LGBTQ candidates won big in last night’s off-year elections

LGBTQ candidates won big in last night’s election. In their victories, many of them also smashed through rainbow ceilings and made history.

Here are 10 of last night’s history-making wins.

Related: Virginians just picked a Trump-endorsed, anti-LGBTQ Republican as governor 

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Danica Roem, Virginia

Danica Roem was reelected to the Virginia House of Delegates for a third term and will continue to be the country’s longest-serving out trans legislator. Roem defeated the anti-LGBTQ Christopher Stone, who is opposed to marriage equality and adoption rights for LGBTQ couples.

Thu Nguyen, Massachusetts

Thu Nguyen, who came to America from Vietnam as a refugee when they were a baby, was elected to the Worcester City Council last night, becoming the first non-binary elected official in Massachusetts.

Xander Orenstein, Pennsylvania

Xander Orenstein made history last night as the first non-binary person in the country to be elected to a judicial position. Orenstein was elected to the Allegheny County Magisterial District Court in Pennsylvania.

Christopher Coburn, Montana

Christopher Coburn was elected to the Bozeman City Commission, making him the first out Black person Montana has ever elected.

Gabriela Santiago-Romero, Michigan

Gabriela Santiago-Romero not only became the first out LGBTQ woman elected to the Detroit City Council, but also the first out LGBTQ Latina woman ever elected in the state of Michigan.

Rebecca Maurer, Ohio

Elected to the Cleveland City Council, Rebecca Maurer will be the first out LGBTQ woman to hold a seat.

Dion Manley, Ohio

Dion Manley, who won his race for the Gahanna Jefferson School Board, became the first out elected trans person in the state of Ohio.

Dawn Adams, Virginia

Dawn Adams was reelected to the Virginia House of Delegates and will continue her work as the only out lesbian delegate in the state.

Andrea Jenkins, Minnesota

Andrea Jenkins was reelected to the Minneapolis City Council after becoming one of the first out trans representatives of any major city council in 2017.

New York City Council Candidates

A record six out LGBTQ candidates were elected to the New York City Council last night. The winners were Lynn Schulman, Tiffany Cabán, Erik Bottcher, Chi Ossé, Kristin Richardson Jordan, and Crystal Hudson.

Within this group, many barriers were broken.

Hudson and Richardson Jordan will be the first out Black women on the city council, and Schulman and Cabán will be the first out LGBTQ women elected to public office from Queens. Chi Ossé, 23, is also the youngest person ever elected to the city council.