In the early hours of Wednesday, Nov. 5, as I watched Donald Trump’s electoral vote count rise and the U.S. map on my television turn red, I realized that as much as I had tried to remain stoic about the results of the election, I had really believed Kamala Harris could win. We were supposed to make history with the first ever woman, Black woman and Asian American to be elected President of the United States. Instead, history was made when for the first time, a convicted felon was chosen to ascend to the White House. Although the 2024 election was not the progressive milestone many hoped for, it was riddled with historic wins that should be celebrated and acknowledged.Â
In Florida, Amendment 4, which would have limited government interference with abortions before fetal viability, received 57.2% of voter approval, failing to reach the 60% minimum. Though it is heartbreaking that most women in Florida will still lack autonomy over their bodies, millions in Arizona, Colorado, Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Nevada and New York now have access to abortion after measures for abortion rights won in their states. This is particularly impactful in Missouri, which held one of the strictest abortion bans with no exceptions for rape or incest. Although no progress concerning reproductive rights was made in Florida, Nebraska and South Dakota, the success in the seven other states in which abortion rights appeared on the ballot, is a win for all women nationwide.Â
With Republicans winning the Senate and the House, it is easy to see the Congressional results of the election as an ultimate loss, but doing so would be undermining the historic wins that were accomplished. In the United States’ history, only three Black women have served as senators, and never at the same time. On election night, Maryland and Delaware elected Angela Alsobrooks and Lisa Blunt Rochester, respectively, setting them up to become the first two Black women to serve simultaneously in the Senate. American history was also made in New Jersey when Andy Kim became the state’s first Asian American and the country’s first Korean American to be elected to the U.S. Senate.Â
The House of Representatives has seen similar strides. Delaware’s singular House seat was given to Sarah McBride, making her the first openly transgender person to be elected to Congress. Washington state’s Emily Randall was elected into a House seat, which will make her the first out LGBTQ+ Latina in Congress. Adding to this progress for queer individuals, Julie Johnson is the first out LGBTQ+ to be elected to Congress from the U.S. South and will represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. These achievements represent a shift toward a Congress full of diversity and equality in which individuals are elected based on their policies and qualifications rather than their identities.The 2024 election was a difficult one that represented more than just politics and parties to many, making the results extremely disheartening. Harris did not win the election, and while her win would have been a monumental leap toward progress, we cannot allow her loss to overshadow the small steps forward that were made. The Vice President herself said it best, “Sometimes the fight takes a while. That doesn’t mean we won’t win.” Although we did not win this battle, we gained significant ground, and that is something to celebrate.