Historic firsts in US midterms: From first black female governor to first openly gay senator

Going into Election Day, this midterm featured one of the most diverse slates of both Democratic and Republican candidates in recent years. Now it is shaping up to be a wave of historic leadership firsts across the country.

Democrat Deb (L) Haaland became the first Native American female governor in US history. Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas (R) became the country’s first openly gay male senator. (AP/Bloomberg)Voters on Tuesday night elected the first Black female governor, the first Native American female governor, the first Native woman senator and the first openly gay male US senator.

Meanwhile, the first Muslim US senator was still within the realm of possibility. Most are Democrats, but the GOP has also broken some new ground. Follow 2026 US midterm election results LIVE updates here. While some of these candidates have avoided focusing on the inherent historic value of their race, gender, religion or sexual orientation, some voters' rights advocates are celebrating how the electorate has expanded.

“These firsts show how our country is changing,” Alexis Anderson-Reed, president and CEO of State Voices, a network of advocates for civic engagement and equity in democracy, said via e-mail. “For years, people of color and LGBTQ communities have organized, knocked on doors, talked to voters, held conversations, and done the hard work of saving our democracy," Anderson-Reed said.

"These wins are because of them.” Democrat Deb Haaland reveled in her history-making moment of becoming the first Native American female governor in US history. Haaland was declared the winner over Republican Gregg Hull, a former mayor, to lead New Mexico.

The Laguna Pueblo citizen noted that Native Americans are still here despite past efforts by the federal government to strip them of their languages and culture. “Tonight, in our nation's 250th year, I stand before you as the first Native American woman elected governor in US history,” Haaland told ecstatic supporters at a victory celebration.

In 2018, Haaland was one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress. Then she became the first Native American Cabinet secretary, running President Joe Biden’s Department of the Interior. Charles Curtis, from the Kaw Nation, was the first Native Cabinet member as President Herbert Hoover’s vice president.

Oklahoma was the only state to elect a tribal citizen for governor — Democrat Johnston Murray in the 1950s and current Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt. "I want every child watching to know that your dreams matter and that New Mexico is a place where you can build the life you want,” Haaland said, adding that she is living proof.

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan has become the first Native American female US senator, helping Democrats win back the Senate. A citizen of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, Flanagan defeated Republican Michele Tafoya, a former NFL sideline reporter.

Tafoya would have been the first Republican of Latina heritage to sit in the US Senate. Mary Peltola, who is Yup’ik and a Democrat, could also become the first Alaska Native US senator. Voters in her race to unseat Republican incumbent Sen.

Dan Sullivan are still being tabulated. Peltola was considered a trailblazer in 2022 when she became the first Alaska Native elected to the US House of Representatives. Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms was declared the winner Tuesday night in the Georgia governor's race, ending 250 years of US history without a Black woman serving as a state's governor.

The former Atlanta mayor was running against Republican Rick Jackson, a billionaire businessman. “Tonight should remind us all that no matter what community we come from, Georgia is not defined by one moment in time or by one person,” Bottoms told euphoric supporters.

“It's been defined by all of us, and I will be a governor for everyone in this state." She will also be Georgia’s first governor of color. All 83 of Georgia’s previous governors have been white men.