The U.S. midterm elections 2026 will be remembered not just for the stunning number of losses Democrats handed to President Donald Trump and Republicans, but also for a wave of historic firsts across the country.
The closely watched polls, held on November 3, 2026, saw voters electing the first Native American female governor, the first Black female governor, the first Muslim US senator and first openly gay male US senator. Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms reacts at a campaign office, the day after winning Georgia’s race for governor and becoming the first Black woman elected governor of a US state during the US midterm elections in Atlanta, Georgia, US, November 4, 2026. | Photo Credit: Reuters Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms was elected governor of Georgia, making history as the first Black woman to be elected governor in the United States, defeating Republican businessman Rick Jackson and flipping the top job in a key swing state. In 2018, Haaland was one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress.
The astonishing blue wave also means the United States will likely have its first-ever Black speaker of the House. Her win returns the Governor’s office to Democrats after more than two decades of Republican control. Democrat Deb Haaland answers questions during an interview at her campaign headquarters in Albuquerque. File photo | Photo Credit: AP Democrat Deb Haaland became the first Native American female governor in U.S. history when was declared the winner over Republican Gregg Hull, a former mayor, to lead New Mexico. Then she became the first Native American Cabinet secretary, running President Joe Biden’s Department of the Interior.
