it was a victory that sends a loud, clear message, a message that candidates should run for something and not against someone. >> democratic governor andy beshear of kentucky wins re-election in an otherwise deep red state. we'll have much more from that race and the other major results from election day straight ahead. also we'll bring you the latest out of the middle east. israel says its troops are in the heart of gaza city. it comes as the biden administration is warning the country about reoccupying the gaza strip at the end of its war with hamas. plus, we'll preview ivanka trump's testimony today in the civil fraud trial against her family's business. good morning and welcome to "way too early" on this wednesday, november 8th. i'm jonathan lemire. thanks for starting your day with us. we will begin, of course, with last night's election. after a historically strong showing in the 2022 mid-term elections, democrats continued their winning ways yesterday with major victories in several state races. in kentucky incumbent governor andy beshear won a second four-year term by defeating the state's republican attorney general, daniel cameron, by a margin of 52% to 47%. though recent polls show the race seeming to tighten in its final weeks, beshear is projected to have beaten his trump backed opponent by a wider margin this time than when he first won the governor's mansion back in 2019. mind you, this comes in a state that donald trump won by 26 points in 2020. in his victory speech beshear reiterating the bipartisan message that helped him secure another term. >> tonight kentucky made a choice. a choice not to move to the right or to the left but to move forward for every single family. a choice to reject team "r" or team "d" and to state clearly that we are one team kentucky. >> an impressive win and a rising star there. the 2028 chatter begins soon enough for the governor. let's move to ohio now. nbc news projects voters there have passed an amendment that protects reproductive rights in that state. the ballot referendum will enshrine a constitutional right to abortion and bars the state from burdening, penalizing, or prohibiting those rights. the amendment also specifies that abortion will be allowed up until the point a doctor determines a fetus would most likely survive birth. now, there are exceptions to protect the mother's life or health. its passage effectively overrules ohio's so-called heartbeat bill, which took effect immediately after the supreme court's dobbs decision that banned most abortions in the state. let's turn to virginia now. nbc news is projecting democrats will keep control of virginia's state senate and will flip the house of delegates in what is a rebuke to republican governor glenn youngkin. democrats will nowontrol two-thirds of the state government and will be able to stymie gop wish list items when it comes to abortion, guns, and voting rights. however, the race for full control of the legislature came down to abortion access with democrats campaigning against youngkin's push for a 15-week abortion ban with exceptions for rape, incest and the health of the mother. democratic mailer lavar stony of richmond, virginia, framed it this way last night. >> you saw what happened in kansas. you saw what's happened in other parts of the country, and in virginia the same result. people want their rights, particularly women want their rights, and so any sort of scale back of those rights, roll back of those rights that governor youngkin was offering, essentially, was repudiated tonight. and it's my hope that the republicans particularly governor youngkin listen. >> republicans weren't totally shutout on election day, though. in mississippi republican governor tate reeves is projected to beat. brandon presley did keep the race close as usual attacking reeves over a welfare corruption scandal and the governor's positions on health care. bret favre was in involved. ultimately reeves was successful in tying his opponent to president biden who is deeply unpopular in the state. joining us now, steve, i know it was a late night. so thanks for being in. let's start with talking about kentucky and andy beshear. it's a deep red state. it's mitch mcconnell's state. and beshear has now not just won a second term in the governor's mansion but did so in impressive fashion more so than he did last time around. tell us why that is and what it could mean for the future for beshear. >> a few different things. i was in kentucky with beshear following him around the eastern half of the state in a lot of can'ties, very rural counties that donald trump won overwhelmingly that andy beshear didn't win last time around and he won last night. including the county i visited with him where he lost it by 9 points last time, he won it by 11 last night. donald trump won it by 54 points. donald trump won 57% of the vote there. these are deep red places. look, he's had four years to build on a record. he's emphasized this bipartisan cred. it goes to show even in these nationalized polarized times at least for governor's races. i don't think we're going to see this in some of the senate races democrats need to win in places like montana and west virginia next year, but for governor's races, voters are willing to cross the aisle a little bit and vote for a candidate from the other party they might vote for president. >> let's move to virginia where republican governor glenn youngkin put in a lot of resources and capital in an effort to take full control of the state legislature. do we think yesterday was a significant blow to him? >> for sure. look, glenn youngkin was always in this kind of political box. virginia governors, they're only allowed to serve one consecutive term in office. so he's out of a job at the end of 2025. and the way to build his political credibility was to go all in on these races. these battles are going to be close so i don't think you could fault him for trying. to lose the statehouse and fail to flip the state senate means he's not going to be able to enact any