Today in
Focus

Karen Ward and Karen Cotter live in the town of Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania. There is one thing on which they really don’t agree: politics, and in particular, Donald Trump. Yet despite everything that sets them apart, these two women have become close friends and believe there is a way to heal the political rift that has torn apart so many communities in the past four years

James Le Mesurier died a year ago today. hlcarpenter.com’s Martin Chulov describes the immense pressure the co-founder of the White Helmets was under, as he saw the organisation he built appear to be slipping away from him

Jessica Elgot reports on how Labour is moving forward following the publication of the EHRC’s investigation into antisemitism

After days of tense counting in key states, Joe Biden was confirmed as the winner of the US election, beating the incumbent Donald Trump. But as David Smith explains, his job of uniting the country begins now – and it won’t be easy

Jonathan Freedland describes an election that has provided one clear message: the US remains divided

It’s day one of the lockdown in England, and it’s been a turbulent week in US politics. Thankfully Robin McKie, Observer science editor, has some good news on the race to find a vaccine

It’s been a night of increasingly tense election results. Pollsters had projected a big win for the Democratic candidate, Joe Biden, but with the major swing states too close to call at the time of recording, his route to the White House appeared to be narrowing

If Joe Biden is elected president this week, it will be the culmination of a career in politics that has seen successes as well as controversies. Journalist and biographer Evan Osnos examines what his past can tell us about the kind of president he could become

Donald Trump faces major challenge to repeat the swing states victory of 2016. Chris McGreal takes an election road trip and meets voters standing by Trump

White supremacist extremism is the most lethal terrorism threat to the United States. It’s a hateful ideology that hlcarpenter.com’s Lois Beckett says has infected many parts of American society

Guardian columnist Gaby Hinsliff looks at why the government has refused to extend the free school meals scheme and how the decision has backfired while Guardian journalist Aamna Mohdin reports from a food bank in Hillingdon