take debate stage once again, and once again, donald trump is trying to steal the spotlight. sara sidner is off today. i'm kate bald win with john ber m berman and this is cnn "news central." it is election day in america, and the polls are open, and we are watching several key races that could not only impact lives today, but can also send some loud messages for the next year's presidential election. abortion rights are on the ballot today in ohio where the voters will decide whether to enshrine the issue in the state's constitution. it has been an issue since the overturning of "roe v. wade" and others are hoping it helps in west virginia where the chambers are up for grabs, but the republican governor in virginia is trying a new approach to abortion approach is a model for republicans in virginia and far beyond. jessica dean is in virginia. jessica, the election in virginia is not just about at the lives in the commonwealth, but what are you hearing about today and the clues in virginia could go beyond in 2024? >> you make a great point, kate. i don't live in virginia, and how could this apply to me? so often what happens in virginia and what happens with the state legislature correlates with what we see in the following year in federal elections across the country. so in 2019, the democrats took the house and senate, and in 2020 joe biden won the state by ten points and in 2021 the republicans took it back, and that is what we have in the house of representatives up on capitol hill, and this is why we like to keep an eye on here, and see what happens in virginia. this is ale polling site here, and i will say it is a slow trickle of voters here. let me set the scene here. in virginia every house and senate seat is up for election and up for grabs, so it is big across the state. the state's governor republican glenn youngkin is not on the ballot, and he is in the middle of the term, and this is a proxy battle for him, because he is pushing ahead with his agenda and what he wants to do, and he has been foiled by the state senate which is controlled by democrats right now. republicans want to flip that. they want full control of the state legislature, and here is youngkin earlier today. >> we are delivering. i think that the results matter. so, now it is time to put it in the hands of the voters to ask them to send a team to richmond to work with me and not against me. i think that we can have a fantastic two years if we can hold the house and flip the sen senate. >> so that is youngkin, and he has been all across the state trying to push his message, and of course, the democrats are trying to hold the senate and flip the house. we have seen other national democrats here in virginia making the case as well, but, kate, you mentioned reproductive rights and abortion. virginia is the only southern state who has not enacted further restrictions since roe v. wade was overturned in 2022, and youngkin wanted to put a 15-week abortion ban in place, and the democrats in the senate stopped that from happening, and so, again, abortion and reproductive rights are central to the conversation here. a couple of interesting thins here. we don't hear youngkin talking about it on the stump at all, because he is talk about other initiatives and priorities for the administration. when he is asked about it by the media, he will talk about it as what he sees a compromise, the 15-week abortion ban. and what is a test for him and his view for the republican party going forward is will that resonate with the voters here in virginia which is made up of a lot of suburban voters which is key in 2024, kate. >> absolutely. great to see you, jess. thank you so much. john? with me now is cnn data reporter harry enten, and parents like to say they like their children equally, but we know that is not true, and we love some more than others, and what are you tracing today? >> i don't have children. so going into the kentucky trace, we will have the republican attorney general there, and so it is a tight race and only three gop republican governors there, and trump won kentucky by 26 points in 2020 and so it is an ancestral lean there in kentucky going up against the national tide, and so there is a real question of what is going to ultimately win out here. >> it is a wicked red state at that point, and yet the democrats have been able to hold on to the state a lot, even though andy e beshear's race will continue. another race in mississippi. >> yes, another deep red state, so you have tate reeves the incumbent going up against brandon pressly, and even though pressly is elvis's second cousin, but there is a welfare scandal that the democrats are hoping to tie tate reeves to, and make the state more blue than it has been in recent elections, but we will have to see. >> and not only elvis, but brett favre, too, because he is connected to the welfare scandal. and ballot measures. >> yes, and starting with marijuana in ohio which would be the state 24 to legalize it recreationally, and i will note that all of the states that have done so since 2012, you know, when john was a kid, marijuana legalization would be 10% wanted it legalization, and we are in a different era and harry's era, and now, we want it legalized. >> i am feeling very young, and what do you mean, harry. and now, abortion is literally on the ballot in ohio. >> yes, literally on the ballot in ohio and not literally in virginia. but in virginia, the question is if the gop wins control of the state legislature, they may try to limit it, and so abortion is something since dobbs and roe v. wade has been overturned on the ballot six times and all of the times it pass and in ohio, will it be number seven? there is a lot to see. >> there is a lot the learn tonight, and it may not be consistent, but there is a lot to learn. >> and we will delve into all of it. >> harry enten and old man berman apparently. took a turn. took a turn. i know. and now, joining us is john brownstein who is senior editor at "the atlantic." and jessica dean laying out the issues at stake and states to focus on, and what is your biggest focus on the elections today? >> i think that virginia is going to send the most important signals of 2024, because kentucky and mississippi and deep red states are anomalous situation, but virginia is actually going to encapsulate a lot of the dynamics and the ingredients that we will see in 2024. it is a state as jessica noted that joe biden won by ten points, but he is underwater with more people disapproving than approving with the job approval results. republicans are giving a double digit advantage