New Mexico elects two women of color to lead the state
Haaland, a member of Laguna Pueblo who previously served as Interior secretary, defeated Republican Gregg Hull by a wide margin. She will be the third woman in a row to serve as New Mexico's governor.
Her campaign emphasized improving public education and addressing the cost of living. Before starting a small salsa-making business, Haaland had experienced financial instability herself.
Stephanie Garcia Richard will join her as lieutenant governor, making New Mexico the first state to elect women of color to both of its top offices. Garcia Richard previously broke two barriers as commissioner of public lands: She was the first woman and the first Latina elected to that position.
Flanagan heads to Washington after Minnesota victory
Minnesota's lieutenant governor, Flanagan is Ojibwe and belongs to the White Earth Nation. Her Senate victory follows a tight primary that raised questions about whether her progressive positions could jeopardize Democrats' hold on the seat.
At 47, Flanagan will succeed retiring Democratic Sen. Tina Smith, who has held the seat since 2018, MPR News reported Nov. 3. Flanagan had already become Minnesota's first Native American person and first woman of color elected to statewide office.
Flanagan pledged to fight corruption and rising costs. MPR News reported that her platform also called for Medicare coverage for everyone, an increase in the federal minimum wage from $7.25 to $17 an hour, and the restoration of nationwide abortion protections. She also campaigned to end the Trump administration's mass deportations and dismantle U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Her Republican opponent, sportscaster and talk show host Michele Tafoya, centered much of her campaign on Minnesota's $9 billion welfare fraud scandal. Tafoya blamed Democrats for inadequate oversight and supported legislation requiring state anti-fraud measures and deportation of immigrants convicted of fraud.
Tafoya also pledged to take a tough-on-crime approach in Congress and preserve Trump-era tax cuts. A victory would have made her Minnesota's first Hispanic senator and its first Republican woman in the Senate.
"Our democracy functions best when it accurately reflects the people it seeks to represent, and so having a Native American woman serving in the U.S. Senate is good for our democracy," Flanagan said in an interview with The 19th.
Both Flanagan and Haaland have used their time in public office to advance efforts against the epidemic of violence affecting Native Americans, especially women.
More Native women seek seats in Congress
Another Native woman could join Flanagan in the Senate. In Alaska, former Rep. Mary Peltola is competing in a highly competitive race for an open seat. Peltola, the first Alaska Native elected to Congress, would return to Washington and share in the Senate milestone if she wins.
In the House, Decision Desk HQ projects that Kansas Rep. Sharice Davids will win a fifth term. A Ho-Chunk Nation member, Davids was the only Native woman serving in the previous congressional session. Her tenure began with her 2018 election, making her Congress' longest-serving Native woman. She was also the first openly LGBTQ+ Native person elected to a legislative seat.
Decision Desk HQ also projects a victory for Claire Valdez in New York's 7th Congressional District. Valdez, of the Ysleta Del Sur Pueblo, would become the first Native woman to represent New York. The democratic socialist received an endorsement from New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
In Oklahoma, Chickasaw Nation member N'kiyla "Jasmine" Thomas lost her Senate bid. Thomas, a democratic socialist, defeated a moderate in the primary but faced difficult general-election odds in a race the Cook Political Report rated solidly Republican. The state has never sent a woman to the Senate, according to the Center for American Women and Politics.
A record field, but representation remains below parity
Native American women account for about 1.5 percent of the U.S. population; proportional representation in Congress would require at least seven Native women to hold seats.
Data from Advance National Political Leadership and the nonprofit news outlet Indian Country Today show Indigenous women winning elections at higher rates than ever, though representation remains well short of parity.
The organizations counted at least 355 Native candidates seeking local, state or federal office this year, a record total. Women accounted for half of the candidates, men for 47 percent, and candidates identifying as trans, two-spirit or nonbinary for 3 percent.
In 2024, women constituted a majority of the 253 Native candidates. They also accounted for 53 percent of the Native candidates who won.
