that is the forecast of the National Weather Service for the West Orange County area.

Sunday is expected to be partly sunny in the morning, with more sun in the afternoon. The daytime high should be 66, with an overnight low of 47.

Monday should be sunny with a high of 68 (47). Tuesday will be similar at 67 (49) and Wednesday a bit warmer at 73 (47).