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LENOIR Primary elections give voters the opportunity to decide from a pool of candidates who should ultimately be nominated by either political party to run in the general election.

Friday, April 22 at 5 p.m. is the deadline for Caldwell County citizens to register to vote or to change their party affiliation.

May 10 is the last day for residents to request an absentee ballot by mail by 5 p.m. Election Day is on May 17, when the polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Registered voters across the state can vote in the primary, said Director of Caldwell County Board of Elections Chad Barnes. However, voters affiliated with any political party will be given a ballot of candidates for their party. Unaffiliated voters may choose the ballot of candidates for either the Republican or Democrat party primary. Therefore, unaffiliated voters in Caldwell County in the May 17 primary may choose only a Democratic or a Republican ballot.

For early voting, or One-Stop voting, there are two locations where individuals can vote early: the Resource Center (lower level of the library), located at 120 Hospital Ave. in Lenoir, and the Shuford Recreation Center, located at 56 Pinewood Rd. in Granite Falls. Early voting starts on April 28th and ends May 14th. Residents can come by to submit their votes each weekday from 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., as well as Saturdays April 30th, May 7th, and May 14th from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

In Caldwell County, the Democrat Party does not have a primary for Clerk of Court, County Commissioners, Board of Education, N.C. House of Representatives, N.C. Senate, or U.S. House of Representatives District 5, N.C. Supreme Court Associate Justices, or N.C. Court of Appeals Judges. Any Democrat who properly filed for office will therefore appear as the partys nominee on the general election ballot in November.

Right now, the total number of registered voters in Caldwell County is 53,999. The total number of registered Republicans is 26,267, and the total number of registered Democrats is 10,418 people. There are currently 16,939 residents who have registered as unaffiliated, and 375 people have registered as Libertarian.

In 2022, the Libertarian Party does not have any primary elections because there are no contested Libertarian nominations for any office. Any Libertarian candidate who properly filed for office will therefore appear as the partys nominee on the general election ballot in November.

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Deadline to register to vote in primaries is April 22 - Lenoir News-Topic

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) An outcry was heard across the City of Buffalo, as Seneca groups took over Buffalo's Niagara Square, Friday morning.

This was to voice their frustration over what they call "economic injustice" by New York State, to what they said are "aggressive tactics" by Governor Kathy Hochul's Administration.

Here is the timeline of events leading up to Friday morning:

"Our compact, the Seneca compact is one of the worst compacts in the United States," Alleghany Territory resident and former comptroller of the Nation, Odie Brant Porter said.

For years, members of the Seneca Nation have been working to fight for a better compact agreement.

"Right now, New York State is getting a significant portion of any of our revenues," Porter said. "We have what is considered a net slot drop. We have money going into a slot machine. We pay our customers, and whatever is leftover, 25% of that goes right to New York State. Whatever is leftover, we pay 4,000 employees or 4,500 employees. We pay all the vendors in our area."

Dozens of Senecas from the 8,500-member nation came out to share their frustration with the New York State government.

"What we want you to understand is that in the Gaming Compact Dispute, the moneys that were in question were always, for five years, was in a restricted ESGRO account. They are protected. The money was always there. The problem with this is that Kathy Hochul, the Governor, reached in to freeze all of the Nation's account, threw us in a state of economic paralysis, and could not make payroll by the end of that week," Mothers of the Seneca Nation member, Leslie Logan said.

"The Mothers are wanting a better deal. We are going to fight for a better deal and sometimes people, the media will say, 'You made a lot of money, didn't you?' So what, it's still an improper portion to what we should be making. We're going to keep fighting," Porter said.

Mothers of the Seneca Nation member, Leslie Logan, said if there is going to be a revenue-sharing agreement with the State, the Seneca Nation needs something in return.

"We need to make sure that there is a fair and equitable amount of a quid pro quo. We give you something, you give us something," Logan said.

"We contribute significantly to Western New York, and what has New York State given us? Have they given us $1 in investment? No. No. We have gotten 0 from New York Statem" Porter said.

Erie County Libertarian Party chair, Duane Whitmer, also rallied in support.

