“Senate Democrats will soon have to decide whether to do one of their most vulnerable Republican colleagues a big political favor just weeks before the midterm elections,” Politico reports.

”Republican leaders are expected to set up a vote next week on the Ratepayer Protection Act, legislation that aims to curb energy prices associated with the data centers. It easily passed the House last week with 206 Democratic votes, but it faces a tougher path to passage across the Capitol — thanks to campaign-season politics.”

“If any Republican Senate nominee is sticking to the tried-and-true strategy of elections past — winning by embracing President Trump — it is Michael Whatley of North Carolina,” the New York Times reports.

“He spoke at Mr. Trump’s midterm convention. He stood by the Iran war. He opposed blanket pauses on building new data centers.”

“Some of his counterparts in other battleground states have been doing the opposite, seeking distance from Mr. Trump as prices surge and the president’s popularity keeps slumping. Not so Mr. Whatley, who welcomed visits last week and this week from Mr. Trump and Vice President JD Vance, a distinction no other Republican Senate candidate can claim.”

“Many Alaskans on Thursday largely brushed off the news that Mary Peltola, the state’s former congresswoman, had mistreated staff and used offensive slurs,” the New York Times reports.

“Although some said they were disappointed by Ms. Peltola’s behavior, voters appeared to have for the most part retreated to their partisan corners in the closing stretch of a key Senate race between Ms. Peltola, a Democrat, and Senator Dan Sullivan, a Republican.”

“Inside the Senate GOP’s campaign headquarters on Wednesday, dozens of Republicans gathered for a strategy session during what was expected to be their final days in Washington before the November midterms,” CNN reports.

“Then Sen. Jon Husted of Ohio – one of the most endangered Republicans in the country – made an urgent appeal to his colleagues. He told them to stay in town, demanding they ‘do something real and tangible on affordability,’ according to a person in the room. Among those who forcefully agreed were Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who is also in one of the most competitive Senate races and has made repeated pleas of her own in recent meetings, according to a person familiar with the GOP’s internal deliberations.”

“Soon afterward, GOP leaders agreed: The Senate would return to Washington next week to take up a bill aimed at protecting Americans from electricity price hikes amid a data center boom.”