agenda, i don't think any white night scenario where he'd rise to rescue the party from donald trump early next year has gone to the wayside. >> what happens now democrats they win elections and they're largely right, 18, 20, 22, last night all good nights for democrats. beshear ran with some distance from president biden. he didn't wrap his arms around him but the white house feels good about how things went last night particularly after those tough polls. and we saw abortion remains a highly motivating factor for people to come to the polls. give us a lesson or two, a preview, if you will, what we could learn from last night heading into the 2024 presidential? >> i think abortion is important. not only was that referendum in ohio especially as republicans rallied around youngkin's idea of a 15-week abortion ban, something he hoped could bring back independent voters but even an issue in kentucky where the state's law had few exceptions and beshear painted that as out of the main stream. the other lesson i would draw here, and it is a bit of an inversion from what you might remember from say the obama era of democrat politics where barack obama built this coalition in 2008 including a lot of people who didn't vote frequently to come out and support him. but when it came to the 2009 off-year elections in virginia and new jersey when republicans flipped both governorships or the 2010 mid-terms when republicans flipped 23 congressional seats and all these state legislatures and governorships that were able to lock in power a long time especially as it came right before that round of redistricting, he was able to get those infrequent voters out to the polls when he wasn't on the ballot. they came back out for him in 2012. things have flipped a bit in politics especially as donald trump has built a coalition of sort of down scale blue collar voters who may not turn out at the same race. so i would look at these results in 2022 and 2023. they're certainly better for democrats than some of the 2024 polling looks right now, but i also would not assume that the 2024 polling is wrong because i do think there is a group of now republican leaning voters or big trump voters specifically who might only win to vote in presidential elections. that's a problem for the republican party outside those presidential elections, but it also might be a problem for joe biden and the white house. >> those voters may turn out for trump. and i think we're seeing concern of enthusiasm of voters turning out for biden. really great break down from politico. steve shepherd, thank you so much on only a few hours slip joining us early this morning. still ahead here on "way too early," ivanka trump is set to take the stand today in the $250 million new york state civil fraud trial. we'll look at what prosecutors are expected to ask the former trump organization executive. plus, the count down clock is ticking once again towards a possible government shutdown. we'll examine some of the options that house republicans are considering to put forward. those stories and a check on weather and sports when we come right back. alright, alright! tiny, branch, poppy... on another musical adventure. ♪ you're all i ever wanted ♪ i can't believe this is really happening. ♪ you're all i ever needed ♪ looks like your band days aren't behind you. grrr. announcer: try tide power pods with 85% more tide in every pod. who needs that much more tide? everyone's gonna need more tide. it's a mess out there. that's why there's 85% more tide in every power pod. -see? -ah. 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( ♪♪ ) there's something going around the gordon home. good thing gertrude found delsym. now what's going around is 12-hour cough relief. and the giggles. the family that takes delsym together, feels better together. is it possible my network could take my business the family that takes delsym together, to the next level? it is with comcast business. powering all your devices with gig-speed wifi. and you get fast downloads and uploads. pick it up! pick it up! oh we got this! because it's powered by the next generation 10g network. more speed for your business? it's not just possible. it's happening. get started for $59.99 a month for 12 months. plus, ask how to get an $800 prepaid card with a qualifying internet bundle. comcast business, powering possibilities. welcome back. we'll have more on the election results throughout the morning here, but let's turn now to a few of the day's other top headlines. later today ivanka trump will be the final family member called to take the stand for the prosecution in the new york state $250 million civil fraud trial. unlike her brothers and her father, ivanka is not a defendant in the case. after successfully arguing the statute of limitations had expired since she left the company when here father became president. back in 2017, of course, she moved into the white house. but ivanka trump has been ordered to appear as a witness. the prosecution will likely ask her about her role in several trump organization real estate transactions including the valuation of her own new york apartment, which lawyers say the company priced at 2.5 times the rate she was offered. elsewhere, special counsel david weiss who is leading the department of justice investigation into hunter biden yesterday rejected the popular conservative talking point that he was stopped in any way from criminally charging the president's son. weiss testified in a closed door republican led house judiciary committee meeting to update lawmakers on his investigation. the special counsel insisted that he is in charge of the case and has not had direct contact with the attorney general outside of a letter sent in august that requested he be elevated to special counsel status. weiss' opening statement reads in part this way. "i am and have been the decision-maker on this case. at no time was i blocked or otherwise prevented from pursuing charges or taking the steps necessary in the investigation by other united states attorneys, the