Good morning. In today’s edition:

• 🗳️ Inside the push to block ballot access for third parties
• ☕ Starbucks has a new CEO
• 🪙 Sunken treasure

… and more.

🚀⏰ Ready, Set, Go: Today’s news should be a ~4.97-minute read (1,324 words).

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"Never say never. Because limits, like fears, are often just an illusion."

–Michael Jordan (b. 1963)

Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s campaign was dealt a blow on Monday, when a judge ruled his name shouldn’t appear on New York’s ballot in November because RFK Jr. falsely claimed his place of residency on nominating petitions.

The New York judge overseeing the legal challenge – which was backed by a Democratic-aligned PAC – concluded the rented bedroom Kennedy claimed as his residence in New York was a “sham address,” since evidence shows he actually resides in California.

• New York residency is especially important to Kennedy because his running mate, Nicole Shanahan, lists California as her home state.
• And under a constitutional quirk, presidential and VP candidates who both hail from the same state are ineligible to receive that state’s electoral votes – so RFK Jr. claiming residency in California would prevent him from capturing its 54 electoral votes.

The suit stems from a nationwide effort to challenge ballot access for third parties. The Democratic Party has dedicated a substantial legal and ground operation to challenging ballot access for third-party candidates like Kennedy, progressive activist Cornel West, and Green Party nominee Jill Stein, whom party leaders view as potential threats to the Democratic ticket.

• The aim “is to ensure all the candidates are playing by the rules, and to seek to hold them accountable when they are not,” according to Robert Lenhard, a lawyer co-leading the Democratic Party’s legal offensive.
• While the Republican Party hasn’t launched a nationwide anti-third-party campaign this election season, GOP officials in several states have backed efforts to prevent Kennedy, West, Stein, and/or Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver from appearing on November’s presidential ballot.

Big picture: Third-party candidates typically struggle to compete in presidential elections, with the most successful third-party run in modern US history – Ross Perot’s 1992 campaign – receiving ~19% of the popular vote and zero electoral votes.

Many experts attribute this to two main reasons:

1. Federal law mandates that all members of Congress are elected from single-member districts, meaning only one person – and one party – represents any single voting district (which naturally resolves into a two-party system, per Duverger's law).
2. Democratic and GOP-controlled state legislatures have given themselves automatic pathways to being on the ballot each election, while imposing relatively difficult requirements for all other parties. This entrenchment also makes it difficult for third-party candidates to be admitted into presidential debates, or drum up enough support to secure 270+ electoral votes.

📊 Flash poll: In your opinion, does America need more than two major political parties?

• Yes
• No
• Unsure/other

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🇬🇷 Greece’s worst wildfire of 2024 continues to spread near Athens. The ongoing fire, which affected 156+ square miles as of yesterday evening, has prompted thousands of evacuations since it first started on Sunday. Local officials say it’s currently unclear how the wildfire started, though heavy winds and a prolonged drought have worsened its spread. The EU is sending rescue aid, aircraft, and firefighting teams to combat the blaze.

🇮🇳 Indian law enforcement busted a fake cricket league swindling Russian gamblers. In 2022, four men created a fake Indian Premier League tournament aimed at scamming gamblers in Russia out of thousands of dollars via illegal online betting on matches. The hoax games were broadcast as live YouTube streams featuring the mimicked voices of famous cricket commentators and a BBC logo. The fake tournament was eventually shut down by Indian law enforcement, while one of the scam’s main organizers was recently arrested after traveling to India from Russia.

🇨🇳 China lost a record $15 billion in foreign investment last quarter. Analysts largely attribute the decline to new espionage laws in China (which carry enhanced surveillance powers), growing geopolitical tensions with the West, and China’s relatively poor economic performance since the pandemic. Meanwhile, China’s overseas investment hit a record $71 billion last quarter, up 80+% from the same period last year.

Yesterday, Starbucks revealed it walked into Chipotle and ordered itself a CEO. Brian Niccol, chief executive of the burrito chain, will be replacing Laxman Narasimhan as head of the coffee chain in September, the company announced.

Starbucks investors are more excited about the move than a teenager after their first kiss. The coffee chain’s shares soared 25% following the announcement, the largest single-day percentage increase since the company’s market debut in 1992, while Chipotle shares fell 8% (a total swing of ~$30 billion).

Driving the excitement is Niccol’s resume. He previously served as CEO of Yum Brands’ Taco Bell before taking over the top role at Chipotle in 2018. At the time, the burrito chain was reeling from a foodborne illness scandal – and Niccol is credited with its turnaround. During his tenure, Chipotle’s stock rose 773% (Starbucks shares are up just 35% for the same period, while the S&P 500 has gained 99%).

Big picture: A challenging consumer environment, worsening customer experience, and rising competition have hurt Starbuck’s performance. In its latest quarter, the chain reported a 3% decline in US same-store sales, as well as weak sales in China, its second-largest market.

👀 Looking ahead… In addition to these issues👆, Niccol will also have to navigate internal politics. Activist investor firm Elliot Management has built a stake in the chain, and Howard Schultz, longtime Starbucks CEO and its current sixth-largest shareholder, has no official position at the company but continues to be influential in its operations.

