Here is this week’s news quiz! Good luck!

1. Which two candidates qualified for the Ecuadorian presidential run-off election?

Spoiler
Centre-right President Daniel Noboa and left-wing lawyer Luisa Gonzalez. Noboa won 44.29% of the first round vote versus Gonzalez’s 43.9%. Noboa’s supporters thought that they would win the first round outright, so the result was disappointing. The runoff election will take place in April.

2. The president of which country resigned this week?

Spoiler
Romania. President Klaus Iohannis resigned on Monday due to growing pressure from populist groups that were unhappy with him aiming to keep power until a new presidential election takes place on May 4. Romania’s presidential runoff that was scheduled for December 8 was cancelled when the Romanian Constitutional Court ruled that the first round was interfered with by Russia. Populist forces had threatened to impeach and remove Iohannis from office unless he stepped down.

3. Businessman Elon Musk and a group of investors are offering a hostile bid for which nonprofit entity?

Spoiler
OpenAI. Musk and his group are offering $97.4 billion to buy the nonprofit organization, most famous for making ChatGPT. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman quickly rejected Musk’s bid. Musk was once part of OpenAI’s board, leaving it in 2018 over the direction of the startup.

4. What is 2024 YR4?

Spoiler
It is an asteroid that was recently discovered. Scientists estimate that it has a 2.2% chance of hitting Earth on December 22, 2032. Scientists will have to do more observations to determine the threat that it poses to Earth but have said that it is likely to be a close pass at Earth rather than an impact. Based on what has been reported so far, the asteroid is not a “planet killer” but would cause damage in a localized area where it lands, which could be along the Southern Hemisphere.

5. Who is the new U.S. Secretary of Energy?

Spoiler
Chris Wright. He was confirmed by a 59-38 vote in the Senate last week. Seven Democrats and one independent crossed over to vote for him. Wright was the CEO of Liberty Energy before his confirmation. He has announced that his top priority will be to expand domestic energy production.

6. Who is the current leader of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Germany?

Spoiler
Friedrich Merz. He has led the CDU since January 2022. It is possible that he could become Germany’s next chancellor if the CDU forms a governing majority after its general election on February 23. Merz has been criticized for an apparent willingness to work with the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on immigration policy. That caused him to be blasted by former CDU leader and chancellor Angela Merkel.

7. Which European nation suffered its worst mass shooting last week?

Spoiler
Sweden. A gunman killed seven women and three men at an adult education center in Orebro last Tuesday. The gunman took his own life after the attack. Police reports say that the gunman legally owned his four rifles. In response to the incident, Sweden’s government announced plans to pass new laws to make it tougher to own a firearm and restrict certain types of firearms.

8. Why were victories in the Delhi elections important for the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)?

Spoiler
The BJP, which won or was leading 48 of the 70 races for legislative seats in the Delhi assembly, had not had power in the capital city since 1998. It took advantage of corruption allegations that faced the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which was leading in 22 of the races. Indian election experts said that the victory will further strengthen Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who oversaw the loss of the BJP’s governing majority in last year’s general election.

9. Why did President Trump sign an executive order freezing aid to South Africa last week?

Spoiler
The move was in response to South Africa passing a new land law that would allow for land seizures without compensation. There is an inequality of land ownership in South Africa between its black majority and white minority. Critics of the South Africa policy say that it will send the nation to disaster, pointing to a bad land reform policy in Zimbabwe decades ago. According to the South African government, Trump’s charges that the policy will treat “certain classes of people…very badly” was incorrect.

10. Last week, President Trump sent shockwaves throughout the Middle East by suggesting that the population of the Gaza Strip should be resettled in which two nations?

Spoiler
Egypt and Jordan. Trump insisted that both nations would take the more than 1.5 million people who live in the area, arguing that the displacement is needed for the reconstruction of the region. The possible expulsion of these peoples, though, was criticized throughout the Arab World and Jordan has said that it is a red line that should not be breached. Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia rejected Trump’s proposal shortly after it was announced.