NPR News Now - NPR News: 11-29-2024 1PM EST

Episode Date: November 29, 2024

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Noor Rahm Live from NPR News in Washington, I'm Noor Rahm. Today is Black Friday, the unofficial start to the holiday shopping season. Retailers are hoping for another record season, although it's shorter, with five fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Adobe Analytics, which tracks online transactions, says shoppers already have spent almost 10% more this year compared to last year. NPR's Alina Seljuk reports in-person shopping is also expected to be brisk. For this Black Friday weekend, retailers are also expecting huge turnout, a record number of people

shopping. And of those people, there's a growing group saying they plan to spend more this year than they did last year. Which, you know, how do you get more people shopping when more people say they're tightening their budgets? And the answer is deals. When people feel financially squeezed, to have several days known for discounts is a big draw. NPR's Alina Seljuk, Wisconsin Today certified the results of this year's presidential election. Anne Jacobs, the head of the state's election commission, said in a Zoom meeting that Trump won the state by 29,000 votes.

In 2020, Trump had demanded a recount in two Democratic counties, but the results showed Biden had won Wisconsin by about 21,000 votes. Democratic strategists continue to analyze Trump's win over Harris in the November election. NPR's Alina Moore reports. Democrats have long argued some of the biggest losses for Kamala Harris came from voters under 30, especially in the former Blue Wall states. Harris also lost ground among Asian American and black voters in certain key swing states. But above all, Latino voters had some of the largest shifts to the

right. It's a group that had been trending less democratic in recent elections. 2024 was a major move toward Trump, and this support gave him a crucial boost in places like Nevada and Pennsylvania. Elena Moore, NPR News, Washington. Today is Election Day in Ireland. Voters are electing a new parliament and government. Polls suggest it will be a tight contest. NPR's Fatima Al-Khassab reports from Dublin. Voters say housing and the high cost of living are the main issues in this election. Ireland is one of the richest countries in Europe, but it also has one of the worst housing crises. The party that has made fixing the housing problem its key promise is Sinn Fein,

a left-wing party that used to be the political wing of the Irish Republican army. The IRA militant group fought for Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, to join the Irish Republic. But with a new leader, the party has had a makeover and it's now neck and neck in the polls with the two parties that have governed Ireland for more than a century Senegal and Fianna Fáil. Fatima Al-Khassab, NPR News, Dublin. In a shortened trading week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 188 points. This is NPR News. The United Nations says more humanitarian workers were killed around the world this

year than any other year. As NPR's Fatma Tennis reports, the increase is due largely to the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. 281 humanitarian workers were killed this year, surpassing last year's record. The UN's humanitarian office said the surge in casualties is due to the war in Gaza, where 333 humanitarians have been killed since the war began over a year ago. Ten of them were killed just this month. But it's not just in Gaza, where humanitarians have come under attack, the UN says.

UN officials have urged governments and warring parties to protect aid workers and uphold international law. Fatma Tanis, NPR News. French President Emmanuel Macron visited Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris today, rebuilt and restored after a devastating fire five years ago. Heard here through a BBC interpreter, Macron praised the hundreds of men and women involved in the effort, calling Notre Dame the soul of the nation. The shock of the reopening will be, I believe, and I want to believe that it will be as strong

as the shock of the fire. But it will be a shock of hope. And that's because of all the work that you've done. You did your alchemy here on this site to turn charred coals into art. The fire of Notre Dame was national wound, and you were its remedy." A reopening ceremony will be held December 7th, with heads of state and celebrities in attendance followed by days of special masses. I'm Nora Rahm, NPR News in Washington.