"She[Gov. Hochul] sees your bank accounts and took your money. Why? To pander for votes by building a stadium for Florida billionaires[Pegula Family]," Whitmer said.

Whitmer plans to pursue any kind of lawsuit against the state's budget.

"I find it fitting we are here on April 15th, which is considered Tax Day. A day where you reconcile how much the government is going to take from you at gunpoint. If you don't believe me, stop paying your taxes and men with guns will come and take your stuff. They'll put you in jail and they'll make you a criminal. Our wonderful Kathy Hochul has expanded her criminal enterprise into bank robbery," Whitmer said. "I find it weird as I drive through Buffalo. We have the Ukrainian flag and a lot of local politicians were quick to say, 'We stand with Ukraine, we support Ukraine.' A foreign entity invading a smaller sovereign area is a problem. Why are they ignoring similar situations in our own backyard. What NYS did is considered an act of war. It is a financial blockade."

"The fight isn't over. We're going to continue to fight and we're looking at other avenues, as a grassroots community organization to ensure that we do get justice," Logan added. "Clearly, this was an act of aggression, we felt. We're still, that Monday, the Nation determined to surrender more than $540M to the state, and here is where we're at today."

Pheben Kassahun reached out to the Governor's office for a response and received this statement:

-- Spokesperson Statement

Portion of funds to be paid to host communities, these amounts are what is due after accounting for advanced payments from the State, according to the Governor's Office.

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'We need to make sure that there is a fair and equitable amount of a quid pro quo': Seneca Nation rallies in Niagara Square over "economic...

Europe's youngest nation, Liberland, will be the first physical/hybrid country - an extension of the real-life land for citizens to live, work, and play

MIAMI, April 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Mytaverse, the immersive platform known for delivering true-to-life 3D experiences, announced today a collaboration with Liberland and global design firm Zaha Hadid Architects to build "Liberland Metaverse" - an extension of the real-life country for its citizens to live, work and play.

A view of the Liberland Metaverse as powered by Mytaverse

The unique Mytaverse technology creates a space where Liberlanders feel like they're physically together when actually not. The virtual space leads to reduced carbon emissions thanks to a reduction in travel, and business becomes more sustainable, streamlined, and even convenient. This unprecedented move into the metaverse marks the first time a country is offering a hybrid of both the physical and virtual to its citizens thus resulting in a permanent existence on the Mytaverse platform.

For the past six months, Mytaverse has worked with Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) to bring the Liberland project into what is called a "cyber-urban" metaverse. The virtual city both enables and empowers novel use experiences, a trait that has made the firm of Zaha Hadid Architects famous. Today, visitors to Liberland Metaverse can experience a 5-story "Cyber Incubator" currently being used - in place of a traditional urban planning committee - for Liberland officials, investors, and architects to meet to discuss and design buildings for the physical and virtual space while tracking ownership on blockchain technology.

"The high-fidelity and photo-real Liberland Metaverse anticipates the physical realization of Liberland. It is not either a game or fiction. The physical and virtual together form a continuous social reality. That's one of the core premises of the project," explains Patrik Schumacher. "One of the main draws of Liberland Metaverse is that it is, like a city, a shared platform and caters to an evolving, diverse, and self-organizing community of those deeply interested and invested in Liberland".

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Liberlanders will create personalized hologram avatars that can run, jump, wave, dance, and more. Webcams on avatars can be activated, thus allowing for private, face-to-face conversations between small groups or live presentations. The high-quality content on the Mytaverse's unique pixel streaming technology enables citizens to enter using only their browser on their PC or Mac - no need to install an app, no need for any fancy hardware. Anyone can access their land, join meetings, or events just like being there - regardless of their computing power.

"Today will be long remembered as we break ground in the metaverse," said Vit Jedlika, President of Liberland. "We're building a dynamic space where we can continue to contribute to the economic development of Liberland and let citizens feel the urban development progress. Liberland Metaverse will be our citizens' virtual home, drawing all our engaged communities together in an enriched extension of our country."

Thousands of Liberlanders will have 'anytime-anywhere' access to the platform via one click, move seamlessly from activity to activity, and have true-to-life interactions with each other. For example, their virtual self might walk to pitch a small business idea at the Cyber Incubator, then to a conference at the auditorium, and next to their digital plot of land. Experiences will mirror the physical Liberland world - from cultural/social events and sports to education and essential government functions.

