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Liverpool will like nothing more than to officially hand over its title as English Premier League champion to Manchester City on Sunday. City moved to the brink of reclaiming the league crown by beating Crystal Palace 2-0. One more win will complete the job for Pep Guardiola’s players. That's unless Liverpool does it for them with a victory at second-place Manchester United, the only team that can mathematically stop City. Liverpool heads to Old Trafford desperate for a win to keep alive its bid to qualify for next season's Champions League. Chelsea occupies the fourth and final Champions League qualification spot and is seven points ahead of Liverpool after a 2-0 win over Fulham.

The Missouri Legislature is the latest statehouse fighting to undo voter-backed ballot measures. Missouri's GOP-led Senate this past week voted against paying for voter-approved Medicaid expansion. The battle between Missouri lawmakers and voters is just one example of pushback to direct democracy. The purpose of ballot initiatives is to let voters address issues that lawmakers don't act on. Direct democracy expert Craig Burnett says by definition, voter-driven policies clash with what lawmakers want to do. Legislatures in response often try to claw power back and overturn ballot initiatives. South Dakota, Utah, Montana, Arizona and Florida are all states where lawmakers recently sought to undermine voter-approved measures. 

California is giving 76,000 inmates the opportunity to leave prison earlier. They include violent and repeat felons. The move comes as the state aims to further trim the population of what once was the nation’s largest state correctional system. More than 63,000 inmates convicted of violent crimes will be eligible for good behavior credits that shorten their sentences by one-third instead of the previous one-fifth under new rules that take effect Saturday. About 13,000 inmates convicted of serious but nonviolent offenses will be eligible for release after serving half their sentences.

Two Western states known for rugged landscapes and wide-open spaces are bucking the trend of sluggish U.S. population growth, which dipped to the lowest level since the Great Depression. In Utah, births largely drove what has been the fastest growth in the country over the past decade. In neighboring Idaho, newcomers from California and other states helped it capture the second spot. Both states have long been lightly populated. Their expansion comes with breakneck economic growth that has driven housing prices far above wages and sparked concern about strains on infrastructure.

Brad Keselowski made it nine different winners through the first 10 races of the NASCAR Cup Series season last week at Talladega. Now, as the series shifts to Kansas Speedway, Denny Hamlin and Kevin Harvick are among the stars trying to make it 10 of 11 on Sunday. Both have three wins at the speedway just west of downtown Kansas City. Also searching for their first wins this season are reigning series champion Chase Elliott and Kyle Busch, whose six wins across all series are the most in the 20-year history of the speedway.

Joe Biden’s presidency is entering a new and more perilous phase. He's past the 100-day mark in office, and he'll have to overcome stiffer Republican opposition to his agenda and keep Democrats united as he pushes for $4 trillion on programs that have echoes of the New Deal and the Great Society. Biden is racing against the calendar while governing with the most slender of congressional majorities. He knows that historically the party in the White House loses seats in midterm elections, and that could happen in 2022. His next 100 days will feature his first foreign trip but will be dominated by efforts to pass his proposals on infrastructure and children, families and education.

The Los Angeles Dodgers will offer fully vaccinated-only sections for each game during their upcoming nine-game homestand against the Mariners and Diamondbacks starting May 11. Seats will be located on the right field side in the loge and reserve levels, and to encourage area residents to get vaccinated the Dodgers are offering a 20% discount. The special sections will not require social distancing, but masks will be required when not eating or drinking, and fans will be seated directly next to other parties. The Dodgers previously hosted fans in a fully vaccinated-only section on April 24, and it sold out.

BRUSSELS (AP) — A few thousand people gathered for an illegal party in a Brussels park Saturday to protest COVID-19 restrictions, only to be met with a big police force who used a water cannon and tear gas to disperse…

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s state statistical service says the number of deaths nationwide in the first three months of 2021 was more than 25% higher than the same period a year ago, and it reported thousands more deaths due to…

Efforts to raise gas taxes for roads and bridges are slowing in states as discussions are picking up in Washington about a big transportation funding boost. The American Road & Transportation Builders Association says the number of transportation funding plans being proposed in states is down by nearly half. So far, not a single state transportation tax increase has passed. But states could be in line for more federal money. President Joe Biden and Republican members of Congress have proposed separate infrastructure spending bills. Part of a coronavirus relief act signed by Biden also could potentially go toward transportation projects.

