Tuesday marked an exciting victory for Zohran Mamdani, but the Democratic Socialist mayor-elect wasn’t the only progressive or history-making candidate to win big on election night.
The so-called “blue wave” that didn’t quite crest in 2024 was more clearly in evidence this week, with a handful of Democratic female lawmakers rising to new heights in American politics—thanks in large part to the support of women under 30. Below, find five of the most significant wins for Democratic women on Tuesday.
Abigail Spanberger became Virginia’s first female governor
Spanberger, a former Virginia congresswoman, beat out Winsome Earle-Sears (R) to turn the Virginia governorship blue, becoming the first woman to lead the state in the process. Spanberger, a former CIA officer who is frequently described as a “pragmatic centrist,” won support in by taking aim at the Trump Administration’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cutbacks. She said on Tuesday night that her plan as governor includes “pushing back against a variety of the bad policies that are coming out of this White House.”
Mikie Sherrill turned the New Jersey governor’s mansion blue with her election
New Jersey congresswoman Sherrill maintained Democratic control of New Jersey’s gubernatorial seat on Tuesday when she was elected the state’s first female Democratic governor, beating out Republican nominee and Trump ally Jack Ciattarelli. (In a fun twist, Sherrill and Spanberger were actually roommates on Capitol Hill six years ago, during their respective tenures as freshman members of Congress.)
Ghazala Hashmi became the first Muslim American woman elected to statewide office anywhere in the US
Hashmi won the Virginia lieutenant governor’s race against former conservative talk show host John Reid on Tuesday, in what feels like a hopeful rebuke to the rising tide of Islamophobia across America over the last few years. Not only is Hashmi the first Muslim American woman to hold statewide office, but she is also Virginia’s first Indian American elected statewide.
Mary Sheffield was elected the first female mayor of Detroit
“Throughout Detroit’s 324-year history, 75 mayors have led this city. Not one has been a woman. But tonight, Detroit, we know that changes. And you changed it, Detroit!” Sheffield told a crowd of her supporters on Tuesday night after her win. The city council veteran is also an ordained minister.
Michelle Wu was reelected as mayor of Boston
The Boston mayor’s win wasn’t necessarily a surprise, as she ran unopposed (her initial opponent Josh Kraft, a son of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, dropped out in September), but Wu’s status as the first woman and first person of color to lead Boston in the city’s history is all the more historic now that she’s set up for a second term.