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“We’ve completely rebuilt the assistant experience.”

• Yesterday, Google officially launched a new Android software update that brings its upgraded Gemini AI assistant to hundreds of supported phone models. Among other things, Google says Gemini now has the ability to respond to users based on what’s on their phone screen, meaning it can do things like add a list of restaurants from a YouTube travel video to Google Maps, or provide a cooking recipe based on a photo of ingredients. Google’s new update ensures consumers can access its AI-enhanced devices before similar tools from Apple, which is launching its AI on iPhones, Macs, and iPads later this year. However, the tech giants’ full-steam-ahead charge into AI products could face some hurdles: a recent study found consumers are significantly less likely to purchase a product if AI is mentioned in its description, especially when it comes to "high-risk" purchases like expensive electronics.

• ☝️ A trove of artifacts from Egypt’s last dynasty was recently discovered across 63 tombs in the Nile Delta area; the findings include dozens of gold pieces and jewelry that belonged to rich ancient Egyptians ~2,500 years ago.

BUSINESS & MARKETS

in partnership with Caliber

• 💰 US markets rose across the board ahead of today’s CPI release (S&P: +1.7%; Dow: +1.0%; Nasdaq: +2.4%). | 📝 Wholesale inflation rose 0.1% in July, less than the 0.2% forecasted.
• 🏰 The median home price in Silicon Valley was north of $2 million in Q2; it marks the first time any US metropolitan area has exceeded that threshold.
• 🍻 Tilray Brands, a Canadian cannabis company, is acquiring four craft beer brands from Molson Coors.

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SPORTS, MEDIA & ENTERTAINMENT

• 🥇👀 The Paris Olympics averaged 30.6 million primetime viewers across all NBCUniversal platforms; this marks an 82% increase over the 2021 Tokyo Games. (Dive deeper: NBC is betting the Olympics will give Peacock a boost)
• 🏀 Dearica Hamby, a three-time WNBA All-Star, filed a lawsuit against the league and her former team, the Las Vegas Aces, accusing the team of discrimination and retaliation over her recent pregnancy.
• 📺 Paramount is shutting down its namesake TV studio as part of major layoffs announced last week. | 🎨 Banksy has unveiled a now-finished series of nine animal-themed artworks on the streets of London over the past nine days.

SCIENCE, SPACE & EMERGING TECH

in partnership with Niphtio

• 🪐 Mars and Jupiter appeared so close to each other early this morning that they looked like a "double planet"; the phenomenon, which marked the planets’ closest proximity from an Earth perspective since 2018, will persist this week.
• 📱🧒 Tablet use in early childhood is linked to a higher rate of anger outbursts in children one year later, according to a new study.
• 🔋🩹 A battery-powered bandage was able to heal wounds in animals 30% faster than conventional bandages, per a new study; the battery generates an electric field which helps accelerate healing in chronic wounds.

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MISCELLANEOUS

• 🚫 The Biden administration outlined new proposals that would make it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions.
• 🚗 Ford and Mazda issued “do not drive” alerts for 457,000 cars whose owners have yet to get them fixed following several recalls of faulty Takata airbags.
• 💼 The UAW filed federal labor charges against former President Trump and Elon Musk for their comments in Monday’s interview that promoted the practice of firing employees who threaten to strike.

CLICKBAIT

• 🤑 The most—and least—expensive U.S. states based on average monthly costs.

🏈💰 Stat of the Day: The Dallas Cowboys haven’t won a Super Bowl in nearly 30 years – but that hasn’t put a damper on the widespread popularity of “America’s Team.” According to Sportico’s annual ranking of NFL teams by valuation, the Cowboys stand head-and-shoulders above the rest of the league with a $10.3 billion valuation, making them the first pro sports team in history to surpass the 11-figure mark. The LA Rams ranked second ($7.79 billion), followed by the NY Giants ($7.65 billion) and New England Patriots ($7.31 billion). Overall, Sportico pegged the combined value of the 32 NFL franchises at $190 billion.

🤔 Did You Know? If fish could capitalize on shipwrecks, they’d have a thriving economy. There are an estimated 3+ million ships holding an estimated $60 billion worth of treasure on the ocean floor worldwide.

📰 Worth a Read: The World Isn’t Actually Going to Hell in a Handbasket → (WSJ)

Three years ago, Lucy Perez spent three days in the rain and muck trying to catch an elusive musky fish, a species nicknamed the "fish of 10,000 casts." 

• It took close to 30 hours before a musky fish finally bit – and when she reeled it in, it was one of the biggest her father, a seasoned fisherman, had ever seen. 

At the time, Lucy was only nine years old. 

🎣 More recently, 12-year-old Lucy claimed Maryland’s Master Angler Milestone Award, aka the "black belt" of fishing. She's the 10th person to win the award since its inception in 2019, as well as the only female and only child to do so.

Can you name the three highest-grossing romantic comedies of all time in the US and Canada? (Hint: All three were released between 2000-2005)

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Start referring.👇

1. My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
2. What Women Want (2000)
3. Hitch (2005)

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