on the crime and economy for glenn youngkin and you would say that the republicans are poised for a big night in the legislative ra ces but it is a tossup for the democrats to hold the state senate and maybe the house, because too many of the suburban voters who are dissatisfied with the biden voters are reluctant to turn over the power to the republicans because of abortion and other cultural views. so it is seeming that virginia is going to test if the voters believe that the democrats are still going to be right for the cultural beliefs. >> and you are referring to suburbans there. >> yes, that is the dynamics there where the dynamic is unfolding most powerfully, and we saw it in 2022 in detroit, atlanta and milwaukee where the democrats did unexpectedly well even though the people were dissatisfied with the economy and disapproved with biden's performances, because they are the ones most sensitive to the democratic arguments of the trump era gop is a threat to your rights. in virginia governor youngkin and though he is not talking about it right now, he has put abortion front and center, if he gets unified center, he will ban abortion after 15 weeks with the exception of rape and incest and the threat to the life of the mother, and that is the one big shield that the democrats have in an electoral environment where the electorate trusts republicans more on economy and crime, and if youngkin wins control of the legislature, it is going to be an ominous threat of the singular line of defense is not enough to overcome the problems they have, but if they can hold the legislature, and particularly in the suburban areas, and particularly to see the areas in ohio vote overwhelmingly on the abortion rights tonight, it seems likely, then all of that would signal to me that the republicans face the same problem in white collar suburbs that frustrated them in the '18, '22 elections that too few of those voters regardless of the thoughts of what else is going on in the country to trust their beliefs for the country. >> is it safe that after tonight, we will understand how the political climate has shifted from 2020 to 2022 and now into 2024? >> well, you know, i don't know if we have enough national races and in enough places to have a full place of that, but yes, virginia in particular is going to tell us whether we are still operating in a world like 2022 or if it is further deteriorating for democrats. abortion was not a silver bullet for democrats as we talked about in many of the red states that restricted abortion like texas, georgia and tennessee and red leaning where the legislatures got re-elected and not enough to overcome the resistance of the democrats on issues like crime and it was in pennsylvania and wisconsin and arizona. so i think that the virginia legislative races and in some extent the kentucky governor's race where beshear is counting on the same big numbers in the suburban communities is going to tell us whether or not this is still powerful enough, and not completely overcome, but to neutralize those republican advantages on other issues which is interesting that the new york times and cbs and other polling is present at the national level. >> it is great to see you, ron. thank you so much. >> thank you for having me, guys. all right. she survived the hamas terror attack at the music festival, and how does she feel about the alarming rise of anti-semitism in the united states and around the world? donald trump is skipping the republican gop debate tomorrow night, and now, will the candidates on stage continue the play nice with him. we are less than two weeks away from another possible government shutdown, and how close or distant are they from a deal. >> talk about groundhog day. tonight, election night in america sets stage for 2024, key races and top issues and which party has the momentum and realtime r reactions f from the cacandidates. . coveragege statarts tonighght a on cnn. . it has been exactly one month since hamas terrorists attacked israel. today, israel has claimed it has secured a hamas stronghold in gaza. and today, idf said that the troops on the ground coordinated an attack that destroyed a cell that was a terrorist cell that was operating in the vicinity. prime minister benjamin netanyahu in a new interview is offering new signals of what may have to happen after the war ends. >> i think that israel for an indefinite period will have the overall security responsibility, because we have seen what happens when we don't have it. >> despite pressure from humanitarian groups,en allies, netanyahu insists no cease-fire until all hostages held by hamas are released and though he says that tactical short pauses are possible in the meantime. let's go there. jeremy diamond is in sderot near israel and the border with gaza. what is the latest that you are hearing from the progress that israel is making in their operation in gaza? >> well, kate, in recent days, we have been hearing from the israeli military they have encircled gaza, and cut gaza between the north and the south, and that they were operating in areas around the gaza city. today, one month into this israel-hamas war, the commander of the idf is saying that israeli military troops are fighting, quote, in the heart of gaza city, which is obviously a significant development as we now understand that israeli forces are moving towards the kind of the business of very deadly, very dense urban combat in the heart of gaza city. overnight, we were watching the israeli military operation in gaza city near the hospital, and obviously, this military operation is advancing. amid all of that, the israeli prime minister is admitting that he is not going to admit to a cease-fire unless the hostages are released, but he has admitted there could be some little pauses for people to leave, and the little humanitarian pauses is what the secretary of state has been pushing for when he was in the area. and what you also heard in the clip is that israel is planning to maintain the overall security over the gaza strip for an indefinite period of time, and the ideal minister is saying that they will have complete action to respond to any action in the gaza strip. while it is not indicating that israel is planning to reoccupy the gaza strip, they plan to treat it much like they do parts of the west bank to go in to conduct the raids to thwart what they maintain is potential attacks. the united states is dancing a fine line, and we have heard them affirm israel's right to defend itself, and also looking at $320 million in precision bomb equipment is going to israel to