November 6th was the end of the 2018 midterm election season, leading to the end of the political races for this year. There was a lot that happened during this election, so whether or not you were paying attention along the way or just near the end, here are a few key things to know about the 2018 midterm election!
Voter Turnout
This year’s elections had a voter turnout of about 49%. This means that 49% of the people who are eligible to vote participated in this election. These numbers aren’t as high as the ones during presidential elections, but they are high for a midterm. This is also the first midterm to have over 100 million votes, which sets a new record. About 40% of states also saw a greater amount of early voters than in the 2014 midterms. To read more about voter turnout, check out this article from CBS News:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/record-voter-turnout-in-2018-midterm-elections/
History That Was Made
A lot of candidates in this midterm made history once they were elected. Here is a brief description of some, but not all, the candidates who made history.
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Sharice Davids and Deb Haaland are the first Native American women to be elected to congress. Deb Haaland represents New Mexico. Sharice Davids represents Kansas and is also the first openly gay person to represent Kansas.
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Ilhan Omar, a representative of Minnesota, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan became the first Muslim women in Congress.
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Jared Polis became the first openly gay governor, representing Colorado. In this election, there were more openly LGBTQ people elected than in any election before.
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Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress, representing the state of New York.
These are just some of the candidates who made history in the 2018 midterm elections. There are many more who made history in their states, and I encourage you to read more about them:
http://www.time.com/5395686/historic-candidates-midterms-2018/
https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/07/politics/historic-firsts-midterms/index.html
Overall:
No matter what your political beliefs are or how you feel about the outcomes of this election, we all can take time to appreciate the increasing numbers of people who are exercising their right to vote. It’s also important to look at the people who have made history during this election and recognize that, while there are some changes and increases in government representation, there is also a long way to go. Continue to pay attention to your representatives and senators and make sure to continue exercising your right to vote!