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L.L. Bean has just added a third shift at its factory in Brunswick, Maine, in an attempt to keep up with demand for its iconic boot.

Orders have quadrupled in the past few years as the boots have become more popular among a younger, more urban crowd.

The company says it saw the trend coming and tried to prepare, but orders outpaced projections. They expect to sell 450,000 pairs of boots in 2014.

People hoping to have the boots in time for Christmas are likely going to be disappointed. The bootsare back ordered through February and even March.

"I've been told it's a good problem to have but I"m disappointed that customers not getting what they want as quickly as they want," said Senior Manufacturing Manager Royce Haines.

Customers like, Mary Clifford, tried to order boots on line, but they were back ordered until January.

"I was very surprised this is what they are known for and at Christmas time you can't get them when you need them," said Clifford.

People who do have boots are trying to capitalize on the shortage and are selling them on Ebay at a much higher cost.

L.L. Bean says it has hired dozens of new boot makers, but it takes up to six months to train someone to make a boot.

The company has also spent a million dollars on new equipment to try and keep pace with demand.

Some customers are having luck at the retail stores. They have a separate inventory, and while sizes are limited, those stores have boots on the shelves.

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Thousands of Philly Democrats wrote in names other than Biden during Pa. Primary, data shows - NBC Philadelphia

Outside money pouring into ads in an Oregon swing district in recent days spurred accusations from Democrats that Republicans are meddling to ensure incumbent GOP Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer faces a weaker opponent in November.

Democrats Janelle Bynum and Jamie McLeod-Skinner are in a fierce contest for the Democratic nomination in the 5th Congressional District, which stretches from Bend to Portland and is one of a handful of races nationwide that could determine control of the U.S. House. Ads for both candidates have accelerated ahead of the May 21 deadline to return ballots.

On Wednesday, ads began running on Portland TV stations praising 2022 nominee McLeod-Skinner for fighting for Medicare for all and putting progressive values into action. The super PAC that paid more than $460,000 to air the ads, Health Equity Now, registered with the Federal Election Commission on May 3 and wont disclose its funders until after the election.

But Democrats, including McLeod-Skinners primary opponent, state Rep. Janelle Bynum, suspect the new group is tied to Republican operatives. It used an ad vendor, FiDi Media, which primarily works with Republican campaigns. And the groups treasurer, Trevor Kowalski, was the assistant treasurer on a political committee for former NFL player Herschel Walker during his 2022 Republican campaign for the U.S. Senate in Georgia.

During the Walker campaign, Kowalski reported sharing an address with Sal Purpura, a Republican compliance operative who has been paid by several national candidates and political action committees. Another apparent housemate of Purpuras in 2020 managed a PAC that bought ads to boost a lagging North Carolina Senate candidate in a move Democrats denounced as an attempt to undermine the strongest Democratic candidate vying for a chance to face incumbent Republican Sen. Thom Tillis.

That history prompted Bynums campaign to refer to the Health Equity Now ads as shady GOP election meddling.

Democrats need to know what MAGA Republicans already do: There is only one candidate who can defeat extremist Lori Chavez-DeRemer this November and that is Janelle Bynum, Bynum campaign manager Blakely Wall said. Let us be crystal clear, Jamie McLeod-Skinner is House Republicans dream opponent because they know they can beat her making this shady GOP election meddling in a Democratic primary all the more alarming.

McLeod-Skinner said in a statement that she has never heard of Health Equity Now and that she doesnt support undisclosed money in elections. She added that the ads are correct about her health care policies.

McLeod-Skinner and her campaign have claimed corporations and Republicans are meddling to support Bynum, who McLeod-Skinner maintains is the weaker candidate. That claim stems from the nearly $475,000 spent on ads and mail supporting Bynum from the 314 Action Fund, a political action committee that exists to elect more scientists to political positions. The group supported McLeod-Skinner in her 2022 campaign and now backs Bynum.

The 314 Action fund also spent $1.7 million to support state Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Portland, in the 3rd Congressional District and tear down fellow Democrat Susheela Jayapal, a former Multnomah County commissioner. The Intercept reported based on unnamed congressional sources that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee is funneling money for that race through 314 Action Fund, as AIPAC disagrees with Jayapals stances on Middle Eastern politics.

The 314 Action Fund doesnt have to reveal its donors until May 20, the day before the primary. In the meantime, Dexters and Bynums primary opponents have claimed, without providing evidence, that MAGA Republicans are behind the science committees political spending. AIPAC has endorsed Chavez-DeRemer and contributes to both Democratic and Republican campaigns throughout the country.

I share the concern about Republicans trying to tip the primary given that it appears that AIPAC, which supports MAGA Republicans who encouraged the January 6th attack on our democracy, has already inserted itself on behalf of Janelle Bynum, McLeod-Skinner said in a statement.

She and her campaign have continued to fundraise on allegations that dark money is supporting Bynum in an attempt to ultimately help McLeod-Skinner.

Corporate and undisclosed money is flooding into our district in a blatant attempt to buy this seat, campaign manager Kelie McWilliams wrote in a Wednesday email seeking contributions. The reason they are attacking Jamie is simple: they want a weak Democrat running against Republican Lori Chavez-DeRemer in November its the only way they can keep this seat red.

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Revised May 17 with an updated dollar amount for the ads bought by Health Equity Now.

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Outside money in Oregon swing district prompts claims of Republican meddling Oregon Capital Chronicle - Oregon Capital Chronicle

President Biden addressed the crowd at a November 2022 rally in Bowie. Photo by Danielle E. Gaines.

A coalition of progressive voters is celebrating the historic impact of its efforts to pressure President Biden to call for a cease-fire in Gaza, by getting 10% of Democrats to buck the president and vote uncommitted in Tuesdays primary.

But analysts said that the 47,587 uncommitted votes cast Tuesday are likely not fatal to Bidens general election campaign.

Neither of these candidates can take any voter for granted. And both of them have to pay attention to any defections, Todd Eberly, a political science professor at St. Marys College of Maryland, said of Biden and likely Republican nominee Donald Trump.

But the question is: are the defections outside of the norm of history. And at least when it comes to Biden and the uncommitted vote, the answer is no, it does not, he said.

But members of Listen to Maryland, a coalition of frustrated voters are declaring a resounding expression of protest against the Biden administration.

Listen to Maryland representative Anna Evans-Goldstein, a 36-year-old Baltimore resident, said the protest vote is to push for the Biden administration to actually listen to the voters who voted him into office. She said she was pleased with Tuesdays results.

Electoral politics is one of the tools at our disposal in this democracy to register dissent, she said. In primary elections, since we have an uncommitted option in Maryland, it is a way for voters to signal to the leader of the party and the party itself that they disagree with a particular stance, the policies and whats going on.

She noted that there were 23,725 uncommitted Democratic votes in 2020, about 2.3% of the Democratic primary vote that year. The number nearly doubled this year, when there were fewer overall voters, accounting for just over 10% of the vote, according to unofficial results.

But Eberly says that comparing Tuesdays results to the 2020 primaries is an apples to oranges comparison, because there were more than a dozen Democratic candidates on the ballot then, including relatively popular alternatives to Biden such as Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.

Eberly says the more apt comparison is the 2012 Democratic primary, when incumbent President Barack Obama was seeking reelection. That year, 37,704 Democrats voted uncommitted, or about 11.5% of 288,766 total votes the primary.

Joe Biden did better than Barack Obama did when he was seeking reelection, Eberly said. So its hard to view that as any kind of victory, moral or otherwise, for the folks who were organizing the uncommitted vote.

Maryland is the latest in a string of states with an uncommitted voter campaign, and Listen to Maryland supporters say the primary results add to a coalition of voters who are frustrated with the options at hand.

In March, 13% of Michigans Democratic primary voters cast uncommitted ballots, followed by 19% of Democrats in Minnesota, among other states.

A Leave it Blank flier that is circulating in New York ahead of that states Democratic primary. Photo by Adam Gray/Getty Images.

Its not clear how the uncommitted primary voters will act in the general presidential election come November whether theyll abstain from the election altogether, ultimately vote for Biden or seek a third option.

Patrick Oray, a 56-year-old Baltimore high school teacher, said this was the first year he voted uncommitted in the primary.

Weve been disgusted with whats going on in Gaza and our supports, military and financial, of Israel in Gaza, Oray said. And we have to say something.

That said, he will probably vote for Biden in November, even if the president does not call for a cease-fire.

But Daljit Soni, 43, an attorney and the daughter of immigrants from northern India, said she is not sure how shell vote if Biden doesnt pause aid to Israel.

Well have to wait and see, she said. Im not sure what I am going to do if he doesnt change course.

Evans-Goldstein said the Listen to Maryland campaign is over and it not will provide directions for what its voter bloc should do in the general election.

I cant speak to what anybody is going to do from now on, she said. This was exclusively a campaign focused on the primaries.

Marylands Republican Party took note of the 47,000 uncommitted Democratic voters, who they see as potential targets to recruit in the general election.

My initial assessment is that President Biden has lost some of his voter base he needs to be able to win them back, said Maryland GOP Chairwoman Nicole Beus Harris. It also tells me that those Democrat voters are perhaps even questioning bigger overall things, the presidential policies or even Democrat policy in general, that they might agree with Republicans on policy standpoints and our plans for America.

The Biden campaign responded to the uncommitted vote, saying the president believes making your voice heard and participating in our democracy is fundamental to who we are as Americans. But those voters and the president have the same goals, the officials said.

He shares the goal for an end to the violence and a just, lasting peace in the Middle East. Hes working tirelessly to that end, said Lauren Hitt, a campaign spokesperson.

Eberly also noted that 20.55% of Maryland Republicans bucked Trump on Tuesday and cast their votes for former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who dropped out of the GOP race in March. That indicates that the Republican Party has a similar enthusiasm problem that will need to be addressed, Eberly said.

Given the choice, Eberly said he would rather the 10% uncommitted than the 20% who voted for Nikki Haley on the Republican side.

I think that the Biden campaign is going to be more interested in trying to attract the 20% of Haley voters than they are going to worry about the 10% uncommitted, he said.

Both of these candidates have flaws. I think its safe to say that voters arent excited that either of them are the nominee of their party, and I think that is something that they both have to overcome in November, Eberly said.

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Will Maryland's 'uncommitted' primary voters sway Biden administration on Gaza cease-fire? - Maryland Matters

Maryland Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate and Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks reacts after a voter tells her he voted for her outside at the Marilyn Praisner Community Recreation Center on May 14 in Burtonsville, Md. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images hide caption

Maryland Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate and Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks reacts after a voter tells her he voted for her outside at the Marilyn Praisner Community Recreation Center on May 14 in Burtonsville, Md.

Maryland Democrats chose Prince George's County Executive Angela Alsobrooks to be the party's nominee for U.S. Senate in Tuesday's primary election, beating a handful of Democrats including Rep. David Trone. Her win sets up a crucial race for the party in its attempts to maintain control of the chamber this fall.

Alsobrooks will face former Gov. Larry Hogan, who easily won the Republican nomination and gives the party its best chance to win a Senate seat in Maryland for the first time since 1980.

As Trone conceded the Democratic contest Tuesday night, he urged his supporters to move forward by backing Alsobrooks and reelecting President Biden.

"We cannot let the party of Trump take our Senate," he said. "We can't let them take our country."

Incumbent Sen. Ben Cardin, 80, announced he would not seek a fourth term in office last year. That set off a scramble within the Democratic Party to replace him, and Alsobrooks and Trone quickly rose to the top of the list. It was expected the winner of their clash would coast to the seat in the fall election.

Former Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan visits the Bridge Boat Show in Stevensville, Md., April 12. Hogan easily won the Republican Senate primary in the state on Tuesday. Susan Walsh/AP hide caption

Former Republican Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan visits the Bridge Boat Show in Stevensville, Md., April 12. Hogan easily won the Republican Senate primary in the state on Tuesday.

