The historic firsts of the 2026 election

Winners up and down the 2026 ballot will make history this year, CNN’s Decision Desk projects, including the first Black woman governor and the first out gay male US senator.

As President Donald Trump takes on the latter half of his second term, both parties will welcome a diverse group of newly elected lawmakers at the state and national level.

Keisha Lance Bottoms is projected to become the first Black governor of Georgia, the first female governor of Georgia and the first female Black governor in US history.

Bottoms, who served as Atlanta mayor between 2018 and 2022, was among the women whom President Joe Biden considered as a running mate in the 2020 election. She later joined his administration. Bottoms beat out Trump-endorsed Rick Jackson, making expanding Medicaid coverage, homeowner tax relief and increasing education funding the key pillars of her campaign.

Chris Pappas is projected to become the first out gay male senator in US history with his win in New Hampshire’s US Senate race. His win means Democrats will hold on to a critical seat, in a state that Republicans previously saw as one of their best opportunities to flip. Pappas is a four-term congressman from southeastern New Hampshire.

Byron Donalds is projected to become the first Black governor of Florida. He campaigned on tax reforms, regulating data centers and supporting Trump’s agenda in a state that has become more solidly red. He was bolstered early in the race with a full-throated Trump endorsement.

When Donalds assumes office there will be three serving Black governors in the US, with very different politics — the other is Democratic Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, who is projected to win reelection, and Bottoms in Georgia.

Annie Andrews is projected to become the first elected female US senator from South Carolina, defeating appointed Sen. Darline Graham and flipping a seat that Republicans have held for nearly three decades.

Trump orchestrated Graham’s appointment to the seat left vacant after the sudden death of her late brother, former Sen. Lindsey Graham, in July. The president’s backing of a political unknown stirred controversy in solidly red South Carolina.

In her short political career, Graham pitched herself as more conservative than her brother, breaking with some of his positions, like eliminating the filibuster or a more hardline approach to immigration, to side with Trump.

Andrews painted herself as an independent-minded moderate who is concerned about affordability, quality of life and corruption.

Gina Hinojosa is projected to become the first Hispanic governor of Texas, unseating Republican Gov. Greg Abbott who served almost 12 years in office. The two candidates clashed over culture issues, including abortion, during the campaign.

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Hinojosa, a 52-year-old state lawmaker and attorney, will be the first Democrat elected governor since Ann Richards in 1990 and only the third woman to hold the position.

Melat Kiros is projected to become the first female Black member of Congress from Colorado with her win in the state’s 1st District. Kiros, a 29-year-old democratic socialist and lawyer, will also join the Generation - Z sect of Congress as one of the youngest sitting members of the House.

Adam Hamawy is projected to become the first Muslim member of Congress from New Jersey after winning in the 12th Congressional District. Hamawy , a retired US Army combat surgeon and sharp Israel critic, hails from the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, supporting Medicare for All as well as canceling medical and student loan debt.

Claire Valdez is projected to become the first female Native American member of Congress from New York. The one-term assemblywoman will win the state’s 7th Congressional District. Valdez’s win marks another victory for the Democratic Party’s progressive wing whose growing influence came in part from the popularity of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who championed Valdez.

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Jeremy Moss is projected to become the first out gay member of Congress from the Wolverine state with his win in Michigan’s 11th Congressional District. Moss, who served as state senator before his win, takes over the seat made vacant by Rep. Haley Stevens — who left the post to run for the US Senate before losing in the primary.

Amy Acton is projected to become the first Democrat to win Ohio’s governorship since 2006 and the first woman ever elected to the office. Acton, a physician, defeats Republican Vivek Ramaswamy in a race that captured national attention over a controversial attack ad. Campaigning on affordability, Acton pitched property tax cuts targeted at middle-income and older Ohioans, and a moratorium on data centers unless they cover their own utility costs.

Xavier Becerra is projected to become the first elected Latino governor of California, maintaining his party’s control of the nation’s largest state.

Becerra, the former US congressman, state attorney general and secretary of Health and Human Services under the Biden administration, emerged from a crowded, contentious primary to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Buoyed by California’s solidly liberal electorate and a favorable midterm political environment, Becerra repeatedly linked his opponent, Republican Steve Hilton, to Trump, hammering his endorsement and appealing to Democrats to send a message of opposition to the administration.

