While Hillary Clinton did not succeed in her endeavor to become the first female president of the U.S., other female politicians across the country made history by securing positions in local and state elections.
California - Kamala Harris
Attorney General Kamala Harris, who was born to an Indian mother and a Jamaican-American father, defeated fellow Democrat Loretta Sanchez in the race to serve as senator. According to Buzzfeed News, she is the first black U.S. senator from California, second-ever black senator and first-ever Indian-American senator. Harris previously made history by being California's first female, first black and first Asian-American attorney general, NBC News reported.
Delaware - Lisa Blunt Rochester
Rochester, former Delaware labor secretary, was elected as the first black and first woman to represent the state in Congress in the House.
Florida - Stephanie Murphy
Murphy, the daughter of Vietnamese refugees, defeated 23-year Republican incumbent John Mica in the race for a spot to represent Florida in the House. Murphy, who immigrated to the U.S. when she was 1 year old, is the second ever Vietnamese-American person elected Congress and the first Vietnamese-American woman elected to Congress.
Nevada - Catherine Cortez Masto
Cortez Masto, the granddaughter of a Mexican immigrant, became the first Latina senator in U.S. history. The former Nevada attorney general defeated incumbent Republican Joe Heck in the race for the Nevada senate seat.
Oregon - Kate Brown
Brown, who previously held the position as Oregon's secretary of state, assumed the position as governor in 2015 after former Gov. John Kitzhaber resigned because of a scandal. She was elected by Oregonians as the first openly LGBT person to win a gubernatorial election. Brown, who was outed as being bisexual in the 1980s, has been married to her husband since 1997.
Puerto Rico - Jenniffer Gonzalez
Gonzalez will be the first woman to represent the U.S. territory as resident commissioner of Puerto Rico, a nonvoting member in U.S. Congress.
Washington - Pramila Jayapal
Jayapal, who defeated fellow Democrat Brady Walkinshaw, was elected Washington's first Indian-American woman to hold a seat in the House. Jayapal was born in India and immigrated to the U.S. when she was 16 years old.
Read more at Buzzfeed News.
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