As customary during Election day in DC, on Tuesday, November 8th, the bars were packed for midterm election parties, where exhausted campaign workers, Hill staffers, lobbyists, and DC locals anxiously waited for results as they sipped their drinks, engaged in debate, and networked. There was obvious tension in the air, as the electorate had grappled with the idea of a “red wave” for months, even though races for state governors, house, and senate were expected to be tight and in some cases, even run overtime. That same night, an air of celebration and hope took over the city and spread all over the country as many candidates celebrated their historical wins.
Now, two weeks after election night, twelve women, two of them openly lesbian have been confirmed to have won their gubernatorial races, breaking the formerly held record of 9 women elected. Similarly, a historical number of LGBTQ candidates, candidates of color, and even young people were elected for Federal, State, and Local offices across the country, making the 2022 midterms ones to be remembered. To add to the importance of these elections, we must consider that we will go back to a narrowly divided congress, with Democrats holding the senate (50-49) and Republicans holding the House of Representatives with an equally small margin (218 - 212). Gubernatorial races were equally tight, with 18 states being won by Democrats and 17 states by Republicans. (14 states were not electing a governor this year)
Here are some of the key confirmed and projected wins to look out for:
12 women were elected as governors for the first time, with Sarah Huckabee Sanders (Rep-Arkansas), Kathy Hochul (Dem-New York), and Maura Healey (Dem -Massachusetts) being the first women to hold their positions in their states. Kay Ivey (Rep-Alabama), Katie Hobbs (Dem-Arizona), Kim Reynolds (Rep-Iowa), Laura Kelly (Dem-Kansas), Janet Mills (Dem - Maine), Gretchen Whitmer (Dem-Michigan), Michelle Lujan Grisham (Dem - New Mexico), Tina Kotek (Dem - Oregon) and Kristi Noem (Rep- South Dakota) Were also elected.
Democrat Maura Healey of Massachusetts and Democrat Tina Kotek of Oregon are the first openly lesbian women elected as U.S. governors.
There were also major historical wins for LGBTQ candidates across races: Dem. Robert Garcia (CA-42) will be the first LGBTQ immigrant elected to Congress. In Illinois, Dem. Eric Sorensen will also be the first gay person elected to Congress. Republican George Santos will be the next congressman from New York’s 3rd congressional district, winning the first house race between two gay candidates.
The bi-partisan push to increase diversity in their ranks also had impressive results, with a record number of candidates of color, such as
Juan Ciscomani (Rep) - First elected Hispanic to represent Arizona in congress
Alex Padilla (Dem) - First elected Latino senator from California
Karen Bass (Dem) - First woman and first Black woman elected as mayor of Los Angeles
Rob Bonta (Dem) - First elected Filipino American attorney general of California
Shirley Weber (Dem) - First elected Black secretary of state of California
Yadira Caraveo (Dem) - First Latina member of Congress from Colorado
Maxwell Frost (Dem) - First Gen Z elected to the House of Representatives
Exciting changes are happening in the way the public views elections and think about who is seen as capable and suitable to represent them. No matter what side of the aisle you may fall under, these changes are happening across the board and shine a light on what we will see in the 2024 elections.