CNN 决策台预测，2026 年大选中的各级获胜者都将创造历史，其中包括第一位黑人女州长和第一位公开出柜的美国男参议员。

随着唐纳德·特朗普总统进入第二个任期的后半段，两党都将迎来州和国家层面上多元化的新当选立法者群体。

凯莎·兰斯·博顿斯有望成为佐治亚州第一位黑人州长、佐治亚州第一位女州长，以及美国历史上第一位黑人女州长。

曾于2018年至2022年担任亚特兰大市长的博顿斯，是乔·拜登总统在2020年大选中考虑的竞选搭档人选之一。她后来加入了拜登政府。博顿斯击败了特朗普支持的里克·杰克逊，将扩大医疗补助覆盖范围、为房主减税和增加教育经费作为其竞选的核心纲领。

克里斯·帕帕斯有望赢得新罕布什尔州联邦参议员选举，成为美国历史上首位公开出柜的男参议员。他的胜选意味着民主党将保住一个至关重要的席位，而共和党此前一直将新罕布什尔州视为他们最有希望翻盘的州之一。帕帕斯是来自新罕布什尔州东南部的四届国会议员。

拜伦·唐纳兹有望成为佛罗里达州首位黑人州长。他的竞选纲领包括税制改革、数据中心监管以及支持特朗普的政策议程，而佛罗里达州近年来已逐渐成为共和党的铁票仓。竞选初期，特朗普的全力支持为他提供了强有力的助力。

当唐纳兹就职时，美国将有三位在任的黑人州长，他们的政治立场截然不同——另一位是民主党籍的马里兰州州长韦斯·摩尔，他预计将赢得连任；还有佐治亚州的博特姆斯。

安妮·安德鲁斯有望成为南卡罗来纳州首位民选女参议员，击败任命的参议员达琳·格雷厄姆，并赢得共和党人近三十年来一直把持的席位。

特朗普一手策划了格雷厄姆的任命，接替她已故的哥哥、前参议员林赛·格雷厄姆7月突然去世后留下的空缺席位。总统支持一位政治素人的做法，在传统共和党州南卡罗来纳州引发了争议。

在她短暂的政治生涯中，格雷厄姆把自己塑造成比她哥哥更保守的形象，与他的一些立场决裂，例如取消冗长辩论或对移民采取更强硬的态度，转而支持特朗普。

安德鲁斯将自己塑造成一位独立思考的温和派，她关注住房负担能力、生活质量和腐败问题。

吉娜·伊诺霍萨有望成为德克萨斯州首位拉丁裔州长，取代已执政近12年的共和党州长格雷格·阿博特。两位候选人在竞选期间就包括堕胎在内的文化议题展开激烈交锋。

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现年 52 岁的州议员兼律师希诺霍萨将成为自 1990 年安·理查兹以来第一位当选州长的民主党人，也是担任该职位的第三位女性。

梅拉特·基罗斯有望赢得科罗拉多州第一选区的席位，成为该州首位黑人女国会议员。这位29岁的民主社会主义者、律师基罗斯，也将成为国会“Z世代”的一员，成为众议院最年轻的现任议员之一。

亚当·哈马维有望在赢得新泽西州第12选区国会众议员席位后，成为该州首位穆斯林国会议员。哈马维是一位退役的美国陆军作战外科医生，也是以色列的尖锐批评者。他来自民主党进步派，支持全民医保，并主张取消医疗和学生贷款债务。

克莱尔·瓦尔德斯有望成为纽约州首位当选国会议员的美国原住民女性。这位曾任一届州议员的候选人将赢得该州第七选区的国会席位。瓦尔德斯的胜选标志着民主党进步派的又一次胜利，该派系日益增长的影响力部分得益于纽约市市长佐兰·马姆达尼的支持，而马姆达尼正是瓦尔德斯的坚定支持者。

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杰里米·莫斯有望赢得密歇根州第11选区的国会众议员席位，成为该州首位公开同性恋身份的国会议员。莫斯在当选前曾担任州参议员，此次接替的是此前由哈莉·史蒂文斯担任的众议员席位——史蒂文斯此前辞去众议员职务竞选美国参议员，但在初选中落败。

艾米·阿克顿预计将成为自2006年以来首位赢得俄亥俄州州长选举的民主党人，也是该州历史上首位女性州长。阿克顿是一名医生，她在与共和党候选人维韦克·拉马斯瓦米的竞选中胜出。这场选举因一则引发争议的攻击性广告而备受全国关注。阿克顿以“降低生活成本”为竞选纲领，提出为俄亥俄州的中老年居民减免房产税，并暂停建设数据中心，除非这些数据中心能够自行承担水电费。

泽维尔·贝塞拉有望成为加利福尼亚州首位当选的拉丁裔州长，从而继续保持其所在政党对美国人口最多州的控制。

曾任美国国会议员、加州总检察长和拜登政府卫生与公众服务部部长的贝塞拉，在竞争激烈的初选中脱颖而出，接替了加州州长加文·纽森。

得益于加州坚定的自由派选民和有利的中期选举政治环境，贝塞拉反复将他的对手、共和党人史蒂夫·希尔顿与特朗普联系起来，大力宣传希尔顿的支持，并呼吁民主党人发出反对特朗普政府的信息。