The backdrop: Democrats won control of both chambers. As of Wednesday afternoon they held 54 Senate seats to 44, a gain of seven, with Alaska and Mississippi still uncalled, and at least 237 House seats with 59 races left to call. Party control is context here, not the story. The story is who won, what voters decided about women's bodies and trans lives, and how women cast their ballots. (The Guardian, Reuters, AP)
A Record Year for Women Governors
Ohio, Georgia, Tennessee, and Minnesota will have women governors for the first time. Georgia's is the first Black woman to lead any state, and New Mexico's is the first Native American woman.
The Women Elected Governor
CAWP counts 17 states that elected a woman governor. The reports this page draws on name twelve of them; the other five will be added once they are confirmed.
- GAKeisha Lance BottomsD · flipFirst Black woman governor of any state; Georgia's first woman governor
- NMDeb HaalandDFirst Native American woman governor in U.S. history
- TXGina HinojosaD · flipFirst Latina governor of Texas; defeated Gov. Greg Abbott
- OHAmy ActonD · flipFirst woman elected governor of Ohio; defeated Vivek Ramaswamy
- TNMarsha BlackburnRFirst woman to win a governor's race in Tennessee
- MNAmy KlobucharDMinnesota's first woman governor (both nominees were women)
- MIJocelyn BensonDNewly elected
- RIHelena FoulkesDNewly elected
- ARSarah Huckabee SandersRReelected
- ORTina KotekDReelected; out lesbian governor
- NHKelly AyotteRReelected
- MAMaura HealeyDReelected after expanding protections for reproductive and transgender health care
- +5Five more statesIn CAWP's count of 17, not yet named in the reports reviewed here
Most calls are projections. Sources: ABC News / CAWP, Fox News, GLAAD.
At least 18 Black women are set to serve in statewide elected executive offices, up from a previous record of 11.
A record 26 general-election nominees, one more than 2022.
The Senate Gets Its First Native American Woman
Peggy Flanagan's win in Minnesota helped Democrats take the chamber. A second Native woman, Mary Peltola, leads in Alaska by a few hundred votes.
- MNPeggy FlanaganDFirst Native American woman elected to the U.S. Senate
- ILJuliana StrattonDJoins Sens. Lisa Blunt Rochester and Angela Alsobrooks; Illinois becomes the first state with two women-of-color senators, alongside Tammy Duckworth
- SCAnnie AndrewsD · flipFirst woman elected senator from South Carolina; defeated appointed Sen. Darline Graham
- LAJulia LetlowRLouisiana's first Republican woman senator
Alaska: Peltola leads by 626 votes. A win would make her and Flanagan the first two Native American women in the Senate. A second "Dan Sullivan" on the ballot is under a Justice Department inquiry. (USA Today / AP)
More Firsts, but Fewer Women in Congress So Far
CAWP's early projection shows fewer women in the 120th Congress than serve now, even in a Democratic wave. Dozens of House races are uncalled, so the number will move.
Senate and House combined. The 2027 figure is CAWP's projection as of Nov. 4 and excludes uncalled races.
House Firsts and Flips
- CO-1Melat KirosDFirst Black woman elected to Congress from Colorado
- NEDenise PowellDFirst Latina to represent Nebraska in Congress (projected)
- NY-17Cait ConleyD · flipArmy veteran, out LGBTQ; unseated Rep. Mike Lawler
- AZ-6JoAnna MendozaDMarine veteran, out LGBTQ; leading Rep. Juan Ciscomani 53–45, not yet called
- CA-48Marni von WilpertDOut LGBTQ; leading in an open GOP-held seat, ran on reproductive freedom
- VIJanelle SarauwDLeading for U.S. Virgin Islands delegate, about 77%
Sources: ABC News / CAWP, Washington Blade. The Blade reports 17 of 18 LGBTQ federal candidates won, a record for Congress.
Trans Women Won in States That Had Never Elected One
Alabama, Michigan, Washington, Wisconsin, and Florida elected their first trans women, and Georgia elected its first nonbinary lawmaker. Rep. Sarah McBride, the first trans woman in Congress, won a second term.
