Democrats’ own internal polling has delivered a striking result in one of Ohio’s most closely watched congressional races, showing longtime Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur locked in a dead heat with Republican challenger Derek Merrin.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s latest survey puts Kaptur and Merrin at exactly 48% each in Ohio’s 9th Congressional District.

Just 4% of likely voters remain undecided with the November election approaching.

The numbers underscore just how competitive the contest has become following Ohio’s mid-decade redistricting, which changed the political makeup of the district Kaptur is fighting to retain.

But another result buried inside the Democrats’ own polling makes the tie particularly notable.

President Donald Trump’s job approval stands at just 35% in the district, while 54% disapprove — a 19-point negative gap, according to the DCCC’s Sept. 29 memo.

Yet Republican Derek Merrin is still running even with the Democratic incumbent.

The DCCC says Trump carried the current district by 11 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election.

Despite Trump’s current approval numbers in the Democratic survey, Merrin still captures 48% against Kaptur.

The DCCC emphasized several numbers it views as encouraging for the incumbent.

According to the committee, Kaptur has consolidated 95% of Democratic voters and is leading among independents, although the memo did not disclose the precise breakdown of independent support.

The committee also said Kaptur is running ahead of both Democratic statewide candidates in the district.

It did not identify those candidates or provide their polling numbers in the memo.

Democrats portrayed the tied race as evidence that Kaptur continues to outperform the underlying political environment of her district, pointing to her record and campaign emphasis on lowering costs and representing Northwest Ohio.

The DCCC also sought to blame Republicans for rising household expenses, citing costs including groceries, gasoline, health care and utility bills.

Those arguments represent the Democratic committee’s characterization of the political environment rather than independent findings from the poll.

And despite the DCCC’s upbeat assessment of Kaptur’s position, its own headline number remains unmistakably close.

Kaptur: 48%.

Merrin: 48%.

Undecided: 4%.

Neither candidate has broken the 50% mark, and the difference between them is zero.

The survey was conducted by the DCCC Analytics Department from Sept. 22 through Sept. 23 among 481 likely general-election voters in Ohio’s 9th District.

Respondents were contacted through phone and text-to-web interviews.

The poll carries a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.

That means the survey should be viewed as a snapshot rather than evidence that either candidate holds a measurable lead.

But with the Democratic Party’s own polling showing its incumbent tied with Merrin, Ohio’s 9th District remains a closely contested battleground heading into the final stretch before November.

Passengers aboard an Israel-bound jet were thrown into a terrifying midair emergency Wednesday after a violent incident inside the cockpit sent the aircraft plunging and triggered initial fears that the plane had been hijacked.

The Flydubai flight ultimately made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia — but Israeli officials say the crisis began when the co-pilot allegedly stabbed the captain.

Flight FZ1073 had departed Dubai for Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv when the confrontation erupted aboard the Boeing 737.

Two Israeli officials told Reuters that the co-pilot was believed to have stabbed the captain before cabin crew entered the cockpit and helped bring the situation under control.

Israeli authorities are now investigating whether the incident may have been an attempted “terror attack.”

For the passengers trapped aboard the aircraft, the moments that followed were terrifying.

One passenger described panic throughout the cabin as the aircraft suddenly began losing altitude.

“There are many different accounts, but apparently the co-pilot stabbed the captain and collapsed onto the controls, shutting down the entire instrument panel. We began plunging downward for several minutes. Everyone on the plane was screaming, the overhead compartments opened, and the power went out. We were sure we were going to die. It was very scary,” the passenger said.

Flydubai has confirmed that an incident occurred aboard the aircraft and that the plane landed safely in Tabuk, Saudi Arabia.

The airline has not publicly confirmed the reported stabbing or explained what caused the confrontation inside the cockpit.

Both pilots were hospitalized with injuries, according to Reuters.

Flight-tracking data showed just how severe the emergency became.

The aircraft reportedly dropped nearly 14,000 feet in less than 30 seconds before transmitting an emergency signal.

The jet initially squawked 7700 — the universal transponder code indicating a general emergency.

It then briefly switched to 7500.

That code signals possible unlawful interference with an aircraft and immediately intensified concerns that a hijacking or other security incident could be unfolding.

The aircraft later switched back to 7700 before safely landing in Tabuk.

Israeli authorities responded rapidly as the crisis developed.

With more than 100 Israeli passengers reportedly aboard, officials initially feared the aircraft could have been hijacked and scrambled fighter jets.

A regional official confirmed that an altercation apparently involving the pilots had occurred inside the cockpit, although investigators were still working to establish exactly what happened.

“The crew have been questioned as part of the investigation,” the regional official said, according to The Associated Press, without specifying whether anyone had been detained.

