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Sept. 2, 2022, 12:29 a.m.

Mary Peltola makes history as first Alaska Native elected to Congress — and other news for Sept. 2, 2022

Summary

A major political upset in Alaska as a Democrat won the state’s only seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. Former state lawmaker Mary Peltola defeated former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin in a special election to replace former Congressman Don Young, who died earlier this year. It's also the state's first election using ranked-choice voting. Click here for a transcript of the story. ranked-choice voting (a.k.a. preferential voting or ranked voting ) — any voting system in which voters rank their choice of candidates rather than simply choosing one preferred candidate. The top ranked candidates may then compete in a run-off or have second or third choice votes assigned to them until there is a clear majority winner. You may also choose another story from the newscast by clicking the link below and answering the following questions:

Five Facts

  • Who are some of the individuals or groups of people mentioned in the news summary?
  • What stories are covered?
  • Where and When do some of the stories take place?
  • Why did the event(s) take place?
  • How do you think the NewsHour’s producers decided which stories made it into the news summary?

Focus Questions

See, Think, Wonder : What did you notice? What did the story make you think? What story would you want to find out more about? Where would you go to learn more? Media literacy: Who else do you think should have been interviewed in the story you watched?

For More

What students can do : Learn more about ranked-choice voting using the article, Explainer: How Alaska's new voting system helped deliver historic win for U.S. Democrats . Then have a conversation with a peer or family member about whether they think ranked-choice voting makes the electoral process more representative of the will of the people.
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