Nine governors who marked historic firsts in the 2026 elections

The November 3, 2026, elections produced a series of historic milestones in governors’ races across nine states. The results included the first Black woman and the first Native American woman elected governor in the United States, along with several state-level firsts.

Keisha Lance Bottoms won Georgia and became the first Black woman elected governor in the country. Deb Haaland won New Mexico and became the first Native American woman elected governor in the United States.

The elections also brought new milestones in several states. Gina Hinojosa defeated Greg Abbott in Texas and became the state’s first Latina governor. Xavier Becerra became California’s first elected Latino governor. Becerra had previously served as California’s attorney general, where he was also the state’s first Latino attorney general.

Florida and Wisconsin each elected their first Black governors. Byron Donalds achieved that milestone in Florida, while David Crowley did so in Wisconsin.

Women also reached firsts in three states. Marsha Blackburn won Tennessee’s governor’s race and became the state’s first woman elected governor. Amy Klobuchar defeated Lisa Demuth in Minnesota and became the state’s first woman governor.

In Ohio, Amy Acton defeated Vivek Ramaswamy and became the state’s first elected woman governor. She also became Ohio’s first Jewish governor.

Together, the outcomes represent nine gubernatorial breakthroughs tied to the 2026 midterms. Some milestones were national firsts, while others marked the first time a woman, Black candidate, Latina, Latino or Jewish candidate reached a state’s governorship.