Tuesday’s elections proved to be not only big wins for Democratic candidates in many races, but also history-making in several instances.
Here is a look at the history made during the 2025 elections.
New York City elects its 1st Muslim and South Asian mayor
Democratic candidate for New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani getsures on stage after winning the 2025 New York City Mayoral race, at an election night rally in the Brooklyn, New York, November 4, 2025.
Jeenah Moon/Reuters
Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani’s projected victory in the New York City mayoral election will make him the city’s first Muslim and South Asian mayor.
Born in Uganda, Mamdani is a Muslim of Indian descent who has lived in the United States since he was 7 years old, becoming a naturalized citizen in 2018.
At age 34, Mamdani is set to become the youngest New York City mayor in more than a century.
The election that propelled him to victory also made history, with 2 million voters turning out Tuesday in New York City, the first time a mayoral election crossed the 2 million voter threshold since 1969.
Virginia elects its 1st woman governor
Democrat Abigail Spanberger speaks on stage after she was declared the winner of the Virginia governor’s race during an election night watch party, Nov. 4, 2025, in Richmond, Va.
Stephanie Scarbrough/AP
Democrat Abigail Spanberger’s win Tuesday over Republican Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears makes her the first woman to be elected governor of Virginia.
Spanberger, 46, is a former U.S. representative and a former CIA intelligence officer.
She is also a mother of three and reflected in her victory speech on election night about the moment her husband told their three daughters that their mom would be the next governor of Virginia.
“And I can guarantee those words have never been spoken in Virginia ever before,” she said. “It’s a big deal that the girls and and young women I have met along the campaign trail now know with certainty that they can achieve anything.”
Virginia also elected state Sen. Ghazala Hashmi as lieutenant governor on Tuesday, making her the first Muslim woman to win statewide office in any U.S. state, according to her campaign.
Women set record for most governors
Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill, a Democrat who won the New Jersey gubernatorial election, made history by both winning governors’ elections Tuesday.
When the two women take office in January, there will be 14 women serving simultaneously as governor, a record high, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
New Jersey elects same governor from same party
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, Democratic gubernatorial candidate for New Jersey reacts on stage at her election night rally in East Brunswick, New Jersey, November 4, 2025.
Mike Segar/Reuters
Sherrill’s victory Tuesday marks the first time in over 60 years that New Jersey has elected a governor from the same party three cycles in a row.
It is also only the second time a woman has been elected governor of New Jersey, following in the footsteps of Christine Todd Whitman, who served from 1994 to 2001.