- DESarah McBrideD · U.S. HouseReelected; the first and only out trans member of Congress
- ALAllison MontgomeryD · State House 25Alabama's first trans lawmaker; unseated Republican Rep. Phillip Rigsby
- WAJaelynn ScottD · State House 37Washington's first trans lawmaker and the first out Black trans woman state lawmaker in the country; 88%
- MIJoanna WhaleyD · State House 2Michigan's first trans legislator; hospital chaplain and conversion-therapy survivor; 63%
- WIDina Nina Martinez-RutherfordD · State Assembly 76Wisconsin's first trans legislator; over 90%
- FLQuinnie PerezOrange Co. Soil and WaterFirst trans woman elected to any office in Florida (projected)
- GABentley HudginsD · State House 90Georgia's first nonbinary and first Japanese American lawmaker (they/them)
- MNLeigh FinkeD · State HouseReelected
“I'm going to work especially hard for those who hate me, because they deserve a better Alabama as much as anyone.” Allison Montgomery, Alabama's first trans lawmaker, on election night (via The 19th)
They Ran Where No Democrat Had in Years
Bella Bautista, the first trans woman to win a legislative primary in Georgia, lost in House District 14, a seat no Democrat had contested since 2010. In Kansas, Bobby Robertson Jr., a trans woman and financial analyst, lost House District 73 after becoming the first Democrat to run for it in 10 years.
The Anti-Trans Ad Money Didn't Buy Wins
in anti-trans campaign ads, per GLAAD. The Republican governor and Senate candidates there lost.
in a failed effort, per GLAAD. Candidates also lost in Iowa, Kansas, and South Carolina where such ads ran.
All voters, national exit poll
Sources: The 19th via the Advocate, The Advocate, GLAAD (an advocacy group; the ad totals are its figures), NBC News Exit Poll.
Abortion Rights Mostly Held. Trans Rights Mostly Didn't.
Voters protected abortion rights in Nevada, Virginia, and Missouri, but kept Idaho's near-total ban. Most measures restricting trans people passed or were leading; the one that failed was bundled with an abortion ban.
The line marks 50%. Bar color shows what a yes vote does to rights.
View as table
| Measure | Yes | Result | Counted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nevada Q6, abortion right | 63.3% | Passed | 86% |
| Virginia Q1, reproductive freedom | 62.4% | Passed | 96% |
| Idaho Prop. 1, repeal abortion ban | 44.1% | Failed | 99% |
| Missouri Amend. 3, repeal abortion rights and ban trans care | 44.5% | Failed | 98.5% |
| Vermont Q4, equal protection | 79.1% | Passed | 72% |
| Virginia Q2, remove same-sex marriage ban | 57.4% | Passed | 97% |
Idaho is the setback: voters kept one of the country's strictest bans, so it will not join the red states that used the ballot to restore abortion access. Missouri is the mirror image. Two years after voters there struck down the state's ban, they refused the legislature's attempt to bring it back, and in doing so also rejected new limits on gender-affirming care.
Every one of these would restrict trans people. Several were still being counted.
- Nebraska approved a ban on trans girls and women playing on girls' and women's teams. Vote share not reported in the sources reviewed.
- Washington's girls' sports measure, which would also require a doctor to verify the sex of every K–12 girl who plays, appeared on track to pass. Vote share not yet reported.
- Missouri was the only state where new trans restrictions failed, because voters rejected the abortion repeal they were bundled with.
View as table
| Measure | Yes | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Arizona Prop. 318 | 58.9% | Passed |
| Colorado Prop. 134 | 52.4% | Too early to call |
| Colorado Prop. 135 | 51.9% | Too early to call |
| Nebraska sports measure | n/a | Passed |
| Washington IL26-638 | n/a | On track to pass |
| Missouri Amend. 3 | 44.5% | Failed |
Sources: NBC News ballot tracker, Yahoo News, Idaho Capital Sun, GLAAD fact sheet. Shares are as of Wednesday afternoon.
How Women Voted
Women were 53% of the electorate and backed Democratic House candidates by 19 points. Men split almost evenly.
Share voting for the Democratic and Republican House candidate. Share of the electorate in parentheses.
View as table
| Group | Share of voters | Democrat | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Women | 53% | 59% | 40% |
| Men | 47% | 50% | 48% |
| Black women | 5% | 93% | 6% |
| Latina women | 5% | 68% | 30% |
| White women | 38% | 52% | 46% |
| White women, college graduates | 18% | 64% | 35% |
| Independent women | 14% | 63% | 34% |
| Independent men | 18% | 54% | 42% |
| Identify another way | 1% | 87% | 10% |
| White men | 35% | 45% | 53% |
| Black men | 4% | 86% | 12% |
| Latino men | 5% | 58% | 39% |
Young Women Led the Youth Vote
voted for a Democratic House candidate, against 58% of young men. Young men swung hard: in 2024, 56% of them backed Donald Trump.
Democratic House vote, ages 18–29. More than 80% of young Black and AAPI women voted Democratic.
Sources: NBC News Exit Poll (in-person, mail, phone, and online interviews in 45 states), Tufts CIRCLE. Exit polls are estimates and may be reweighted as counts finish.