“Barack Obama reprised his role as the Democrats’ closer-in-chief on Saturday, filling a void for his still leaderless party in the waning days of the closely watched gubernatorial contests in Virginia and New Jersey,” Politico reports.

“Former President Barack Obama called New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani on Saturday, praising his campaign and offering to be a ‘sounding board’ into the future,” the New York Times reports.

“The private, roughly 30-minute phone call, which has not previously been reported, was described by two people who participated or were briefed immediately on what had been said.”

“Mr. Obama said that he was invested in Mr. Mamdani’s success beyond the election on Tuesday. They talked about the challenges of staffing a new administration and building an apparatus capable of delivering on Mr. Mamdani’s agenda of affordability in the city.”

“Jay Jones, the embattled Democratic nominee for attorney general in Virginia, made a surprise appearance at a major Democratic campaign rally Saturday aimed at revving up the party faithful ahead of the high-stakes statewide elections Tuesday,” Politico reports.

“Jones — whose years-old violent text messages triggered a nationwide GOP backlash and a steady drumbeat of calls for Democrats to push him off the ticket — opened the event, where headliner former President Barack Obama energized voters in support of Abigail Spanberger, the party’s gubernatorial nominee.”

Andrew Cuomo said that in New York, “diversity is our strength, but it can also be a weakness,” the New York Times reports.

Said Cuomo: “You have to work very, very hard to make sure you’re always keeping people united, and there’s always flare-ups among different races, religions, creeds for one reason or another.”

“The Democrats running for governor in Virginia and New Jersey have brought in scores of high-profile lawmakers and potential 2028 presidential contenders to campaign for them in the run-up to Tuesday’s elections,” Axios reports.

“But they pointedly haven’t invited progressive leaders Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) or Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who are two of the most popular figures among Democrats and attract big crowds across the country.”

“President Trump’s political operation is digging into its massive war chest to bankroll a multimillion-dollar voter turnout effort in the final days of the New Jersey and Virginia governor races,” Axios reports.

“Each state is getting a $1 million-plus microtargeting effort aimed at Trump supporters and other Republicans who usually skip off-year races.”

“Andrew Cuomo has repeatedly said that it would be difficult for him to win with Curtis Sliwa in the race. Sliwa, the Republican candidate, said in an interview that he was not going anywhere and was not interested in meeting with Cuomo or talking to him,” the New York Times reports.

Said Sliwa: “I would impale myself before I’d meet with him. If I saw him on the corner, I’d walk the other way. If he called me, I’d hang up.”

Bloomberg: “November 4 effectively marks the unofficial kick-off to the 2026 election season. That’s when three states and the biggest city in the US will go to the polls for the first major ballots since Trump was elected.”

“Together, they’ll form an early referendum on the president’s second-term, and a test of what campaign messages are moving voters in Trump’s second term when he isn’t on the ballot. Midterm elections historically tend to favor the party out of power, and polls entering the final weekend showed Democrats ahead in the night’s marquee elections.”