Power

6 Good News Moments From the Election So Far

Stressed while waiting for the final election results? From LGBTQ lawmakers who were elected and big victories in Colorado, here are good news to keep you going.

[PHOTO: A passenger in a car holds out a poster out the window that reads Count the Votes!]
It may be a long fight to officially call the presidential race, but there were several progressive victories across the country. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

For more election coverage, check out our special report.

The presidential race is still too close to call, but there were other major progressive wins throughout the country in Tuesday’s election.

In states across the country, voters approved paid family and medical leave, elected LGBTQ lawmakers, and rejected an abortion ban; in Florida, a minimum wage hike of $15 was approved.

Victories in Colorado

Voters in the state rejected a 22-week abortion ban, passed a paid family and medical leave program, and flipped a Republican U.S. Senate seat by ousting anti-choice Cory Gardner and electing former Gov. John Hickenlooper in his stead.

Inclusive sex ed wins

Voters in Washington passed Referendum 90, requiring school districts to provide comprehensive sex education tailored to students’ ages.

Historic night for out LGBTQ lawmakers

LBGTQ lawmakers across the country won election night victories: Delaware’s Sarah McBride as the first transgender state senator in any state; Michele Rayner-Goolsby as the first Black queer woman in the Florida state House; Shevrin Jones as the first gay senator in the Florida state Senate; Mondaire Jones and Ritchie Torres of New York as the first two gay Black men elected to Congress; Jabari Brisport as New York’s first Black LGBTQ state senator; Stephanie Byers as Kansas’ first transgender lawmaker; Taylor Small as Vermont’s first transgender lawmaker; Kim Jackson as the first queer Georgia state senator; and Mauree Turner, who will be Oklahoma’s first Muslim lawmaker, as the first nonbinary lawmaker in the United States.

Cori Bush’s election in Missouri

Bush defeated Republican Anthony Rogers, becoming the first Black woman to represent the state in Congress. She will represent the 1st District, which includes Ferguson and St. Louis. Bush was a leading activist in Ferguson following the police killing of Michael Brown in 2014. “Our America will be led not by the small-mindedness of a powerful few, but the imagination of a mass movement that includes all of us,” Bush said Tuesday evening.

Restoring voting rights in California

Voters passed Proposition 17, amending the state constitution to restore the voting rights of people on parole for felony convictions. “This is a victory for democracy and justice,” said Taina Vargas-Edmond, chair of the campaign for Prop 17.

Drug decriminalization

Oregon became the first state to decriminalize possession of small amounts of all drugs, including cocaine, LSD, and heroin. Instead of criminal charges and jail time, people caught with the drugs will have to pay a fine or complete a health assessment at a recovery center. And four other states—Arizona, New Jersey, Montana, and South Dakota—voted to legalize a recreational marijuana use.