The 2020 United States election has left a lot up in the air and voters around the country wait anxiously for final results, especially for the presidential race. However, we don’t need to wait to know that women around the country shattered barriers and won several big victories.
From women of color taking (or keeping) elected positions to women’s roles in moving the needle in countless ways, ladies led the way. It has been an election of firsts: the first Black and South Asian woman nominated or elected Vice President, the first openly transgender woman elected state senator, the first woman elected mayor in Miami-Dade County, the first Republican women elected to the House in both Iowa and South Carolina, Wyoming’s first female senator, the first Black congresswoman elected in Missouri, and many more milestones. No matter your political leanings, this has been an election of broken barriers. Read on for more details on how women are leading.
Record Number of Native American Women Elected to Congress, from The Guardian—“According to a Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) report, 18 indigenous women were running for congressional seats this year – a record in a single year.”
Women Have Made History in the 2020 Election, from Elle—“Before any races were even called this November, women had made history. A record number of women ran for office in 2020—surpassing the record set just two years prior. More Republican women ran for U.S. House seats than ever before, and a number of women were poised to bring new representation to the halls of Congress and to their state legislatures.”
New Mexico Makes History, Becomes First State to Elect All Women of Color to the House, from People—“New Mexico is now the first state with a House delegation comprised entirely of women of color. […] All of the six major party candidates who ran in New Mexico’s House races were women.”
All 4 Members of ‘The Squad’ Reelected to House, from CNN—“All four congresswomen known as the Squad—Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts—have won reelection, CNN projects. Since taking office in January 2019, the lawmakers, all women of color, have electrified the left’s progressive base and lit up social media.”
Kamala Harris Makes History As the First Woman to Become Vice President, from Vox—“Harris has made history: No woman has ever served as vice president or president in the US. Her election to the office — and the representation she brings — is significant for many voters. […] Harris’s nomination for this role was groundbreaking. As the new vice president, Harris could play a major role in shaping policies and priorities for a Biden administration, while sending a strong message about what’s possible for other women and people of color.”