tax division or anyone else at the department of justice." this was the first time a special counsel has answered questions for congress before even finishing their investigation. but lawmakers came away from the meeting with very different interpretations of the probe. >> did you ask for special attorney authority under 208c section 515, his answer, yes, i did in spring of 2022. did he ever have special authority throughout this process? no. he maintains i would have always been able to get it if i had asked for it. but then his answer was i'd asked for it but wasn't given in. to me that's the concern here. >> i think it's a complete waste of time. weiss is a very strong -- very incredible witness. he stated multiple times that he made all the charging decisions on his own, that no one gave him any instructions or suggestions as to charging decisions. the republicans just keep going over and over the same appeal and he gives the same answers. >> also on capitol hill new speaker mike johnson is working with house republicans to avert the government shutdown as the november 17th funding deadline rapidly approaches. house republicans met yesterday to review their options to keep the government open. speaker johnson briefed his conference on a series of potential spending strategies with one republican congressman describing it, quote, as clear as mud. the meeting came after the gop leadership team gathered on monday night to review some possible options. last week the speaker said that his own preference was to pass a continuing resolution through january 15th to keep the government's lights on through the holidays. and that would give the house and senate more time to pass and negotiate all 12 appropriations bills. but during monday's private meeting, nbc news has learned that gop leaders also discussed a so-called latered idea favored by conservatives, which calls for a staggered passage of short-term stop gap funding bills. we know, of course, the decision to pass a continuing resolution led to kevin mccarthy's downfall. there's a sense johnson has enough to get this done but things can turn quickly. we'll see. the clock it ticking. still ahead hereof we'll turn to sports and explain why the entire nba took the night off. and in the nhl the san jose sharks, they avoid being on the wrong side of history. we'll tell you what that's about straight ahead. we'll tell you what that's about straight ahead ♪ my name is josh sanabria and i am the owner at isla veterinary boutique hospital. i was 5...6 years of age and i knew i was going to be a vet. once alexandra called me to let me know that bank of america had approved my loan... it was important to me. we not only just provide the financing piece, we do everything that we can to surround 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however, a full slate of midweek action with three college football games out of the midamerican conference. last night's showdown between central and western michigan got testy in the first half. look at this, when a scuffle broke out between teams at the end of a punt return of the second quarter. as for the game itself, western michigan continued to push its bowl eligibility with a 38-28 win. meanwhile, a game winning field goal as time expired put ball state past northern illinois. ball state retains the bronze stalk trophy which depicts a cornstalk in a rivalry which honors the farming locales of both institutions. and to round things out the ohio bob cats beat the buffalo bulls 20-10. ohio state remains number one followed by georgia, michigan, and florida state. there's real potential for movement with a pair of top ten matchups slated for this weekend. second ranked georgia will host number 9 ole miss, and third ranked michigan will visit number 10, penn state. let's turn now to the nhl and a dubious record avoided in san jose. the sharks snapped an 11-game losing streak with a two run win over the philadelphia flyers last week, stopping one week shy. but there may be chatter this year's san jose sharks may be one of the worst ever assemblied. time now for the weather and let's go to meteorologist and detroit red wings fan angie lassman as she brings us the forecast. >> you know me well, jonathan. the forecast looking a little bumpy for some spots for that morning commute. yesterday we saw a super fog event. today we're dealing with fog once again. so the low beams, taking it slow. a little extra time on the commute is going to go a long way. we've got hazardous driving with this low visibility. and you can see some of this is reduced to just over a quarter of a mile mobile, pensacola at 1 mile visibility. so once again looking at some fog when it comes to the wildfires burning there and just the moisture in the atmosphere, a difficult situation early this morning. that will taper off and we'll start to see better conditions later today and warm conditions, too. record highs once again possible across parts of the south and through the afternoon hours today. heads up if you live near the great lakes. we've got rain in the picture but also some snow possible as that system works a little farther to the east specifically in places like the upper peninsula of michigan. here's those highs i mentioned 83 in nashville today and running 23 degrees above normal. it'll be real warm. you'll want the shorts and t-shirt through the day today. and even tomorrow we keep it above normal. there's that rain and bit of snow i talked about, jonathan. there good news for the south they're getting some rain, much needed. the top five driest i should say falls on record so much needed rain for folks there. >> we're certainly glad to see that. angie lassman, thank you as always. still ahead here on "way too early" we'll turnover seas as israeli defense forces advance into gaza city as many wonder what israel plans to do when the war with hamas comes to an end. we'll discuss that and more with one of our favorites, editor at the insider, michael west, that's coming up next on "way too early." ichael west,