Historic Firsts of Native-American Women

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Sydney Brobbey

(Photo: CNN)

They’re Native-American. They’re women. One is openly lesbian in a Republican state. And they’re finally making history.

Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland have made history in the United States midterm elections. On November 6th, these two women were elected to Congress, as predicted by CNN.

Davids, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, is the first openly lesbian representative of Kansas state. She unseated Republican Kevin Yoder, winning the seat representing the 3rd Congressional District of Kansas. Davids is also the first Democrat to be elected to Congress in more than a decade in Kansas state. With this win, she has given the LGBTQ community a chance of being heard in politics. Although she may face some pushback for being a member of the LGBTQ community, her win has become a historical milestone.

Deb Haaland — another woman who made history on November 6th — won against Republican Janice Arnold-Jones in the 1st Congressional district of New Mexico. As a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, Haaland’s win has become a part of New Mexico history. New Mexico, being the last state to grant full suffrage to Native Americans, has given its first Democratic seat to a woman, which is a position that many indigenous people have aspired to reach.