JQJO — Your world, one story at a time · Page 1201

On the first day of early voting, New Jersey Republican gubernatorial candidate Jack Ciattarelli spotlighted the state's Latino clout, citing more than two million residents of Hispanic descent and over 500,000 Puerto Ricans, while campaigning beside Puerto Rico's Republican governor. Latino voters are a pivotal swing bloc in the race and a test of whether Mr. Trump's gains last year among Hispanics will endure. Mr. Trump lost New Jersey by less than six points in 2024, even as all 29 majority Hispanic townships moved his way by an average of 25 points.

Five people were arrested Thursday in a case linked to the 2023 overdose deaths of Robert De Niro’s grandson and Chris Stein’s daughter, according to law enforcement sources. Prosecutors said the defendants—Grant McIver, Bruce Epperson, Eddie Barreto, John Nicolas and Roy Nicolas—were part of a network that pushed thousands of counterfeit opioid pills laced with fentanyl to teens and young adults in New York City. The indictment attributes three 19-year-old deaths to the fentanyl pills, including Leandro De Niro-Rodriguez and Akira Stein; their names were confirmed to ABC News.

Toronto rookie Trey Yesavage, 22, balanced coursework with a breakout World Series, striking out 12 Dodgers in a 6-1 Game 5 win that left the Blue Jays one victory from a championship. The youngest pitcher with 10-plus strikeouts in Series history and the only rookie to reach 12, he worked 6 1/3 innings with a controlled fire—stoic breaths, rosin bag, a shout after a late double play. From rural Pennsylvania to East Carolina to Low-A Dunedin, his rise has been swift. After the celebrations, he still had homework.

Meta shares sank more than 12% at Thursday’s open, putting the company on track for its steepest single-day slump in years after a nearly $16 billion tax charge knocked quarterly earnings below Wall Street forecasts. Microsoft fell 2.2% to about $529.40 despite beating estimates, weighed by a $3.1 billion OpenAI-related hit, while Alphabet rose 2.7% as revenue topped $100 billion at $102.3 billion. Apple and Amazon report after the close Thursday, and Nvidia is slated to release results November 19.

With only four teams on bye this week, the column opens with a giveaway: FantasyLife is offering free yearlong Tier 2 subscriptions, a $100 value, for four more days until November 2 at midnight, thanks to Comet. The package includes start sit tools, waiver and Guillotine League tools, best ball resources, Utilization Report data, DFS projections, and dynasty tools. Readers are also directed to Fantasy Football Happy Hour weekdays at Noon ET on YouTube, Peacock, NBC Sports NOW, and podcasts, plus Sunday Fantasy Football Pregame from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET.

Honored at Variety’s Power of Women, Sydney Sweeney arrived in a light-catching silver Christian Cowan gown, then turned the spotlight to resilience. In a recent interview, she rejected “sex symbol” labels, saying she dresses for herself and hopes to embolden other women. Onstage, she saluted boxing icon Christy Martin, the subject of her film Christy, which traces Martin’s rise and battles with LGBTQ identity and domestic violence. Sweeney said she gained about 30 pounds and trained intensely for the role, later reuniting with Martin on the red carpet.

Fifty years after William J. Brink penned the New York Daily News headline Ford to City: Drop Dead, its blunt force lingers. The line keeps resurfacing, from Montana’s Char-Koosta News to the New York Post, and in Trump-era politics. Ford never said the words, but acknowledged the headline, underscoring his refusal of aid to New York, helped cost him the 1976 election. In a remembrance, Brink’s son explains its staying power—simplicity, truth-telling, and an era with fewer clashing messages—while recalling a playful, meticulous editor whose long career and small everyday acts are often overshadowed by one indelible front page.

Scenes turn feral as Demogorgons tear through quarantined Hawkins, Lucas cradles a comatose Max with a Demo-dog closing in, and Eleven and Hopper press on in the Upside Down while Mike sees Joyce wracked with worry for Will. Matt Duffer says the final eight-episode season is a complete, finished story. Netflix drops four episodes Nov. 26, three on Dec. 25, and a two-hour finale on New Year’s Eve, also screening in 350-plus movie theaters through Jan. 1, 2026. Linda Hamilton joins the ensemble; Frank Darabont and Shawn Levy direct with the Duffers.

Stranger Things returns to Hawkins with a season five trailer that finds the government hunting Eleven, led by guest star Linda Hamilton as Dr. Kay. The gang—Will, Mike, Dustin, and Lucas—stands together again as Vecna’s threat spreads and Henry Creel’s hellish homecoming looms. Netflix will premiere four episodes on November 26, add three on December 25, and finish with a big finale on December 31.

The National Guard plans to train up to 500 troops per state for rapid response to civil disturbances, a U.S. official said. The effort follows an August executive order by President Donald Trump and an Oct. 8 memo, first reported by The Guardian, requiring quick-reaction units ready by the start of next year, with most states assigning 500 personnel. All states and four territories already have such teams, and it remains unclear whether this force would be in addition to them or how it would differ. Recent deployments included Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.