Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride, who won her at-large House race Tuesday, has become the first openly transgender person elected to Congress.
The Democrat defeated her Republican challenger, former state trooper and retired businessman John Whalen, 58 percent to 42 percent, according to The New York Times. CNN also made the call in McBride’s favor.
A former Obama administration intern, McBride had a speaking role at the 2016 Democratic National Convention, and four years later was elected to her current position. She has ties to the Biden family; the president wrote the foreword to her 2018 memoir, “Tomorrow Will Be Different,” and she worked on Beau Biden’s two campaigns for state attorney general.
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McBride reflected Tuesday on voting not only for Vice President Kamala Harris, but for senator-elect Lisa Blunt Rochester, who is set to be Delaware’s first Black and female senator.
“That ticket is not an ultimate destination, but it is a reflection of how far we’ve come, that no matter who you are, what you look like, where you come from or the gender with which you identify, that you can live your truth and dream big dreams all at the same time,” McBride said, per NBC News. “It’s not the end, but it’s the beginning.”
During her campaign, McBride touted her work passing paid family and medical leave, as well as raising Delaware’s minimum wage.
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