• More people are seeking or casting early ballots in the critical states of North Carolina and Florida than at this point in 2012, with Hillary Clinton the likely benefactor, as early voting shows signs of surging nationwide. Clinton may also benefit from an increase in ballot requests in Georgia, a traditionally Republican state where Democrats have made inroads. But Donald Trump is showing signs of strength in Iowa and parts of Maine, states won by Barack Obama in the last two presidential elections. Though preliminary, data compiled by The Associated Press suggest that advance voting could reach 40 percent of all votes cast nationally — up from 35 percent in 2012. It may also indicate a higher overall turnout in an election that has generated enormous public interest despite — or because of — the unpopularity of both major party candidates.

• Michelle Obama told supporters in Philadelphia on Wednesday that candidates don’t change once they become president and that America “needs an adult in the White House.” The first lady never mentioned Trump during the rally at LaSalle University. But there was no question that she was warning voters that President Trump would be the same as candidate Trump. “The presidency doesn’t change who you are, it reveals who you are,” she said.

• Trump says he saved former Miss Universe Alicia Machado’s job by shaming her into losing weight. Trump told Fox News host Bill O’Reilly Wednesday night that he “saved her job because they wanted to fire her for putting on so much weight.” Trump says he said, “‘Don’t do that, let her try and lose the weight.’” Machado says that Trump humiliated her by inviting reporters to her gym sessions and calling her “Miss Piggy.”

• Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders made the case for Clinton in New Hampshire, calling her plan to provide free college tuition to middle class families “revolutionary.” Sanders said the plan that he developed with Clinton after their lengthy presidential primary is a “big deal” and would help millions of young people from middle-class and low-income backgrounds go to college.

• Former Republican Sen. John Warner is panning Trump as disrespectful of the military and woefully unprepared to be commander in chief. Warner is a five-term Virginia senator, veteran and former Secretary of the Navy. He was appearing with Clinton’s running mate, Tim Kaine, in Virginia to endorse the Democratic ticket. Warner said he’s weighing in because he’s “distressed” by Trump’s comments that the military is in bad shape. He said Clinton is deeply prepared to be president, citing their time together on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

• In 1890, when The Arizona Republic first started printing from Phoenix, before it published photographs or crossword puzzles or won a Pulitzer Prize, the newspaper was called The Arizona Republican. It later changed its name, but not the political slant of its editorial page. For 126 years, the Republic has endorsed Republican candidates for president. That changed Tuesday when the newspaper’s editorial board announced online an unequivocal endorsement of Clinton — and eviscerated Trump along the way.

— Daily Herald news services