Women make history in Georgia, Texas, Kentucky elections

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Georgia Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams takes the stage to declare victory in the primary during an election night event on May 22, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia.

The first black woman governor in the United States. The first lesbian serving in Congress from Texas. The first Democratic woman representing Kentucky in the House. All of these scenarios moved closer to reality Tuesday night following a round of primary elections in red states.

While women in general did not score resounding wins across the board in the latest round of primaries ahead of the midterm elections, several candidates have a chance to make history in November. Of course, some of them face uphill battles as Democrats running in red areas or facing incumbents.

More women than ever before are running for office in this year’s midterm elections, increasing the chances of the gender divide and diversity in both federal and state governments better reflecting the broader population. Already, the number of women running for House seats and governor’s offices has shattered previous records, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.

Early primary elections suggest the number of women in Congress could rise after November. Following primary elections last week, several women appear to be favored to win House seats in Pennsylvania, a state currently represented entirely by men in Congress.

More women set themselves up to take a run at making history following Tuesday’s primaries in multiple red states. Ten out of 17 women running for statewide elected executive offices, or just under 60 percent, won their nominations, according to Gender Watch 2018, a nonpartisan project tracking women in the midterms.

Out of 61 House nominations decided Tuesday, women won 12 of them, or about 20 percent. The figure falls in line with the proportion of women in Congress overall.

In Texas, women won Democratic nominations to challenge incumbents in two competitive districts — the 7th and 23rd Districts. Men secured Democratic primary runoff wins over women in two other seats on the party’s radar: the 21st and 32nd Districts.

Texas is also the home of two female candidates would could end up making history this year. Here are some of the women who have a chance to achieve electoral firsts in November: