2016 Presidential Election

President Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen acknowledged on Thursday that he schemed to rig online polls that sought to make Trump seem like a more plausible presidential candidate.

The story was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. In a tweet following the report, Cohen said he sought to help Trump's political aspirations, having been directed by the candidate.

FBI Director James Comey lit the fuse Monday on a political time bomb and no one — including him — knows how long it will take to burn or what kind of damage it may cause when it goes off.

Comey confirmed to members of Congress that his investigators are looking into possible collusion between the campaign that elected President Trump and the Russian government. In fact, he said, the FBI has been doing so since last July.

Electors from the 50 states will convene in their state capitols Monday and cast their votes for president. Republican Donald Trump is assured of a victory, unless there is a massive — and totally unexpected — defection by the electors who are pledged to support him.

Here are five things you should know about the Electoral College:

1. How do you get to be an elector?

President-elect Donald Trump doesn't seem to like suggestions that his victory over Hillary Clinton was anything but huge.

Trump made false claims that Clinton's lead in the popular vote was due to illegal voting.

He has chafed at recount efforts in states like Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania — even though such recounts pose no risk to Trump's victory, since he won those states by tens of thousands of votes.

Hillary Clinton's campaign said Saturday it will participate in the recount efforts in Wisconsin spearheaded by Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein. If Stein also pursues recounts in Pennsylvania and Michigan, as she has pledged, the Clinton campaign will participate in those efforts, as well.

The recount in Wisconsin could begin as early as next week.

Donald Trump's election victory came with plenty of support from the Great Lakes region -- unofficial returns show him winning five of the eight states.

But in the aftermath of the election, environmental advocates were trying to determine how his presidency will affect the region, especially in light of his pledge to defund the Environmental Protection Agency.

Traditionally, the media puts coverage of political polls on hold on Election Day, and only begins reporting on exit polls after the polls have closed. This year, though, a number of newer outlets are planning to cover projections throughout the day.

Votecastr, a partnership between Slate and Vice News, will provide coverage of the race in part by tracking the number of people who have voted at particular polling stations.

Speaking at a rally in Tampa, Fla., on Wednesday, Hillary Clinton told the story of a leukemia patient named Steven who "ditched his oxygen tank," as Clinton told it, to vote early.

"If Steven can do that, nobody has any excuses," she chided the crowd.

The Clinton camp is putting a hard push on to turn out the vote before Nov. 8. The number of people taking advantage of early voting could hit record levels this year. Here's a primer on early voting:

1. How many people will vote early this year?

Investigators were looking into why a charter aircraft carrying Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and more than 40 others slid off the runway Thursday night while landing at LaGuardia Airport in the New York City borough of Queens.

NPR's Scott Detrow reports that Pence, Donald Trump's running mate, and everyone else on board was safe after the jet touched down in stormy weather and just kept going.

This evening's face-off between the 2016 vice presidential hopefuls certainly won't have the pizzazz — or inevitable enmity — that last week's debate between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton had.

Donald Trump has officially introduced Indiana Gov. Mike Pence as his vice presidential running mate.

"I've found the leader who will help us deliver a safe society and a prosperous, really prosperous society for all Americans," Trump said at a campaign event in New York Saturday. "Indiana Governor Mike Pence was my first choice."

Trump spoke at length about his admiration for Pence's record in Indiana. "He's really got the skills of a highly talented executive," he said.