From Fastcompany · · 3m
Historic firsts sweep 2026 midterm elections
Americans elected record numbers of women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ candidates to federal and state office on Tuesday.
In brief
Americans elected record numbers of women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ candidates to federal and state office on Tuesday. The twenty twenty-six midterms produced unprecedented diversity in elected office, with voters electing the first Muslim U.S. Senator, first Native American woman governor, and multiple other…
Democrats take back Congress
Americans delivered a significant rebuke of President Trump and his supporters. Democrats took back the House and Senate, flipping long-standing red states like Texas.
First Native American woman governor
New Mexico's Deb Haaland, a member of the Laguna Pueblo tribe, is the country's first Native American woman elected governor.
Texas elects first Hispanic governor
Gina Hinojosa has been elected the first Hispanic governor of Texas, marking a historic shift in the long-red state.
New York's all-woman gubernatorial ticket
New York elected its first all-woman gubernatorial ticket. Kathy Hochul won reelection, and Adrienne Adams became the first Black woman elected lieutenant governor in the state.
Georgia's first Black governor
Keisha Lance Bottoms is the first woman and first Black person elected governor of Georgia. She is one of five Black governors elected on Tuesday.
Five Black governors elected at once
The election of five Black governors marks the first time multiple Black governors will serve simultaneously in American history.
First Muslim U.S. Senator
Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan will serve as the first Muslim U.S. Senator, a historic milestone for Muslim American representation in Congress.
First openly gay U.S. Senator
New Hampshire's Chris Pappas is the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate, breaking another barrier in federal representation.
Native American woman in Senate
Peggy Flanagan, a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe from Minnesota, will be the first Native American woman serving as a U.S. Senator.
More women governors elected
Amy Acton became Ohio's first woman governor. Amy Klobuchar will serve as Minnesota's first woman governor. Tennessee elected Marsha Blackburn as its first woman governor.
First Black governors in Nevada and Wisconsin
Nevada elected Aaron Ford as its first Black governor. David Crowley will be Wisconsin's first Black governor, continuing the historic wave of Black representation.
Gen Z enters Congress
Colorado elected Melat Kiros as the first Gen Z woman in Congress, bringing younger generational representation to the federal legislature.
More historic House firsts
New York's Claire Valdez, a citizen of the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo tribe, will be the state's first Native American Congresswoman.Adam Hamawy will be New Jersey's first Muslim member of Congress.
The short version
The twenty twenty-six midterms produced unprecedented diversity in elected office, with voters electing the first Muslim U.S. Senator, first Native American woman governor, and multiple other historic firsts across federal and state positions.
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