May 21, 2019 (Tuesday)
Armed conflict and attacks
- Eleven people were killed in an ambush at 12th mile in Khonsa-Deomali road in Tirap District in Arunachal Pradesh. (Reuters)
Business and economy
- Pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co. announces that it will purchase Peloton Therapeutics Inc. for $1.05 billion in cash. The catalyst for the deal is Peloton's recent progress in the development of a kidney cancer treatment. (Reuters)
- The Jamie Oliver Restaurant Group, owned by British restaurateur Jamie Oliver, collapses into administration, resulting in 1,000 job losses. (BBC News)
International relations
- 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis, Italy–Venezuela relations
- Venezuela's Ambassador to Italy, Isaías Rodríguez, resigns, citing the government's lack of finances amid international sanctions on the Nicolás Maduro government. Rodríguez says, due to the sanctions, he has been unable to pay his staff or the rent for his office in Rome. (The Guardian)
Law and crime
- Aftermath of the Christchurch mosque shootings
- Brenton Tarrant, accused of killing 51 people and wounding 49 others in two New Zealand mosques, is also charged with committing terrorist acts. (New York Post) (Mid Day)
- Washington becomes the first U.S. state to legalize human composting, the right to allow people to have their body turned into soil after death. The process is seen as an alternative to traditional cremations and burials. (BBC News)
- The California High-Speed Rail Authority sues the U.S. Transportation Department to block the cancelling of $929 million federal grant for the California High-Speed Rail project. The suit comes after the Trump administration canceled the federal grant for California's bullet train on May 16, 2019. (Los Angeles Times)
- 2015–19 Irish gangland feud
- A man is shot dead and his car set alight in Walshestown near Balbriggan, Dublin. It is believed the shooting is linked to the 2015–19 Irish gangland feud. (RTÉ)
- Aftermath of the Mueller special counsel investigation
- The United States House Committee on the Judiciary subpoenas former White House Communications Director Hope Hicks and former Deputy White House Counsel Annie Donaldson in regards to their actions during the special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. (The Washington Post)
Politics and elections
- 2019 Indonesian general election
- Indonesia's General Elections Commission announces that incumbent President Joko Widodo has won last month's presidential election, with 55.5% of the vote. His rival Prabowo Subianto's team, however, refuses to sign and validate the results. (The Guardian)
- 2019 Malawian general election
- Voters head to the polls to elect the next President of Malawi, Parliament and local government councillors. (BBC News) (France 24)
- 2019 Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district special election
- Voters head to the polls in a special election to elect a new U.S. House Representative to finish the term for Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district after Republican Tom Marino resigned on January 23, 2019. (Fox Philadelphia)
- Republican Fred Keller wins the special election against his Democratic opponent Marc Friedenberg. (The Hill) (The New York Times)
- Trial of Catalonia independence leaders
- The Catalan leaders who are imprisoned accused of rebellion, Oriol Junqueras, Jordi Turull, Jordi Sànchez and Josep Rull, are sworn in as members of the Congress of Deputies after being elected in the 28th April general election by an authorization of the Supreme Court. (Fox News)
- Catalan leader Raül Romeva is sworn in as Senator. (The Washington Post)
- 2019 Kentucky elections
- Incumbent Governor Matt Bevin wins the Republican nomination and Andy Beshear wins the Democratic nomination primaries ahead of the November 5 gubernatorial election. (The New York Times) (Lexington Herald-Leader)
- Dutch Minister of Justice and Security Mark Harbers resigns amid a scandal over a government report which played down crimes committed by asylum seekers in the country, including rapes and murders, which were placed under a category called "other". The omission was first highlighted by Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf. (FRANCE 24)
Sports
- 2019 NBA playoffs
- The Golden State Warriors qualify for the NBA Finals for the fifth year in a row by defeating the Portland Trail Blazers, 119–117, in overtime in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals. (USA Today)