In a state famous for election night fiascoes, Florida’s handling of the November presidential election is being hailed as a sign it finally got things right. Even so, Florida Republicans are placing new rules on voting by mail, drop boxes and ballot-handling. And that's causing an outcry among Democrats and voting rights advocates. A GOP-drafted election bill passed the legislature on Thursday and GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis said he will soon sign it into law. Fellow Republicans call the legislation “guardrails” against election fraud. But Democrats complain it's the latest in a wave of GOP-backed election bills that would disproportionately disenfranchise voters of color and discourage certain voters.

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary on Saturday loosened several COVID-19 restrictions for people with government-issued immunity cards, the latest in a series of reopening measures that have followed an ambitious vaccination campaign. As of Saturday, individuals with the plastic cards…

As the U.S. faces a reckoning over its history of racism, some Native American tribal nations that once owned slaves also are grappling with their own mistreatment of Black people. When Native American tribes were forced from their ancestral homelands in the southeastern United States to what is now Oklahoma in the 1800s, thousands of Black slaves owned by tribal members also were forced to make the journey. Nearly 200 years later, many of the thousands of descendants of those Black slaves, known as Freedmen, are still fighting to be recognized by the tribes that once owned their ancestors.

The fatal shooting of a Black man by sheriff’s deputies has sent shock waves through North Carolina's Elizabeth City. The majority Black city in the state’s rural northeastern corner holds an important place in African American history in the 19th and 20th centuries. But some residents say it seemed too close-knit and too out-of-the-way to become a flashpoint in the 21st. Andrew Brown Jr., was shot by Pasquotank County sheriff’s deputies serving warrants at his house on April 21. An independent autopsy commissioned by his family said Brown was behind the wheel of his car when he was shot in the back of the head. The killing has sparked protests and calls for police body camera footage to be released. 

More than 400 people have been charged with federal crimes in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, but prison time may be another story for many of them. With riot cases flooding into Washington’s federal court, the Justice Department is under pressure to quickly resolve the least serious cases. Defendants charged with crimes such as conspiracy and assaulting officers are looking at hefty sentences. Others who were in mob but didn’t join in any violence or destruction could see little to no time behind bars. Only one defendant has pleaded guilty so far, but prosecutors have said more plea offers are coming. 

China’s Lin Xiyu tapped in on the 18th hole for her fourth birdie of the back nine and a 5-under 67 to take a one-stroke lead after three rounds of the LPGA Tour’s HSBC Women’s World Championship. Lin had a 54-hole total of 14-under 202 at Sentosa Golf Club. Hannah Green shot her second consecutive 66 to move into a share of second place with world No. 2-ranked Inbee Park, who shot 70 with a birdie on the 18th after a double-bogey 7 on the 16th cost her the lead. Park led by one stroke after the first round and was tied for the lead after two.

LeBron James scored 16 points in his return to the Los Angeles Lakers lineup, but it wasn’t enough as the Sacramento Kings rallied for a 110-106 victory. James suffered a high right ankle sprain on March 20 against the Atlanta Hawks and missed 20 games, which was the longest absence of his career. He played 32 minutes and was 6 of 12 from the field. He missed what would had been a go-ahead 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds remaining as Los Angeles lost for the fifth time in six games. Tyrese Haliburton led Sacramento with 23 points and 10 assists, and Richaun Holmes added 22 points. Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 22 points and 11 rebounds, and Andre Drummond had 17 points.

Slugger Bryce Harper and shortstop Didi Gregorius are out of Philadelphia’s lineup for now. Harper has a sore wrist, the result of that 97 mph fastball that also hit his face Wednesday night in St. Louis. The pitch from Cardinals reliever Genesis Cabrera left Harper bloodied, but the star outfielder considered him fortunate he wasn’t hurt worse. Gregorius was put on the COVID-19 injured list.

Two days down, but the NFL Draft is only half done and there are still plenty of celebrated college players available to be picked. The defensive players of the year in both the Big Ten and Pac-12 are still available heading into Saturday's fourth through seventh rounds. Looking for a quarterback? There are multiyear starters from which to choose. And several decorated offensive playmakers are still left to fill the remaining 154 picks.

From a betting standpoint, Saturday's Kentucky Derby could be wide open. Essential Quality will be the favorite and seems like the best horse on paper, plus comes in with a perfect career record of 5 for 5. Even with a horse that good, there are plenty of other contenders. And if Known Agenda can handle the inside post, something that will scare many bettors away, he might just be the one to prevail in the Run for the Roses.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — America’s longest war, the two-decade-long conflict in Afghanistan that started in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, killed tens of thousands of people, dogged four U.S. presidents and ultimately proved unwinnable despite…