What the 2026 Midterms Say About Overcoming Our Differences
On November 3, 2026, voters across the country elected leaders from backgrounds that were once shut out of the highest offices. These wins show what B.L.O.O.O.D. stands for: people of different races, faiths, and identities choosing to move forward together.
Keisha Lance Bottoms, Georgia
She won the Georgia governor’s race, becoming the first Black woman elected governor in American history. She will also be Georgia’s first woman governor and its first Black governor. She is a descendant of enslaved Georgians.
Byron Donalds, Florida
He will be Florida’s first Black governor, following fellow Republican Ron DeSantis. He will also become the first Black Republican elected governor in U.S. history; the only three Black governors previously elected nationwide were all Democrats. He was one of eight Black major-party nominees for governor this year.
Abdul El-Sayed, Michigan
The son of Egyptian immigrants, he will become the nation’s first Muslim senator. He won despite facing a campaign of anti-Muslim attacks. Early results showed he did well with Black voters in Detroit, a coalition across communities.
Gina Hinojosa, Texas
Her win gives Texas its first Latina governor in history. She flipped several border counties, including Starr, Zapata, Maverick, Hidalgo and Webb.
Deb Haaland, New Mexico
A member of Laguna Pueblo, she became the nation’s first female Native American governor. In 2018 she and Sharice Davids of Kansas became the first Native American women to serve in Congress, and as interior secretary she was the first Indigenous person to lead that department. She has spoken about her grandmother being forced to attend a boarding school for Native American children. Her running mate, Stephanie Garcia Richard, makes New Mexico the first state to elect two women of color to its top jobs.
Peggy Flanagan, Minnesota
A member of the White Earth Nation, she is the first Native American woman elected to the U.S. Senate. She was already the first Native American and first woman of color elected to statewide office in Minnesota. She noted that in almost 250 years, no Native woman had ever served in the Senate.
Chris Pappas, New Hampshire
He is the first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate. His family story is rooted in immigration, small business, and community life in Manchester, where his Greek immigrant great-grandfather settled.
Adam Hamilton, Kansas
A United Methodist pastor, he became the first Democrat to win a U.S. Senate seat in Kansas in nearly a century. In victory, he urged supporters to love their neighbors as themselves. His win shows faith can be a bridge rather than a dividing line.
Why It Matters
Black, Latino, Native American, Muslim, gay, and Christian, Democrat and Republican, these eight reflect the America B.L.O.O.O.D. believes in, where no one is “less than” because of who they are. Barriers fall when people look past their differences and build together.
