The 2024 election is making history. Sarah McBride will be the first openly transgender member of Congress. U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester will be the first woman and first Black woman to represent Delaware in the Senate. With Democrat Angela Alsobrooks also winning her race in Maryland, this marks the first time that the country will have two Black women serving in the Senate together. We’re already making history — and the election’s not over yet.
U.S. Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester becomes the 1st woman and 1st Black person to represent Delaware in the Senate
Rochester, a 62-year-old Democrat, defeated Republican Eric Hansen in Delaware’s U.S. Senate race on Tuesday. She will fill the seat that opened up after Democrat Tom Carper said he would retire last year. Carper reportedly handpicked her as his successor. Rochester was also personally endorsed by Delaware native President Biden on Oct. 27.
I’ve had the great fortune of knowing @JoeBiden for over three decades. His unwavering commitment to Delaware and our nation has created a lasting legacy, and I am beyond honored to have his support.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you Mr. President. pic.twitter.com/cTetehVgQO
— Lisa Blunt Rochester (@LisaBRochester) October 27, 2024
U.S. Rep. Andy Kim becomes the 1st Korean American elected to the Senate
Sarah McBride becomes the 1st openly transgender person elected to the U.S. House of Representatives
The 34-year-old Democrat defeated Republican John Whalen in Tuesday’s general election.
McBride became the first openly transgender state senator in American history when she was elected in 2020. “Whenever you are first, you often have to try to be the best version that you can,” she said in a recent Reuters interview. “But none of them matter if I don’t fulfill the responsibility of just being the best member of Congress that I can be for Delaware.”
Alsobrooks’s and Rochester’s wins mark another Senate 1st
Democrat Angela Alsobrooks won in Maryland, becoming the state’s first Black female senator. The win is significant for another reason: With Rochester becoming the first woman and first Black person to represent Delaware in the Senate, this marks the first time in U.S. history that the country will have two Black women serving in the Senate together.
According to Politico, only three Black women have ever served in the Senate’s history — Kamala Harris and Laphonza Butler, both for California, and Carol Moseley Braun for Illinois. However, they didn’t serve at the same time.
