Hi from CNN, this is Madeleine Thompson with five things you need to know for Monday, September 23rd. Since the 2020 election, Republicans have gained in voter registration compared to Democrats across four key battleground states. CNN's David Wright explains.

Yeah, it's one of the key data points that close election watchers are tracking. So let's look at these four key states. In Arizona, Republicans have built their registration lead over Democrats from a three point lead in November 2020 to a six point lead in the latest available data. In Pennsylvania, the top battleground state of the cycle, Republicans have cut Democrats lead in half. They only lead voter registration by four points now, compared to eight points in 2020. And in both Nevada and North Carolina, Democrats only lead Republicans in voter registration by one point. Those leads were much larger in 2020 in both states, with a five point advantage for Democrats in Nevada and a six point lead in North Carolina. We should note that there's still plenty of time to register in these states. People wanting to cast a ballot in Arizona, North Carolina and Pennsylvania can continue registering to vote into October. And Nevada has Election Day voter registration.

Now, these numbers aren't necessarily predictive of election results. And in all of the states, especially Nevada and North Carolina, the share of voters who aren't registered with either party has increased since November 2020.

So world leaders are gathering in New York for the U.N. General Assembly this week. But some U.S. officials are concerned that the annual global event could fan the flames of tension in the Middle East. That's according to two U.S. officials. Jordan's minister of foreign affairs has already called on the U.N. Security Council to, quote, curb Israeli aggression, and the Egyptian foreign ministry echoed its support for Lebanon in a statement. Both nations have warned of dire consequences if the situation worsens. It's unclear yet if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a former ambassador to the U.N., will attend. If he does give a speech later next week, there could be a lot of walkouts from the assembly hall.

New numbers from the F.B.I. show an estimated 3% decline in violent crime across the U.S. last year. The bureau says it gathers statistics from more than 16,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide. According to the FBI, murder and non negligent manslaughter fell nearly 12% from 2022 to 2023. That's the largest drop in decades. The report, a number of rapes also dropped significantly by more than 9%, while hate crimes dropped less than 1%. Crime rates are at the forefront of both presidential campaigns. Former President Donald Trump has tried to portray Vice President Kamala Harris as weak on crime. Meanwhile, Harris has touted her work as a former California prosecutor while pointing to Trump's pending criminal cases.

A man who killed ten people at a Colorado grocery store was found guilty today of ten counts of murder. With its verdict, the jury rejected Ahmad al Aliwi Alissa, a claim of not guilty by reason of insanity. His attorneys never denied he committed the 2021 shooting at King Soopers Grocery Store in Boulder, Colorado. Instead, the case is centered around Alissa's mental state. To determine whether he had been legally insane at the time, jurors had to weigh whether they believed he was able to form intent or distinguish right from wrong. Alissa was found incompetent to stand trial in 2021, then deemed competent in 2023 after undergoing treatment in a state hospital. Coming up, can a multibillion dollar plan save movie theaters?

The biggest movie theater chains in the U.S. and Canada are joining forces to get customers to watch films on the big screen again. They have a $2.2 billion renovation plan. And according to the National Association of Theater Owners, that's an industry group that represents North America's movie chains, this three year investment will, quote, modernize and improve theaters of all sizes. So expect upgrades to every aspect of the theater experience, from sound systems to seating and concessions.

That's a wrap. We'll be back tomorrow at 6 a.m. Eastern.