Historic Firsts: 2022
Progress that Democrat leaders are making and the glass ceilings that are breaking.
Not every Historic First will be listed - the effort to catalogue them all continues.
Wes Moore, MD Gov
Gov. Wes Moore is Maryland's first Black governor - and the third Black man elected to the office of Governor in the country.
Maura Healey, MA Gov
Gov. Maura Healey is the first woman elected to the office of Governor in Massachusetts - and the first openly lesbian governor in the nation, along with Gov. Kotek.
Tina Kotek, OR Gov
Gov. Kotek is the first openly lesbian governor in the nation, along with Gov. Healey.
Kathy Hochul, NY Gov
Gov. Kathy Hochul is the first woman elected as Governor of New York.
Becca Balint, VT-0
Rep. Becca Balint is Vermont's first woman elected to the US House of Representatives. With this First, every state in the US has now elected a woman to Congress. And Rep. Becca is Vermont's first LGBTQ Congressional Representative as well.
Summer Lee, PA-12
Rep. Summer Lee is Pennsylvania's first Black woman to represent in the US House.
Delia Ramirez, IL-03
Rep. Delia Ramirez is the first Latina elected to Congress for Illinois.
Marcy Kaptur, OH-09
Rep. Marcy Kaptur is the longest-serving woman in Congressional history after first winning a seat in 1982.
Eric Sorensen, IL-17
Rep. Eric Sorensen is the first LGBTQ person to represent in Congress from Illinois.
Shri Thanedar, MI-13
Rep. Shri Thanedar is Michigan's first Indian American elected to Congress.
Maxwell Frost, FL-10
Rep. Maxwell Frost is the first Gen Z representative in Congress.
Andrea Salinas, OR-06
Rep. Andrea Salinas is the first Latina elected to Congress from Oregon (along with fellow Rep. Chavez-DeRemer [R]).
Robert Garcia, CA-42
Rep. Robert Garcia is the first openly LGBTQ+ immigrant to represent in Congress.
Alex Padilla, CA Sen
Senator Alex Padilla is California's first Latino to be elected to the U.S. Senate.
Nabilah Islam, GA SD-07
State Sen. Nabilah Islam is the first Muslim woman elected to the Georgia State Senate.
Ruwa Romman, GA HD-97
State Rep. Ruwa Romman is Georgia's first Muslim and Palestinian woman elected to the State House.
James Roesener, NH HD Merrimack-22
State Rep. James Roesener is the first out Trans man elected to a State Legislature in the entire country.
Leigh Finke, MN HD-66A
State Rep. Leigh Finke is the first Transgender lawmaker elected to Minnesota's State Legislature.
Abdelnasser Rashid, IL HD-21
State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid is the first Palestinian-American elected to Illinois' General Assembly.
SJ Howell, MT HD-95
State Rep. SJ Howell is Montana's first non-binary representative elected to serve.
Zooey Zephyr, MT HD-100
State Rep. Zooey Zephyr is Montana's first elected Transgender lawmaker.
Aruna Miller, MD Lt. Gov
Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller is the first South Asian woman to be elected as a state's lieutenant governor in the country.
Austin Davis, PA Lt. Gov
Lt. Gov. Austin Davis is the first Black lieutenant governor elected in Pennsylvania's history.
Dr. Shirley Weber, CA SOS
Dr. Shirley Weber is the first Black woman to serve as California's Secretary of State.
Cisco Aguilar, NV SOS
Cisco Aguilar is Nevada's first Latino to serve as Secretary of State.
Stephanie Thomas, CT SOS
Stephanie Thomas is Connecticut's first Black woman to serve as Secretary of State.
Andrea Campbell, MA AG
Andrea Campbell is Massachusetts' first woman to serve as Attorney General.
Charity Clark, VT AG
Charity Clark is Vermont's first woman to serve as Secretary of State.
Rob Bonta, CA AG
Rob Bonta is California's first Filipino American to serve as California's Attorney General.
Anthony Brown, MD AG
Anthony Brown is Maryland's first Black Attorney General.
Karen Bass, LA Mayor
Karen Bass is the first woman elected to serve as Mayor of Los Angeles.
Sources: Glamour | 11.09.2022 - All the Historic Firsts of the 2022 Midterm Elections. Buzzfeed News | 11.16.2022 - Here are Some Historic Firsts from the 2022 Midterms That Will Make You Say "It's About Damn Time"
*photos c/o of each official's personal social media - Becca Balint c/o LGBTQ+ Victory Fund
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