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The November 3, 2026 midterm elections produced a series of historic firsts in governor and Senate races across the country, with four winning candidates breaking barriers in the offices they will now hold. In Georgia and New Mexico, voters elected women who had never before held their states' top offices in the way they did; in Michigan and New Hampshire, voters sent senators-elect to Washington who are the first of their kind in the Senate.
In Georgia, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms defeated Republican Rick Jackson to become the first Black woman elected governor of an American state. Bottoms took about 54 percent of the vote to Jackson's about 46 percent, according to Associated Press and Reuters reporting, becoming the first Democrat to win the Georgia governor's race since 1998. She succeeds Governor Brian Kemp and takes office in January 2027. Bottoms previously served as mayor of Atlanta.
In New Mexico, Democrat Deb Haaland defeated Republican Gregg Hull to become the first Native American woman elected governor in United States history. The Associated Press called the race for Haaland at 8:40 p.m. Mountain time on Tuesday, November 3, less than two hours after polls closed, and unofficial results put her near 57 percent as early returns came in. Haaland, a citizen of the Pueblo of Laguna, previously served as United States Secretary of the Interior under President Joe Biden, the first Indigenous person to lead a Cabinet department, and before that represented New Mexico's 1st Congressional District. She succeeds term-limited Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and takes office on January 1, 2027.
In Michigan, Democrat Abdul El-Sayed defeated Republican Mike Rogers to become the first Muslim elected to the United States Senate. The Associated Press reported El-Sayed leading Rogers 2,270,057 votes to 2,020,609 with 81.47 percent of precincts reporting, and El-Sayed declared victory in a speech in Detroit shortly before 2 a.m. Eastern time on November 4. He had earlier beaten Representative Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary.
In New Hampshire, Democrat Chris Pappas defeated former Republican Senator John E. Sununu to become the first openly gay man elected to the United States Senate. The Associated Press called the race at about 8:20 p.m. Eastern time on November 3, and reported results put Pappas at 56.2 percent to Sununu's 41.9 percent. Pappas, a four-term member of the House of Representatives first elected in 2018, succeeds retiring Senator Jeanne Shaheen and takes office on January 3, 2027.
Together, the four results span governorships in the South and Southwest and Senate seats in the Midwest and Northeast, with each winner entering an office no one sharing that distinction had held before.