Passengers told Israeli media that shouting could be heard near the front of the aircraft shortly before the plane suddenly descended.

Capt. Meidan Barr, former chairman of the Israel Airline Pilot Association, said a rapid loss of altitude of that magnitude would ordinarily resemble an emergency maneuver used after a serious problem such as cabin depressurization.

“Losing like 15,000 feet in two or three minutes, that is something that you do in, like, an emergency descent when you lose pressure,” Barr said.

Barr noted that the aircraft’s successful landing was particularly important because investigators would now have access to the plane and its systems as they attempt to reconstruct exactly what occurred.

After touching down in Tabuk, passengers reportedly remained aboard while Saudi security forces surrounded the aircraft.

The incident also prompted an immediate response at the highest levels of the Israeli government.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened security consultations and cleared the remainder of his schedule while officials worked to determine whether the incident was connected to a broader security threat.

Israel’s airspace was temporarily closed before reopening after the Flydubai aircraft landed safely.

Flydubai subsequently acknowledged the diversion while stopping short of confirming the more serious allegations surrounding what happened inside the cockpit.

“Our teams are working closely with the relevant authorities,” the carrier said. “Further updates will be issued as additional confirmed details become available.”

The motive behind the reported cockpit attack remains under investigation.

Israeli officials are examining whether the episode could constitute a terror incident, while Flydubai has so far publicly confirmed only that an in-flight incident occurred, the aircraft diverted safely to Saudi Arabia and the passengers were safe.

Investigators must now determine what triggered the confrontation, exactly what happened between the two pilots and whether the incident was an isolated act or something more serious.

After months of public scrutiny, damaging revelations and signs of turmoil behind the scenes, a major change in former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s personal life has now become official.

Noem has filed for divorce from her husband, Bryon Noem, bringing their marriage of more than three decades toward an end.

Court documents filed in South Dakota cite “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split. The filing was submitted April 6 but did not appear on Hamlin County’s online court system until Monday.

The couple married in 1992 and share three adult children.

The filing follows months of controversy surrounding Bryon’s reported private online activity, including allegations of explicit exchanges with adult models and participation in an online cross-dressing fetish community.

Photos published earlier this year reportedly showed Bryon wearing pink shorts, a crop top and exaggerated prosthetic breasts as part of what was described as a “bimbofication” fetish.

He was also reported to have sent at least $25,000 to online models through PayPal and Cash App while allegedly using the alias “Jason Jackson.”

One model said she discovered his identity after accidentally calling a number and hearing a voicemail greeting for Noem Insurance, the South Dakota insurance agency Bryon operates.

A spokesman for Kristi said at the time that she was “devastated” and that the family had been “blindsided” by the revelations.

Asked about the divorce proceedings by a South Dakota news outlet, Bryon offered little indication that he planned to discuss the matter publicly.

“I can’t comment right now.”

For members of Kristi’s family, however, the split apparently did not come as a surprise.

Kristi’s mother, Corinne Arnold, said in July that her daughter had already told relatives she intended to end the marriage and had hired an attorney in Sioux Falls.

“It has been difficult, but we knew this was coming, that they were going to get divorced,” Arnold told the Daily Mail.

“I feel bad, sick that they’re getting a divorce, but what else can you do?” she added.

By that point, Bryon had reportedly moved out of the couple’s Castlewood home and was living approximately 20 miles away.

The marriage had also faced years of public speculation surrounding Kristi’s relationship with longtime political adviser Corey Lewandowski.

Both Noem and Lewandowski have denied allegations that they had a romantic affair, and no independently verified evidence has publicly established that such a relationship occurred.

The two were photographed together in Minnesota in August, including at a lunch and while cycling near Lake Minnetonka.

Their professional relationship had previously attracted scrutiny during Noem’s tenure at the Department of Homeland Security, where Lewandowski served as an unpaid adviser.

During a congressional hearing in March, Noem was directly questioned about allegations involving Lewandowski and dismissed the questioning as tabloid material.

The turmoil surrounding her marriage intensified around the same period that she left the Department of Homeland Security and later assumed a State Department position as special envoy for the Shield of the Americas.

President Donald Trump also publicly reacted after reports concerning Bryon’s alleged online activity surfaced.

“Wow, well, I feel badly for the family if that’s the case, that’s too bad.”

Noem later returned to Pierre, South Dakota, for the unveiling of a life-sized bronze statue honoring her tenure as governor.

Her mother and grandchildren attended the ceremony.

Bryon did not.

After months of reported separation, family acknowledgment of the impending split and intense public attention surrounding the couple’s marriage, the matter has now moved into court.

More than three decades after Kristi and Bryon Noem married, their divorce filing makes the breakup official.