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Deb Haaland And Peggy Flanagan Make History In New Mexico And U.S. Senate Midterms
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Deb Haaland elected New Mexico governor, first Native American woman to govern a U.S. state. Peggy Flanagan elected to the Senate, first Native American woman to serve in U.S. Senate.
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Native women break barriers
Deb Haaland, a member of Laguna Pueblo, won election as New Mexico’s governor, making her the first Native American woman elected governor of a U.S. state.
Peggy Flanagan, a member of White Earth Nation and identified as Ojibway, won election to the U.S. Senate, making her the first Native American woman elected to the chamber.
Haaland told supporters that, "Just off this road, my grandmother was taken away to boarding school, and along with my grandfather, survived through a time where the federal government attempted to strip them of their languages, traditions, and identities," and she added, "Yet … we are still here."
Flanagan told Indigenous news outlets that, "I absolutely understand the responsibility that I have as anAnishinaabekweas a member of the United States senate, to ensure that we are working to make sure the federal government upholds treaty rights and trust responsibilities."
A broader wave of firsts
Democrats won control of both chambers of Congress, and the Al Jazeera account framed the midterms as producing "firsts for women and minorities in US midterm elections" across multiple states.
Chris Pappas won the U.S. Senate in New Hampshire, and the BBC described his victory as making him the first openly gay senator in the country’s history.
Abdul El-Sayed won a hotly contested U.S. Senate race in Michigan, and the Al Jazeera account said it made him the first Muslim voted into the chamber.
In Georgia, Keisha Lance Bottoms won governor, and the Al Jazeera account said she became the first Black woman to serve as governor anywhere in the US.
What changes next
The CBC account said Haaland’s victory came amid a sweeping Democratic win that saw the party take control of both chambers of Congress, placing New York Representative Hakeem Jeffries in line to become the first Black speaker if elected by members of the new House. The Guardian reported that Haaland’s election reflected Indigenous voters asserting more power in elections nationwide, and it said her win came as Native Americans make up 12% of the population in New Mexico.
The TF1 account described Native Americans as among the least mobilized voters, saying "Only a third of them actually vote," while it placed the setting on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota. The New York Times said Mary Peltola could also be elected to the Senate from Alaska, and it added that ranked choice voting could keep the victor unknown for days, if not weeks.