Here is this week’s Extemp Central news quiz.  Good luck!

1. Republican candidate Donald Trump is projected to win the national popular vote. When was the last time a Republican presidential candidate did this?

Spoiler
2004. Republican President George W. Bush won that election, defeating Massachusetts Senator John Kerry 50.7% to 48.3%. Trump won the 2016 presidential election but lost the national popular vote to Hillary Clinton 48.2% to 46.1%. At the time that this quiz was made, Trump led Vice President Kamala Harris 50.4% to 47.9%.

2. In the 2024 presidential election, which states did Donald Trump flip back into his column that he won in 2016 but lost to President Joe Biden?

Spoiler
Naim Qassem. He was appointed to the position on October 29 to replace Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated by Israel on September 27. He is the fourth secretary-general of the Lebanese Shia militia group. Qassem has a master’s degree in chemistry and has been a deputy for the group since May 1991.

3. Which event did Pennsylvania recognize as an official public holiday this month?

Spoiler
53. It is a four-seat gain for Republicans as their candidates captured an open seat in West Virginia that was vacated by Joe Manchin. Democratic incumbents went down in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Montana. Those senators – Sherrod Brown, Bob Casey, and Jon Tester – had each been in office since 2006, benefitting from favorable years for Democrats in each of their elections until this year. Democrats failed to gain a Senate seat in this cycle.

4. What event has triggered the collapse of Germany’s coalition government?

Spoiler
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner of the pro-business Free Democrats, causing the Free Democrats to bolt the governing coalition that attached them to Scholz’s Social Democrats and the Green Party. Scholz has resisted calls for a no confidence vote before January 15, saying that he plans on leading a minority government with the Greens. However, that will require the cooperation of the opposition Christian Democratic Party to pass legislation, help that may not be forthcoming as its leader, Friedrich Merz, is calling for an immediate no-confidence vote.

5. Botswana’s new president announced last week that he wanted to grant temporary work and residence permits to illegal immigrants from which country?

Spoiler
Zimbabwe. Botswana has the second-largest number of Zimbabweans who have fled their country because of economic problems. They often toil in low income jobs. New president Duma Boko announced his plan, which is unpopular, in an effort to make Botswana’s economy better. It is estimated that Zimbabweans represent 98% of all immigrants into Botswana who lack legal paperwork.

6. Why did Qatar kick Hamas officials out of its country last week?

Spoiler
Depending on which source you read, the decision took place based on a request from U.S. President Joe Biden or Qatari frustration over Hamas officials failing to agree to a ceasefire with Israel and release hostages. Qatar has tried to play a greater role in the Middle East peace process in recent years due to the fact that Hamas’ leadership based itself in Doha.

7. It was reported last week that some Democratic Party officials thought about launching a pressure campaign to get which justice on the U.S. Supreme Court to resign?

Spoiler
Sonia Sotomayor. There are concerns that Sotomayor, who is diabetic and is 70 years old, may not make it through another Republican presidential term, which would allow Donald Trump to name a fourth Supreme Court justice and strengthen its conservative majority. The plans reportedly fell apart because of concerns about whether Democratic Senator Joe Manchin would vote for it and some Democratic operatives thought it would be racist and ableist to replace the Supreme Court’s first Hispanic justice.

8. Which European city was under a state of emergency last week and this week due to violence surrounding a soccer match involving Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv?

Spoiler
Amsterdam. Riots broke out Monday evening in an Amsterdam suburb, where there was some destruction of public infrastructure. Last Thursday there were attacks on some Israeli soccer fans in the city after a soccer game, leading to harsh international condemnation.

9. Who did president-elect Donald Trump announce as his pick for White House chief of staff and why is this significant?

Spoiler
Susie Wiles, who was the co-chair of his presidential campaign. Wiles will be the first woman to serve as White House chief of staff. She was a chief strategist for Trump in 2016 and 2020 in Florida and helped Ron DeSantis win the governorship there in 2018. Wiles is also credited with getting Trump high turnout among “low propensity” voters in this year’s election.

10. Who were the three U.S. senators vying for leadership of Senate Republicans?

Spoiler
Senator John Thune of South Dakota, Senator John Cornyn of Texas, and Senator Rick Scott of Florida. They are seeking to replace Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, who has been in charge of Senate Republicans since January 2007. At the time that this news quiz was created, president-elect Donald Trump had yet to endorse a candidate but Elon Musk was backing Scott for the post.