Two teenage boys, aged 13 and 15, have been identified as the victims of a shooting at a California beach that left two other people injured.

The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office identified the victims as Marco Antonio Perez, 15, and Nathaniel Flores, 13. The shooting took place at Moss Landing State Beach shortly before 2am on Monday.

Both teenagers, who were from Salinas, were found suffering from gunshot wounds. Flores was only days away from his 14th birthday.

A third person was taken from the scene to a local hospital with injuries that were not considered life-threatening. A fourth victim later arrived at a hospital with gunshot wounds.

Commander Andres Rosas told the Daily Mail that investigators had no new details to share. Authorities have not yet identified the two people who were injured.

Rosas said the department could not provide an update on their conditions because of patient privacy laws. He added that officers are only notified by the hospital if an injured person dies.

‘Fortunately, we have NOT received that type of update,’ he said.

Rosas said the investigation remains active and that officials have not yet formally classified the deaths.

‘We’re not calling this a homicide. We haven’t confirmed if this is a homicide or a suicide or any other type of death. We have not made that declaration yet,’ Rosas said.

‘We are investigating the circumstances under which these individuals died as a result of gunshot wounds here at the scene.’

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Rosas told residents that investigators do not believe there is an ongoing threat. Detectives are still trying to establish how the victims knew one another and determine who was responsible for the gunfire.

Mike Dipple, a state park ranger supervisor, described the shooting as ‘an isolated incident.’ He said the park would reopen once the crime scene had been cleared.

Dipple said the shooting happened after hours. The beach gate is routinely left open to accommodate early-morning surfers.

Dr Zandra Jo Galvan, superintendent of the Salinas Union High School District, confirmed that both victims were students in the district.

‘It is with profound sadness and heavy hearts that we share that members of our district student community were among those who lost their lives in the tragic incident that occurred early Monday morning in Moss Landing,’ Galvan wrote.

The superintendent said the school’s hearts were with those grieving the ‘devastating loss,’ adding that emotional support services would be available for students and staff. 

The Steinbeck Football & Cheer program launched a GoFundMe for Flores’ family. They shared that Flores played football and was preparing to celebrate his 14th birthday on Friday. 

‘His unexpected passing has left his family, teammates, coaches, and our entire Steinbeck community heartbroken,’ the fundraiser description read. 

‘Once a Tiger, always a Tiger. Rest in peace, Nathaniel “Nate” Flores,’ they added. 

Democrat James Talarico has delivered a stunning upset in Texas, defeating scandal-hit Republican Ken Paxton and becoming the first Democrat elected to the state’s U.S. Senate delegation in 38 years.

The historic result ends a Republican grip on the Lone Star State, which has not chosen a Democrat for statewide office since 1994. It also represents a major setback for President Donald Trump and Republican hopes of maintaining control of the Senate.

Republican Governor Greg Abbott was likewise defeated by Democratic candidate Gina Hinojosa in another remarkable upset, adding to the “blue tsunami” sweeping across the country in a disastrous night for Trump and his party.

The atmosphere at Talarico’s election-night headquarters in downtown Austin was electric.

Supporters heard live music, drank Love Street Blonde tallboys and roared as the House of Representatives shifted to Democratic control. The crowd also celebrated as Talarico and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gina Hinojosa moved ahead of their Republican rivals.

Cheers erupted when Talarico’s victory was called at 10 p.m., although the noise rose even further after CNN projected Hinojosa as the winner.

The celebrations included a loud “U-S-A” chant, while car horns sounded outside the venue as supporters marked the unexpected Democratic victories.

Talarico and Hinojosa had campaigned side by side, holding a joint rally Monday night at an Austin barbecue restaurant.

Talarico’s contest became the most expensive Senate race in U.S. history.

The extraordinary price tag, however, may have been avoidable.

Trump intervened in the race in May, urging MAGA supporters to back Paxton over incumbent Senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff, held just one week later.

The president backed Paxton after years of tension with Cornyn, who had not always remained aligned with Trump and had previously criticized him, at one point declaring that “time has passed him by.”

Buoyed by Trump’s endorsement, Paxton secured a comfortable victory.

Republican leaders had already recognized the danger.

Tim Scott, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, warned that “we cannot hold Texas if John Cornyn is not our nominee.”

Before the result was officially declared, Cornyn took to social media to congratulate Talarico.

“The voters have spoken, and I want to extend my congratulations to James Talarico on his election to the U.S. Senate,” Cornyn wrote on X. “I look forward to meeting him and offering my assistance with his transition as he prepares to serve Texans in the U.S. Senate.”

By that stage, Talarico held an 18-point lead over Paxton.