"We built Mytaverse to offer a lifeline for businesses facing travel restrictions during COVID. Having proven our concept with very successful projects revolving around conferences and trainings last fall, we are now expanding to offer companies more sustainable and comprehensive metaphysical solutions similar to what we have created in Liberland," said Kenneth Landau, CEO, and co-founder of Mytaverse. "We're at an exciting point where we've had incredible growth and now looking at the next level of impact for our platform by further evolving it to bring this new country to life."

Liberland Metaverse is now live on Mytaverse. Beginning April 16, Liberland citizens will be able to register businesses, order passports, and e-Residency cards, or rent an office space in the central business hub in Liberland Metaverse. For more, visit mytaverse.com and the Mytaverse YouTube channel. View the Mytaverse press kit here.

ABOUT MYTAVERSE

Founded in 2020 by Kenneth Landau and Jaime Lopez, Mytaverse is a platform radically changing how we do business, enabling people to meet in an immersive, true-to-life 3D world. Built to meet the demand for hybrid and augmented reality meetings and workspaces, Mytaverse uses best-in-class technology to deliver fully immersive environments. The hardware-agnostic approach enables users from anywhere to enter through only a browser on a PC, Mac, or mobile device. For more information, visit http://www.mytaverse.com.

ABOUT ZAHA HADID ARCHITECTS

Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) redefined architecture for the 21st century with a repertoire of projects that have captured imaginations across the globe. Receiving the highest honours from civic, professional, and academic institutions worldwide, ZHA is one of the world's most consistently inventive architectural studiosand has been for four decades. These 40 years of research are inscribed within every design that encompass an unwavering optimism for the future with concepts of inclusivity and integration. Marrying innovative design methods with ecologically sound materials and sustainable construction practices, ZHA does not look at the disparate parts, but works to understand them as a whole.

ABOUT LIBERLAND

The Free Republic of Liberland (hereinafter "Liberland") is a sovereign state located between Croatia and Serbia on the west bank of the Danube River. On some maps, this area is referred to as "Gornja Siga". The nearest towns are Zmajevac (Croatia) and Baki Monotor (Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, Serbia). This parcel of land came into existence due to a border dispute between Croatia and Serbia. This area is not claimed by Croatia, Serbia, nor any other nation or private entity. Furthermore, it remained unclaimed since the dissolution of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1991. In fact, for many decades, it has been uninhabited and no claim was ever made to this piece of land. It was therefore terra nullius a no man's land until Vt Jedlika and Jana Markovicova proclaimed it as the Free Republic of Liberland on 13 April 2015. Liberland has set its boundary with ample margin from neighboring countries to ensure that it does not infringe upon the territory of Croatia or Serbia. The total area is approximately 7 km and is now the third-smallest sovereign state, after the Vatican and Monaco.

Press Contact:Melissa WhitworthLightspeed PR/Mmelissa@lightspeedpr.com

Mytaverse Logo (PRNewsfoto/Mytaverse)

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SOURCE Mytaverse

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Mytaverse and Zaha Hadid Architects Build First Libertarian City in the Metaverse - Yahoo Finance

The deadline to register to vote in the upcoming May General Primary Election is fast approaching. Voters must register by Monday April 25. Morgan County residents can register to vote through the Morgan County Board of Elections and Registration (BOER) office, located at 237 North Second Street in Madison.

The General Primary Election is slated for Tuesday, May 24, but local voters will have the opportunity to cast ballots early with Advance Voting kicking off on Monday, May 2 and ending on Friday, May 20.

Early voting hours will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, with early voting available on two Saturdays, May 9 and May 14, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. All early voting is done at the BOER office.

On election day, Tuesday, May 24, there is no voting at the BOER office and all voters must cast ballots at their assigned polling places in the county.

Your county polling location may have changed since the 2020 elections. You can confirm your election day polling place by going to mvp.sos.ga.gov or calling the BOER at 706-343-6311.

