John,

We're almost there.

As of the writing of this edition of the Resistance Roundup, we still don’t know who won the presidential election. But there's already so much to celebrate!

Over 100 New American candidates won their elections on Tuesday, redefining what leadership looks like. States like Georgia, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Colorado now have new leaders that reflect the full breadth of the American experience, including immigrant and refugee experiences.

Of the New American candidates we tracked this election cycle, 163 have run for office and won as of today, including 72 AAPI candidates, 49 Latinx candidates, 21 Black candidates, and 14 MENA candidates. This includes the 57 NALpistas who ran and won! We're so proud of them for stepping up to be the leaders our communities need and working hard to build a more inclusive democracy that works for everyone.

Among these trailblazing candidates are people like:

• Abdullahi Abdulle (Minnesota): A Somali immigrant and the first Black Muslim immigrant elected to the New Brighton City Council
• Esther Agbaje (Minnesota): The first Nigerian American elected to the Minnesota legislature
• Nida Allam (North Carolina): The first Muslim American to be elected in North Carolina
• Niraj Antani (Ohio): The first Indian American elected to the Ohio State Senate
• Michelle Au (Georgia): The first Asian American and Chinese American State Senator in Georgia
• Samba Baldeh (Wisconsin): A NAL alum, an immigrant from The Gambia, and the first Muslim elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly and the first Black man to represent Dane County in the legislature
• Danielle Cava (Florida): The first female mayor of Miami-Dade County
• Anupam Chugh Sidhu (Michigan): A NAL alum, the first South Asian on the Plymouth Canton School Board, and the first Hindu elected in Canton along with Tania Ganguly
• Tania Ganguly (Michigan): A NAL alum, the first South Asian woman on the Canton Township Board of Trustees, and the first Hindu elected in Canton along with Anupam Chugh Sidhu
• Cecelia Gonzalez (Nevada): A NAL alum and the first openly LGBTQ+ and Thai legislator in Nevada history
• Francesca Hong (Wisconsin): The first Asian American and Korean American to serve in the Wisconsin legislature
• Vanna Howard (Massachusetts): The first Khmer woman State Representative in the U.S.
• Amina Iqbal (Michigan): The first Muslim elected to the Canton Township Library Board
• Iman Jodeh (Colorado): The first Muslim lawmaker in Colorado
• Teresa Leger Fernandez (New Mexico): The first woman and Latina to represent northern New Mexico in Congress
• Marvin Lim (Georgia): A NAL alum and the first Filipino American State Representative in Georgia
• Zohran Mamdani (New York): The first South Asian elected to the New York State Assembly along with Jennifer Rajkumar
• Oye Owolewa (District of Columbia): The first Nigerian American elected to U.S. Congress
• Ranjeev Puri (Michigan): A NAL alum and the first Sikh in the Michigan legislature
• Jennifer Rajkumar (New York): The first South Asian elected to the New York State Assembly along with Zohran Mamdani
• Kesha Ram (Vermont): The first woman of color elected to the Vermont State Senate
• Naquetta Ricks (Colorado): A NAL alum, the first Black immigrant in the Nevada State House, and the fist Liberian American elected to a U.S. State Assembly
• Nikil Saval (Pennsylvania): The first Asian American elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate
• Marylin Strickland (Washington): The first Korean American and first Black member of Congress from Washington
• Erika Uyterhoeven (Massachusetts): The first person of color to represent the 27th Middlesex District in Massachusetts
• Emily Weber (Missouri): The first Asian American woman in the Missouri legislature
• Madinah Wilson-Anton (Delaware): The first Muslim elected to the Delaware legislature and the first Muslim woman elected to office in Delaware

Congratulations to all of these amazing, fierce newly elected officials! We can't wait to see the difference you'll make for our communities in office. 💛

So now that we're at the tail end of the election season, you might be asking yourself what comes next. People like us have organized, run for office, and turned out in record numbers to elect an amazing group of New American leaders to office, but the work doesn't stop there. We must keep up the momentum to continue growing our movement.

To find out what people like us can do to keep our movement going, join us on Monday, November 9th at 5 pm ET / 2 pm PT for a debrief on the 2020 election and lessons learned with our President and Founder Sayu Bhojwani and four New Americans who just won their elections: Samba Baldeh, the first Muslim elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly and the first Black man to represent Dane County in the legislature; Naquetta Ricks, the first Liberian American elected to a U.S. State Assembly and first African immigrant in the Nevada legislature; Zulma Lopez, an advocate for #PeopleLikeUs, attorney, and first-time candidate; and Melody Hernandez, a NALpista, organizer, and first responder who was just elected to the Arizona State House. You don't want to miss this—RSVP today for this important conversation!

Congratulations again to our alumni and all the other New Americans who stepped up to run for office and won, and just remember:

The NAL Team