On the Democratic side, voters chose the candidate who they thought had more bipartisan appeal, Talarico, over firebrand US Representative Jasmine Crockett, who entered the Senate race in December after the GOP-led legislature gerrymandered her House district.

The race had the makings to be a repeat of the 2017 Senate special election in Alabama, where a deeply flawed Republican candidate, Roy Moore, lost to a Democrat, former Senator Doug Jones, in a very red state.

But Democrats also worried it could be an echo of the heartbreak they experienced in 2018 when Texas Representative Beto O’Rourke came so close – 2.6 percent away – from unseating Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz. 

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Unlike Moore in Alabama, who was facing accusations of trying to date teenage girls when he was in his 30s which he denied, Paxton’s personal scandals involved two alleged affairs and a high-profile ‘Biblical’ divorce announcement from his wife, Texas state Senator Angela Paxton. 

Angela Paxton later backed the ‘Republican ticket,’ but didn’t use her estranged husband’s name. 

Paxton’s campaign was also hobbled by a bevy of corruption charges, including a 2023 impeachment courtesy of members of his own party. Paxton was acquitted by the Texas state Senate. 

Talarico blasted Paxton’s record in a series of final ads. 

‘Ken Paxton says I don’t have his experience.  And he’s right,’ the 37-year-old state representative said. ‘I’ve never been indicted for fraud. I’ve never been reported to the FBI for bribery. I’ve never been impeached by my own party. And I’ve never given a sweetheart deal to a pedophile.’

Paxton and Republicans used some of Talarico’s questionable statements – including that God is ‘non-binary’ – and support for trans rights to weigh him down with a wedge issue that was still motivating Texas voters. 

Talarico, a seminary student, admitted the non-binary quip was him trying to be ‘provocative.’  

Paxton also labeled Talarico ‘low T’ – for low testosterone – and pushed that he was a ‘vegan,’ even though the Democrat eats meat. Talarico had previously talked about eating less meat to be environmentally conscious. 

Trump traveled to Texas four times during the final campaign stretch. 

During his rallies, the President rehashed a disproven conspiracy theory that Talarico had left the campaign trail to seek mental health treatment in Ohio. 

Trump said he suspected something different had happened. 

‘Now, I happen to think he was food poisoned by meat because he can’t stand it,’ Trump claimed at his rally in Corpus Christi. 

At his final appearance in Texas, Trump bombastically pushed that Talarico believed that Jesus supported sex changes. 

‘Not only did Talafreako state that God is transgender, he actually said that if Jesus Christ himself came and visited the Texas legislature, Jesus would be promoting sex changes for little children,’ Trump declared onstage in Lubbock last Tuesday night.   

Still, some Talarico supporters told the Daily Mail that they believed certain Republicans would join them in supporting the Democrat at the ballot box – even if they’re not public about it.

Among those convinced was former Republican Representative Adam Kinzinger, who left his party and his home state of Illinois and relocated to Texas. 

‘I don’t think any Republican will admit that they’re going to be a crossover voter, but in that privacy of the ballot box, I think there will be a lot,’ Kinzinger told the Daily Mail at a Talarico event in Houston. 

Trump carried the state by 14 points just two years ago. Before Talarico, Republicans had won 13 straight Senate races in Texas, ten of them by double digits.

Beto O’Rourke came closest, losing to Ted Cruz by 2.6 points in 2018, and Colin Allred lost to Cruz by 8.5 points in 2024.

Byron Donalds narrowly captured Florida’s governorship, making history as the first Black Republican elected governor in the United States.

The 48-year-old congressman defeated Democratic nominee David Jolly, a former Republican congressman and attorney, in a race decided by an exceptionally slim margin.

The Associated Press called the contest shortly after 9 p.m. Eastern time. With 98 percent of the vote counted, Donalds held 50 percent to Jolly’s 49 percent.

The result was far tighter than expected, keeping Republicans on edge throughout Tuesday night. Florida had backed Trump by 13 percentage points just two years earlier.

Donalds outspent Jolly by roughly seven to one and raised more than $140 million. Even so, a race once viewed as secure tightened during the final weeks as voters voiced frustration over the economy, higher costs and the expansion of data centers.

The campaign to replace term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis became a test of Donald Trump’s influence in his adopted home state, where the president is registered to vote in Palm Beach County.

DeSantis remained neutral during the Republican primary, in which his own lieutenant governor challenged Donalds. He endorsed Donalds only after the congressman secured the nomination.

Trump endorsed Donalds more than 18 months before Election Day, but the president’s support may ultimately have become a liability as voters across the country signaled dissatisfaction with his policies.

Democrats gained seats in both the House and Senate in Tuesday’s contests, with results nationwide reflecting growing unease over the Trump administration’s agenda.