But on Feb. 9, the last day of candidate filing for the primary, Hogan announced he would seek the Republican nomination after consulting with Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell and former President George W. Bush. The 67-year-old popular two-term governor, portrayed as a moderate in large part because of his criticisms of former President Donald Trump, had previously shown no interest in the race, instead making noise about a potential presidential run.

Alsobrooks is in her second term as county executive of Prince George's County in the Washington, D.C., suburbs. She previously served as state's attorney in the county, which is the second largest by population in the state. If elected, the 52-year-old Alsobrooks would be only the third Black woman ever elected to the Senate, and the first from Maryland. She had the backing of most of the state's Democratic establishment, including Gov. Wes Moore.

Trone poured a significant amount of his wealth into his Senate hopes but failed to win. He is in his third term in Congress representing Maryland's 6th District, which comprises the westernmost part of the state. The 68-year-old is the co-founder of the national liquor store chain Total Wine and More and he mostly self-funded his campaign, spending more than $60 million.

Hogan easily won the Republican primary with two-thirds of the vote. The only other candidate with double-digit support was Robin Ficker, a perennial candidate and disbarred attorney best known for his days as a heckling fan at Washington Bullets (now Wizards) games at the Capital Center in Landover.

"Like you, I am completely fed up with politics-as-usual in Washington where the politicians on both sides seem to be more interested in attacking each other than in actually getting anything done for the people they represent," Hogan told supporters on primary night in Annapolis.

"I don't come from the performative arts school of politics. I come from the get-to-work and get things done school, and I'll work with anyone who wants to do the people's business. Most Marylanders and most Americans prefer straight talk to empty rhetoric and they think it's time for less talk and more action," he continued.

Polls had shown a tight race, with Hogan benefitting from his statewide name recognition and popularity as governor. But the most recent polls done this month from Public Policy Polling and Emerson College show Hogan trailing Alsobrooks. The PPP poll had her winning 46% to 37% with 17% undecided, and the Emerson College poll had Alsobrooks up 48% to 38% with 14% undecided.

Charles Mathias was the last Republican to win a U.S. Senate race in Maryland, winning his third and final term in 1980. The closest the party has come to winning this century was in 2006, when Cardin won his first term by defeating then-Lt. Gov. and future Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele 54% to 44%.

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Who is Angela Alsobrooks? The Maryland Democrat faces Larry Hogan this fall - NPR

Chris Gibbs, a farmer who raises soybeans, corn and cattle, spent much of his adult life as a leader of the Republican Party in Shelby County, Ohio. He rose from vice chair of the local executive committee to party chairman, a role he served in for seven years, until 2015. Last fall he was elected to a far tougher job: chairman of the Democratic Party in Shelby County, where registered Republicans outnumber Democrats more than eight to one.

The story of his political conversion offers a glimmer of hope to Democrats in otherwise inhospitable terrain and a possible path forward in places where the party has withered. His pitch? At a time when Republicans must fall in line behind Donald Trump, Democrats have the chance to rebrand themselves as the party of freedom, a concept valued by rural people everywhere.

In todays Republican Party, You either speak with a Trump voice or youre vaporized, Mr. Gibbs told me. We chatted on a recent evening in his garage in Maplewood, after we searched his pasture for newborn calves. (We found three.) In the Democratic Party, everybody gets a voice. You dont always get your way, but you get a voice.

Mr. Gibbs, 65, long identified as a moderate Republican, of the sort Ohio used to be known for, in the era of Gov. John Kasich and Senator Rob Portman. He started to feel out of step with the party in 2014 as it turned against immigration. Nevertheless, in 2016 Mr. Gibbs voted for Mr. Trump, hoping for the best.

He quickly grew disillusioned by Mr. Trumps lack of statesmanship. Then came the tariff war with China, which ate into the value of Mr. Gibbss soybean crop in 2018. He wrote a scathing opinion essay in a local paper that compared the American farmer to Stormy Daniels. Both had gotten screwed by Mr. Trump, he wrote, and been offered cash to keep their mouths shut.

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Opinion | Can This Ex-Republican Revive Democrats in Rural Ohio? - The New York Times