Morgan County voters will be able to cast ballots on several high-profile statewide races in 2022, including the race for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, a U.S. House of Representatives seat, and one of Georgias U.S. Senate seats. Local voters will also decide two State Senate seats for District 17 and District 25 along with one State House of Representatives seat for District 114.

Locally, voters decide two contested races, one for a county commissioner seat and the other for a board of education seat.

As long-time County Commissioner Andy Ainslie retires from office this year, three candidates have filed to run for his seat in District 2 two Republicans and one Democrat.

Republicans Keith Wilson and Blake McCormack will face off in the upcoming primary election on Tuesday, May 24. The winner will run against Democrat Bob Baldwin in the Nov. 8 General Election for the open seat on the Morgan County Board of Commissioners.

In November, Democrat Dr. Claudia Crenshaw will square off against Republican Incumbent Dr. Forest Pagett for the District 5 Board of Education seat.

Morgan County voters will have to make choices on several state and federal races, with no shortage of candidates running for the seats.

In the race for Georgia Governor, two Republican titans will face off in the May 24 Primary Incumbent Brian Kemp and former U.S. Senator David Perdue. Other Republicans have also qualified to run, including Catherine Davis, Kandiss Taylor, and Tom Williams.

The winner will take on Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams in the Nov. 8 General Election, as well as Libertarian Shane Hazel and Independent Al Bartell.

One of Georgias U.S. Senate seats is up for grabs, as Democratic Incumbent Raphael Warnock faces Democratic challenger Tamara Johnson-Shealey. Republican challengers have lined up as well for the seat, including Gary Black, Josh Clark, Kelvin King, Jonathan McColumn, Latham Saddler and Herschel Walker. One Libertarian has qualified for the Senate seat, Chase Oliver.

In the race for Georgia Lieutenant Governor, Democrats Erick Allen, Charlie Bailey, Tyrone Brooks Jr., Tony Brown, Kwanza Hall, Jason Hayes, Derrick Jackson, R. Malik, Renitta Shannon have qualified to run. On the Republican side, Burt Jones, Mack McGregor, Butch Miller, and Jeanne Seaver qualified. Libertarian candidate Ryan Graham also qualified.

In the race for Georgia Secretary of State, Republican Incumbent Brad Raffensperger will square off against Republican challengers Jody Hice, a former U.S. Congressman, David Belle Isle, and T.J. Hudson. Democrats running for Georgia SOS include Dee Dawkins-Haigler, John Eaves, Floyd Griffin, Bee Nguyen, and Michael Owens. Libertarian Ted Metz is also running.

Congressman Jody Hice is vacating the U.S. House District 10 to run for Georgia SOS. A crowded field of candidates has emerged to win his seat. Republicans running include Timothy Barr, Paul Broun, Mike Collins, David Curry, Vernon J. Jones, Marc McMain, Alan Sims, and Mitchell Swan. Democrats running include Jessica Allison Fore, Tabitha Johnson-Green, Phyllis Hatcher, Femi Oduwole, and Paul Walton.

In the local state representative races, candidates have lined up to compete for two State Senate seats and one State House of Representatives seat.

For State Senate District 25, currently held by Burt Jones who is vacating office to run for Lt. Governor, candidates running to replace him include Republicans Rick Jeffares, Leland Jake Olinger II, Daniela Sullivan-Marzahl, and Ricky Williams, and Democrat Valerie Rodgers.

For State Senate District 17, Republican Incumbent Brian Strickland is running for reelection, facing Republican challenger Brett Mauldin. The winner will go to run against Democratic challenger Kacy Morgan in the Nov. 8 General Election.

State Rep. Dave Belton will not seek reelection for District 114. Republicans Wendell McNeal and Tim Fleming will face off in the May primary election for their partys nomination. The winner will face Democratic Challenger Malcom Adams in November.

Georgians will vote on the next Attorney General, with Republican incumbent Chris Carr running for reelection, facing challenges from Republican John Gordon, Democrats Jennifer Jordan and Christian Wise Smith, and Libertarian Martin Cowen.

Georgians will also vote for Commissioner of Agriculture, Commissioner of Insurance, State School superintendent, and Commissioner of Labor.