continue the campaign against hamas, and also a nudge to israel to carry out the strikes in a more precise manner with the more precise guided bomb kits, and we will see if that makes a difference in how israel is executing war. >> thank you, jeremy diamond. and now, two women who have been working together since the october 7th attack to share the stories of horror and survival that took place that day. myra is a survivor of the musical festival, and she is joining us. and another woman is working to bring maya and others together across college campuses. and first of all, we are so sorry for everything that you have been through, and one month has passed since that attack, and there is not a day that goes through that you do not think about it, but after one month, what do you remember most, and what haunts you most? >> first of all, thank you for having me. it has been a nightmare of reliving situation since what happened on october 7th. in the u.s., i flew for only five days and intended to plan to speak to congressmen and senators in the u.s. because of what i have seen on the campuses, and i'm a recent graduate of myself on a campus here in israel, and to see the students not be supported without understanding this is not just an attack, and people were not just killed, you know. people went to have fun at a rave just like coachella or all sorts of festivals in the u.s., and they not only died, they were butchered, and they were massacred. and so see all of that horror and channels of the telegram channels to civilians broke my heart, because there is no other way for the family to cope with the loss of their kids, and they don't need to see the brutality in this way. when you ask me how i am feeling, i wish that i would say that i am better and just focusing on the war here, but i cannot puts a side the october 7th. october 7th is nothing to do with the war that is happening here. it is just an excuse to massacre people, and i cannot go back to the way things were just like it was in gaza. and i cannot go back to see my friends, and that is something loud and clear. it is not political. i feel sorry for both ideal and palestinian lives being taken, but this is what happened to us on october 7th, this is something that happened by its own. this is just an excuse for barbaric people to slaugt ter jewish people, and it pains me to see right now, that people are justifying it. that is why i am coming back to the states, because i cannot sit around and feel like, feel like helpless. people need to understand that you have to separate what happens now which is a war and what happened on october 7th which was an attack that just slaughtered many of my friends who were just like myself, just went to have fun at a party. >> avery, you have been organizing the events on college campuses to bring maya and others to tell their story, and why? >> i think that what happened in israel is so horrible and unbelievable, but it is almost happening here now, too, and it is a war in america and college campuses, and people are dying for what they believe. it is scary to see that the holocaust which i learned about in the textbooks and school and what i learned from my grandparents and it is like i am reliving the experiences that they said they lived when they were younger, and it is scary to see. kids feel hopeless on the college campuses especially. i read a crazy statistic that 48% of the individuals from 18 to 24 support hamas. i think that is the age range where people feel hopeless, and i think it is important to bring people like maya to hear the real stories, and to hear what she went through, and it is going to bring the community closer. >> maya, you survived a terror attack one month ago and you had people killed all around you, and again just one month ago, and yet today, you are witnessing an alarming rise in anti-semitism in the -- since the terror attack. you know, in the united states and around the world. how do you explain that and how does it make you feel? >> first, it makes me feel scared, because everyone said during the holocaust days "never again." and just like avery said, we feel it rising. when it started in the holocaust people were like, don't worry, be silent and it is going to be pass away and people will do it, and it is anti-semitism and whatever, and so, why is it different when it is african-american or other people, and just because i am jewish, and why can't i speak at my homeland. i was just speaking at maryland university when one of my friends ran away crying, and we thought that it was hearing of my story, but what happened is cornell sending threats to jewish students, and that is something that made people scared in their homes, and i knew because i was locked in a home of not myself but of strangers in the gaza strip, but i didn't know them and i had to stay there for 24 hours just waiting for my turn to die, and to hear that is happening in the u.s., and students who are supposed to be the next generation of leader, and why are you so quick when it is coming to the jewish people? i don't want you to take my word and, you know, treat it as whatever, but study. it does not make sense that people justify slaughter of a genocide by protecting another. we should condemn all sorts of terror, and condemn all sorts of violence and when people kidnap in 2023, people should wake up to see, like would i be okay if my kids are taken by some idea or lost losing their body parts or being film and joyfully paraded through the telegram? this is wrong and separated, because the wake of a conflict is not by killing another. if people condemn fear and see israel as i don't want to say, but why can't you see it on the other side? why do we have to suffer and continue to defend ourselves after going through what has been in october 7th. many of my friends did not have the same luck as i had when i was just meeting the terrorists and managing to escape. many of my friends were raped, abused and killed and not just by a shot. they were really butchered and we can see all of that proof, but for some reason people are like, oh, i don't believe it. i don't want to believe it as well. i wish this were all a big dream, and i wish i didn't have to stop and suddenly run for my life, but it happened. and to hear that people are saying it is not real or they deserve it, and let's clean the ethnicity of the jewish people. what is wrong with you? this is 2023, and people need to condemn violence and people cannot solve one nation saving by killing another. i did nothing wrong when i decided to go dance at a rave party and that needs to