Trump campaigned alongside Donalds at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers on October 23, then returned to Daytona Beach on October 30 for a second rally within a week.

Donalds also secured endorsements from DeSantis and Sen. Rick Scott, bringing together a Florida Republican Party that had often been divided between the governor and the president.

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Jolly represented a Tampa Bay-area congressional district as a Republican before leaving the party and emerging as one of Trump’s most vocal critics. He later entered the governor’s race as a Democrat, choosing former congresswoman Gwen Graham as his running mate.

Jolly won the Democratic nomination on August 18, the same night Donalds defeated Lt. Gov. Jay Collins and several other candidates to claim the Republican nomination.

Former President Barack Obama endorsed Jolly in the campaign’s final stretch, describing him as “independent minded,” while former President Bill Clinton campaigned for him in South Florida.

Donalds overwhelmed Jolly financially, raising nearly $150 million compared with approximately $22 million for his opponent. According to OpenSecrets, he entered the final weeks with a $33 million cash advantage.

Both men campaigned on affordability, while Jolly also hit Donalds over data centers, vowing a moratorium on new construction. 

The final polls had Donalds ahead but far from safe, with New York Times/Siena showing him up 48 to 44 and St. Pete Polls putting him up just 48 to 46.

That was a dramatic tightening from four years ago, when DeSantis crushed Charlie Crist by more than 19 points.

Holding Florida gives Trump a loyal ally running the nation’s third-largest state as Republicans look ahead to 2028.

Republicans will point to Florida as proof that the red wall held even as the national map turned against them.

Democrats have not won the Florida governorship since Lawton Chiles in 1994.

Iconic Australian department store David Jones could enter voluntary administration as soon as Thursday, according to a report.

Sources told the Australian Financial Review on Wednesday that the development followed the “irreconcilable” breakdown of last-minute negotiations between the retailer and its landlords.

The AFR reported that McGrathNicol was expected to act as David Jones’ voluntary administrator, while lender Hilco Capital was expected to appoint FTI Consulting as receiver.

Scentre Group chief executive Elliott Rusanow said the major landlord had offered David Jones and owner Anchorage Capital a “very generous” lifeline, but claimed the proposal was rejected.

“The decision of what happens with David Jones is actually determined by its owner Anchorage,” he told NewsCorp on Wednesday.

“We have been in discussions with Anchorage, and we made a very generous offer that would have allowed David Jones to continue trading through this particularly busy period, keep people employed and keep its doors open for customers.

“It seems they have rejected that offer, and therefore the decision about what happens with David Jones now rests with Anchorage.”

Scentre said its $45 million annual gross rent for the store was equivalent to about $352 per square metre—well below the $942 per square metre average paid by its other tenants.

The retailer’s financial difficulties came into sharper focus after David Jones reported a $95.5 million pre-tax loss for the year to June 29, 2026, alongside an 8.7 per cent decline in sales.

Reports on Tuesday said dozens of David Jones stores around Australia could shut, including five outlets located in Westfield shopping centres, as the company reassesses its retail footprint.

The department store chain operates 38 locations across Australia and New Zealand and is understood to be considering reducing that number to between 12 and 20.

PwC had not yet signed off on the company’s accounts, which were due to be lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) by October 30, The Australian Financial Review reported.

The Daily Mail has contacted David Jones and Anchorage Capital for comment. The retailer also lodged its 2025 financial accounts six months late.

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At the time, a David Jones spokeswoman told the Daily Mail: “The company is finalising its FY26 accounts and does not comment on speculation regarding potential store closures.”

David Jones confirmed last week that it was reviewing its Australian store portfolio, along with trading terms involving suppliers and brand partners.

A spokesperson declined to address “speculation in the media”, saying chief executive Erica Berchtold was focused on accelerating the company’s strategy.

Founded in 1838 in Sydney, the retailer is recognised as the oldest continuously operating department store in the world still trading under its original name.

South Africa’s Woolworths Holdings bought David Jones for about $2.1billion in 2014 before selling the retailer’s operating business to Anchorage Capital Partners for a reported $100million in 2023. 

The review had prompted concern from Marketing Focus managing director Barry Urquhart.

‘The inevitability is we will not be seeing David Jones around in the very near future,’ Mr Urquhart told the Daily Mail last week.

He argued that the decline in the giant’s reported sale value reflected the extent of its problems, adding that the retailer had ‘been in trouble for some time’.

Mr Urquhart also identified the Covid-19 pandemic as a major turning point, with widespread closures placing significant pressure on retailers. 

‘With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in February 2020, a lot of communities, towns, businesses closed down and therefore that had a huge impact on cash flows, debt levels,’ he said.

In January, David Jones closed its stores at Castle Towers in Sydney and Tuggerah on the NSW Central Coast.