US midterms: ‘Pride and happiness’ as Twitter users hail victory for diversity

The US midterm elections saw a record number of women elected to the House of Representatives, as well as historic wins from Muslim, black, Native American, and LGBTQ+ candidates.

In a night where Democrats took control of Congress, voters are on track to send at least 100 women to the House, surpassing the previous record of 84, while several winners are marking their place in history as firsts for their race, gender and sexuality.

Voters from various backgrounds took to social media to celebrate these largely Democratic wins, with one Muslim user saying that the diverse representation made her feel “so much pride and happiness”.

Massachusetts elected its first black congresswoman, through Democratic candidate Ayanna Pressley, while 29-year-old Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also made history to become the youngest woman in the House.

Meanwhile, party colleagues Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan will be the first Muslim women in Congress.

A number of Muslim women took to Twitter to express their joy at being represented in Congress for the first time.

New Mexico Democrat Deb Haaland and Kansas Democrat Sharice Davids were elected as the first two Native American women to serve in Congress.

Ms Davids also made history as an openly gay candidate, along with Colorado’s Jared Polis, who will be the country’s first openly gay elected governor.

Ms Tlaib took to Twitter on November 6 to link her campaign to the surge of female political activism since the 2016 general election, referencing the millions of women who have marched in protests in the two years following.

Writing on the platform, she said: “Today, women across the country are on the ballot. Yes, we marched outside the Capitol, but now we get to march into the Capitol. We are coming!”

The victories for women weren’t confined to the Democrats, however – regardless of who wins in Arizona’s competitive Senate race, the state will elect either Republican Martha McSally or Democrat Kyrsten Sinema as the state’s first woman to serve in the chamber.

And in the Senate, Republican Marsha Blackburn will become Tennessee’s first woman senator, despite her opponent Phil Bredesen receiving the backing of pop star Taylor Swift.