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Today's top stories
Russians headed to the polls today for a three-day presidential election that's all but certain to hand President Vladimir Putin a fifth term and extend his rule by six more years. His three competitors almost uniformly support his agenda. His political opponents are either in jail or in exile abroad. Here's what to know about this weekend's vote.
The U.S. Senate voted yesterday to confirm the nomination of Dennis Hankins as ambassador to Haiti. It's the first time the U.S. will have an ambassador there in more than two years. Hankins' confirmation comes as Haiti has been effectively cut off from the outside world. Humanitarian aid is dwindling and armed gangs control most of the capital.
Chicago will begin evicting migrants from shelters tomorrow when a 60-day limit policy at shelters goes into effect. More than 37,000 asylum seekers have arrived in Chicago in the last two years.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, the top-ranked Jewish elected official in U.S. history, yesterday delivered a speech on the Senate floor calling for new elections in Israel. The country has been at war with Hamas for five months. Schumer said he sees Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an obstacle to peace and if Netanyahu were to remain in power, it would jeopardize global support for Israel. He added: "Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah."
Deep dive

The House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a bill this week that would ban TikTok in the U.S. unless its Beijing-based owner, ByteDance, finds a buyer for the app. The bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Lawmakers say the app poses a national security risk. But is that the case? Here's everything you need to know:
Weekend picks

Check out what NPR is watching, reading and listening to this weekend:
Movies: Love Lies Bleeding stars Kristen Stewart as a brooding gym manager who falls in love with a hitchhiking bodybuilder. It's the queer erotic thriller fans have been waiting for, with a killer electronic soundtrack.
TV: The Girls on the Bus is based on executive producer Amy Chozick's experience covering Hilary Clinton's 2016 campaign for The New York Times. Chozick speaks with NPR's Eric Deggans about transitioning from journalism to TV and the "fatigue in writing about real life."
Books: The short stories in Gina Chung's Green Frog span genres, from literary fiction to Korean folklore and sci-fi. Critic Gabino Iglesias says they're wildly entertaining, wonderfully diverse and full of emotional intelligence.
Music: On this week's edition of 8 Tracks, NPR music producer Lars Gotrich wants you to imagine how each of these new releases could be featured in a movie soundtrack.
Quiz: My colleague Rachel Treisman filled in this week while I was sick. Reading her newsletters during my time off earned me a respectable 10/11 on this week's quiz. How will you do?
3 things to know before you go

This newsletter was edited by Majd Al-Waheidi.
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