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Register to vote in the May Primary before the April 25 deadline - Morgan County Citizen

As Keene resident and libertarian activist Ian Freeman awaits trial on federal charges related to his bitcoin-exchange business, two of his alleged co-conspirators have signaled they will enter guilty pleas.

Renee and Andrew Spinella, both of Derry, are scheduled for change-of-plea hearings Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Concord. Their shift from not-guilty pleas to pleading guilty would mark the first time any of the six alleged co-conspirators have admitted wrongdoing.

Freeman, Colleen Fordham of Alstead, Aria DiMezzo of Keene and a Keene man who legally changed his name from Richard Paul to Nobody have all pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Prosecutors claim Freeman and his alleged co-conspirators violated federal law by running an unlicensed virtual currency-exchange business that handled more than $10 million in transactions over several years.

According to the government, Freeman and other co-defendants used personal bank accounts and accounts in the names of purported religious entities like the Shire Free Church, the Crypto Church of NH, the Church of the Invisible Hand and the Reformed Satanic Church to conceal the nature of their business while directing customers to falsely report that they were donating to churches or buying rare coins, not purchasing cryptocurrency.

The government arrested the six in March 2021. The FBI conducted several searches in Keene one day that month, including at 73-75 Leverett St. and at two properties on Route 101.

Those properties are linked to the libertarian activist group known locally as Free Keene, which has ties to some of the defendants. The Route 101 searches were at 661 Marlboro Road, at a business called Bitcoin Embassy N.H., and 659 Marlboro Road, which is owned by Shire Free Church Holdings LLC. The FBI also conducted an operation at a local convenience store, with an employee at the time telling The Sentinel agents removed a Bitcoin ATM.

Court records indicate the defendants trial is scheduled to begin Nov. 1.

All six alleged co-conspirators were charged with conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and all but DiMezzo also face a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Renee Spinella additionally faces two charges of wire fraud and Andrew Spinella faces a single additional charge of wire fraud. Court documents do not indicate what charge or charges they are expected to plead guilty to.

Freeman also faces charges of operation of an unlicensed money-transmitting business, continuing financial-crimes enterprise, money laundering and six counts of wire fraud. The continuing financial-crimes enterprise charge carries a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence.

Unfortunately the way the federal government works is they do their best to intimidate people by stacking on as many charges as possible, Freeman said Saturday.

Freeman said he has not been allowed to talk to his co-defendants, but has heard that the prosecution threatened the Spinellas with additional charges to force them into a plea deal. The Sentinel has not been able to confirm this. Court documents do not indicate any additional charges. Renee Spinella was not immediately reachable by phone. Neither Andrew Spinella nor his attorney were immediately reachable Saturday for a request for comment.

Freeman said he does not expect that the Spinellas will cooperate with the government, despite the scheduled guilty plea.

Nobody here did anything wrong. These are victimless so-called crimes, he said. I expect they will not be cooperating with the state because we all believe the state is evil.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Georgiana L. MacDonald has previously alleged that hordes of cybercriminals bought virtual currency from Freeman in an effort to avoid detection by banks and government regulators.

The government also claims in court documents Freeman allowed an undercover agent to exchange around $20,000 in cash for bitcoin after the agent told him he was dealing drugs. Freemans lawyer, Mark Sisti, has previously told The Sentinel he doesnt know where the governments claim about an undercover agent is coming from. He said he has seen evidence of Freeman refusing to deal with criminals.

DiMezzo, also reached by phone Saturday, said the Spinellas have to do what is best for themselves even if that means entering a plea deal with the government.

In the libertarian philosophy as long as they are making the decision that is best for them the world is best served, DiMezzo said.

While she said she believes a jury will find no evidence of the alleged crimes, certainly, if they agree to be star witnesses to the prosecutors, that certainly will have an effect on other peoples cases.

But a guilty plea is not evidence of guilt, DiMezzo argued, claiming, as Freeman did, that the federal government stacks charges against defendants to bully them into pleas.

Its hard to accept a guilty plea as an actual confession of guilt in the modern court system, she said. Whether theyre guilty or not, [defendants] accept the deal to make the bigger threat go away.

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Two expected to plead guilty in cryptocurrency case - Concord Monitor