YWN regrets to inform you of the Petira of Hagaon HaRav David Feinstein ZATZAL, one of the Poskei Hador and a member of the Moetzes Gedolei Hatorh in the United States. He was the Rosh Yeshiva of Meshiva Tiferes Yerushalayim in the Lower East Side on Manhattan. He was 91. Rav David was born in 1929 in Lyuban, (the former USSR), and immigrated to the United States in 1936 with his father, the late Posek hador, Hagaon HaRav Moshe Feinstein ZATZAL. After the Petira of Rav Moshe in 1986, Rav David assumed the leadership of the Yeshiva. He wrote many Seforim. His Anivus was legendary, never putting on the attire worn by most Roshei Yeshiva and Rabbonim (Frock – long black jacket, and up-hat). For those that have ever visited the Yeshiva, it says it all.

Over 20 people were arrested Wednesday night at a protest in Midtown. The large group of protesters marched through Midtown on Wednesday evening, demanding to protect the results of the election. They marched down Fifth Avenue and gathered in Washington Square Park, calling for all votes to be counted. The protest was peaceful, but police later reported incidents of people starting fires and throwing garbage and eggs. In a tweet, the NYPD said, “We appreciate and value the importance of freedom of speech. Our top priority is and always will be safety. We have arrested more than 20 individuals who attempted to hijack a peaceful protest by lighting fires, throwing garbage and eggs in Manhattan.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)

New Yorkers are picking their representatives in Congress, the state Legislature and the White House after a campaign season that unfolded amid the coronavirus pandemic and unrest over racial injustice. Polls close at 9 p.m. Tuesday, but with a record number of votes cast by mail, the hottest races could take weeks to decide. There is no guarantee that leads held at the end of election night will stand up when absentee ballots are opened and counted days from now. Voters had to wait more than a month to know the winners in some races in the state’s June primary.

New Yorkers lined up to cast their final ballots Tuesday, braving a pandemic that added to their worries about ballot security and where the country is headed. Long lines formed at scattered polling places in the New York City area in the first few hours of voting Tuesday, even with a record number of people casting ballots by mail or through early voting. But lines were moderate from Buffalo to Brooklyn by midday with no major problems reported. Voters who turned out on the brisk fall day expressed a mix of resolve and resignation over how the election would turn out. “The country is so divided that I feel like it’s not going to be good either way,” said Nurit Dallimore, who voted in Brooklyn’s Boerum Hill.

Police have arrested a man suspected of knocking a 73-year-old woman onto New York City subway tracks after her family scolded him for smoking marijuana. Luis Hernandez, 38, was to appear in court on Tuesday to face charges of attempted murder and assault. The name of his attorney wasn’t immediately available. The incident happened late last month during a confrontation between the suspect and the woman’s husband and grandson on a subway platform in Brooklyn, police said. He began punching and kicking at the family, sending her tumbling onto the tracks, police said. The woman was pulled to safety ahead of the next train. The man fled before police arrived. (AP)

YWN regrets to inform you of the Petira of Hagaon HaRav Yaakov Busel ZATZAL, the longtime Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Rabbeinu Yaakov Yosef of Edison NJ. Rav Busel was the son of an Alter Mirrer, and was born in Shainghai as the Mirrer Yeshiva was fleeing the Nazis. After hsi family settled in East New York, Brooklyn, the Rosh Yeshiva learned in Yeshiva of Eastern Parkway as a young Bochur, and then went to learn in Lakewood’s BMG until he became the Rosh Yeshiva of Edison for around 40 years. His first wife Rebbitzen Rasia A”H (who was Niftar in 1998), was a daughter of the Telsher Rosh Yeshiva, Hagaon HaRav Boruch Sorotzkin ZATZAL.

The most polarizing election in a generation wraps Tuesday, and even in a solidly blue state like New York, candidates for Congress and the state Legislature in a handful of battleground districts will be fighting for every last vote. With emotions running high, security precautions were being implemented in New York City and elsewhere ahead of possible civil unrest. Some Manhattan businesses have boarded up their windows as a precaution, including Macy’s flagship store in Herald Square and high-end retailers in SoHo. The NYPD asked business owners to clear sidewalks of items that could be used as barricades or projectiles, like chairs, tables, construction barrels and trash cans.

A wintry weather system is expected to dump up to 10 inches of snow accompanied by winds up to 50 mph across parts of New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Sunday evening. Snow and high winds will likely make travel treacherous through Tuesday morning, Cuomo said. Parts of western and central New York, the Finger Lakes, North Country and Mohawk Valley are expected to see 3 to 7 inches of snow, while some lake-effect snowfall areas of central and northern New York may get up to 10 inches. The National Weather Service has issued winter storm watches and advisories for areas around the state. In the Tug Hill area east of Lake Ontario, a winter storm watch is in effect Monday afternoon through Tuesday morning with snow accumulations of 6 to 10 inches possible.

At least 2.2 million people have cast in-person ballots in New York ahead of Election Day, election officials announced Sunday, the state’s ninth and final day of early voting. New Yorkers reported wait times of a half-hour or less at many polling places and posted selfies of early voting stickers to social media. The New York City Board of Elections shared a photograph of a 100-year-old voter casting a ballot and wearing a mask. On top of the early voting numbers, more than a million voters have already returned absentee ballots, elections officials said, bringing the total number of votes cast prior to Sunday’s tally at nearly 3.3 million. That’s nearly 42% of the total vote in the 2016 presidential election. Absentee ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 3 to be counted.

Businesses and retailers in major cities are increasing Election Day security by boarding up storefront windows and taking other measures in Portland, New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit and Washington, D.C., following a summer of widespread riots and mayhem. “Notice what those cities have in common. They’re all Democrat cities,” the Trump 2020 campaign senior adviser Kayleigh McEnany told “Fox & Friends” Monday, adding it is “all the proof you need that the left should not be given federal power.” “They’re saying if you don’t choose the left’s chosen candidate, we will send the left out to attack you. That’s as close to extortion as you can get and Joe Biden has the power to say, ‘Stand down,’ to the mob. Will he do it?” McEnany asked.