Good morning, Quartz readers!
What to watch for today
Election day in the US. The midterm races are largely seen as a referendum on Donald Trump’s presidency and will shape the second half of his term. Democrats are expected to retake control of the House (paywall), where they could begin presidential impeachment proceedings, while Republicans are favored to maintain control of the Senate.
Theresa May presses her cabinet for a Brexit deal. The UK prime minister could issue an ultimatum (paywall) to her fellow Conservative party members to back a draft deal. Reports suggest the EU may allow a modified customs union for the entire UK, not just Northern Ireland, as a stopgap measure.
China’s human-rights record gets scrutiny. President Xi Jinping’s government will be under the spotlight in a periodic review by the UN. Many members have criticized the country over its treatment of dissidents, journalists, and ethnic minorities.
The pipe-bomb suspect appears in court. Prosecutors will ask a judge to hold Cesar Sayoc, who is accused of mailing more than a dozen explosive devices to prominent Democrats, without bail.
While you were sleeping
The Lion Air plane that crashed into the sea was already damaged. Indonesian investigators said an airspeed indicator on the Boeing 737 Max plane, which crashed last week killing 189 aboard, was damaged during its last four flights. US authorities say they are awaiting more information before deciding on fleet-wide inspections of that model.
The migrant caravan reached Mexico City. Still hundreds of miles from the US border, the first wave of about 2,000 Central American migrants settled into a sports stadium to recuperate. Separately, Facebook, Fox News, and NBC decided to pull a Trump ad widely condemned as racist that likens the caravan to an undocumented Mexican immigrant who killed two sheriff’s deputies in 2014.
Amazon may split its second headquarters in two. The retail giant is strongly considering stretching its HQ2 expansion across two cities to draw in more talent, reported the Wall Street Journal (paywall). That would mean the company’s planned 50,000 new staffers could be shared between leading contenders including New York City, Dallas, and Crystal City, Virginia.
Under Armour decided to stop paying for employees’ visits to strip clubs. The company announced that staffers and executives, including CEO Kevin Plank, could no longer expense visits to adult-entertainment venues (paywall). Plank and other managers have long been accused of creating a hostile atmosphere for women.
Jury selection began for El Chapo’s trial. Prosecutors admitted that it’ll be tough to find jurors who haven’t heard of the infamous Mexican drug lord. The panel will be anonymous and partially sequestered, and under protection by US marshals.
Obsession interlude
Just about everything you thought you knew about bees is wrong. Only one of the 20,000-plus species of bees makes honey—and most don’t work in massive hives while serving the queen and the greater good. We can learn a lot from the loners—including the role of genetics in social behavior and potential lessons about autism. Go down the rabbit hole with solitary bees in today’s Obsession.
Matters of debate
Why isn’t the world outraged about Tuti Tursilawati? The Indonesian rape victim was beheaded by the Saudi Arabian government last week.
Coca-Cola and Pepsi are pretending to advocate for affordable groceries. Big Soda is pushing confusing new measures that would prohibit US cities from imposing new taxes on grocery items.
Apple’s iPhone defies economic gravity. Its rise from $499 to more than $1,000 confounds expectations that prices of electronics tend to fall over time.
Surprising discoveries
McDonald’s is recruiting grandma to work the fryer. The tight labor market has led US fast-food chains to look for workers in retirement homes (paywall).
Eurostar is reminding rail passengers not to bring bombs aboard. People may be carrying alarming mementos for the 100th anniversary of World War I’s armistice.
The US’s most expensive warship was delivered without elevators. The $13 billion USS Gerald R. Ford needs them to load bombs from below deck onto fighter jets (paywall).
A man returned home two months after his funeral. The missing Kazakh man was declared dead after a DNA test found a corpse was 99.92% likely to be him.
Venezuela wants to move $550 million in gold out of London. The bullion, stored in the Bank of England, may be subject to international sanctions.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, retracted obituaries, and lap-dance receipts to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day or download our apps for iPhone and Android. Today’s Daily Brief was written by Alice Truong and edited by Tripti Lahiri.