New Mexico made history this Election Day through the elections and reelections of three women of color to House seats. The state became the first to ever send a delegation consisting entirely of women of color to Congress, according to The Associated Press.
Popular incumbent and Pueblo Tribe member Deb Haaland won her reelection bid in District 1 while Teresa Leger Fernandez won her race to replace former representative Ben Ray Luján, who also secured victory in his bid to become a Senator of the state.
Tonight the people of New Mexico have chosen hope over fear, love over hate, community over division, and I am so honored that New Mexican’s have chosen me to serve in our nation’s 117th Congress.#nmpol
pic.twitter.com/PJ3IacPC7X— Deb Haaland (@Deb4CongressNM) November 4, 2020
"Tonight the people of New Mexico have chosen hope over fear, love over hate, community over division, and I am so honored that New Mexican’s have chosen me to serve in our nation’s 117th Congress," Haaland wrote on Twitter.
"Tonight I recommit to fighting for legislation that will guide our nation forward in the areas of climate change, education, racial equality, healthcare and economic justice. Thank you New Mexico!" she added.
Both Haaland and Fernandez are Democrats.
The people of New Mexico have chosen to protect what we love – our democracy, our planet, our families and communities, our health care and our future. With this victory, I promise you I will take the courageous action that this historic moment demands. Muchísimas gracias! pic.twitter.com/KtoxfLTYsc
— Teresa Leger Fernandez (@TeresaForNM) November 4, 2020
The third House winner was Republican and Cherokee nation member Yvette Herrell, who beat out Democratic incumbent Xochitl Torres Small in a close race.
Herrell won by less than 20,000 votes, according to The Associated Press.
"It’s the honor of my life to be elected to serve #NM02. My commitment to each citizen of our district is that I will serve each of them with integrity as we work together to rebuild our economy and protect the values that make America great!" Herrell wrote.
She received heavy support from Republicans across the country as well as backing from President Donald Trump.
It’s the honor of my life to be elected to serve #NM02. My commitment to each citizen of our district is that I will serve each of them with integrity as we work together to rebuild our economy and protect the values that make America great! #NMPOL
pic.twitter.com/8LTYnJvncu— Yvette Herrell (@Yvette4congress) November 4, 2020
The election was actually a rematch of 2018, when Small narrowly beat out Herrell. But this time, Trump and other Republican leaders held virtual events and others to help push her to Herrell to victory, touting her as an advocate for the president's border policies.
According to the Associated Press, Small struggled to rebound after Herrell flooded the airwaves with ads saying she was against gun ownership and would ban fracking in the energy-dependent state.
All three races represented some of the most diverse elections in the country as there were Native American or Hispanic women involved in every single race.
"We knew that that was going to be an all-female delegation because there were six major party candidates who were all women running, so no matter how the race came out, you were going to have an all-female delegation," congressional correspondent Nancy Cordes told CBS News.
