Mary Peltola sworn in as Alaska's new U.S. Representative
Democrat Mary Peltola is sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives, making history as the first Alaska Native and first woman to hold the state's sole House seat. Peltola fills the remaining four months of the late Republican Representative Don Young's term. Her swearing-in by Speaker Nancy Pelosi is celebrated at a bipartisan reception attended by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and Senator Lisa Murkowski, highlighting a milestone for Indigenous representation.
Claims
▪Mary Peltola was elected in an August special election to serve the remaining four months of Republican Representative Don Young's term.
▪Mary Peltola requested assignments to the House Natural Resources Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
▪The Alaska Federation of Natives hosted a celebratory reception near the Capitol that drew hundreds of attendees from Alaska and Washington, D.C.
▪Representative Don Young died in March 2022 after representing Alaska's lone seat in the U.S. House of Representatives for nearly five decades.
▪Mary Peltola hired five staff members, including Alex Ortiz, who served as the chief of staff to the late Representative Don Young.
▪Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi administered the oath of office to Mary Peltola during the official House floor ceremony.
▪Immediately after her swearing-in ceremony, Mary Peltola cast her first votes in favor of three non-controversial, bipartisan bills.
▪Mary Peltola, who is Yup’ik, is almost certainly the first person to speak the Yup’ik language on the floor of the U.S. House.
▪Mary Peltola became the first Alaska Native and the first woman to represent Alaska in the U.S. House of Representatives.
▪U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland and Republican U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski attended and spoke at Mary Peltola's post-swearing-in reception.
▪Mary Peltola was sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives on September 13, 2022, alongside two special election winners from New York.
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