The first 2 US Muslim women elected to Congress
Democrats Rashida Tlaib in Michigan and Ilhan Omar in Minnesota both won their races for House seats on Tuesday, becoming the first Muslim women ever elected to Congress.
Rashida Tlaib one of 14 children to Palestinian immigrant parents, Tlaib is the first Muslim congresswoman.
Ilhan Omar was born in a refugee camp in Somalia, and emigrated to America aged 12. She just won a seat in Congress.
Michigan Democrat Rashida Tlaib is projected to become the first Muslim woman to be elected to Congress.
In Minnesota, Somali-American Ilhan Omar is also projected to win her race in a landslide, besting Republican Jennifer Zielinski.
Omar was the first Somali-American to be elected to office in the US in 2016, when she became a member of Minnesota’s House of Representatives
The former state representative’s projected victory comes after she narrowly defeated Democrat Brenda Jones in the primary election. Tlaib ran as the only major party candidate during the mid-terms.
Omar will fill the seat of Rep. Keith Ellison (D), who was the first Muslim person elected to the body and left his seat to run for state attorney general.
After both facing crowded primary races, the progressive candidates were all but guaranteed to win in the general election, with Tlaib facing no Republican challengers in Michigan’s 13th District, and Omar the favorite to prevail in Minnesota’s solidly Democratic 5th District.
Tlaib, 42, and Omar, 37, were part of a record number of Muslim candidates who ran in 2018, and an unprecedented number of women, specifically women of color, who were nominated.
