Massachusetts on Tuesday elected Democrat Maura Healy as its governor in the midterm elections, becoming the first gay female governor in US history.
According to NBC and Fox, the 51-year-old Healy wrested the Republican position after handily defeating Jeff Deal.
According to US media, Haley’s victory was a “long-awaited victory” for LGBT representatives who have been trying for decades to elect a lesbian to the highest post in state government.
Anise Parker, president and CEO of the LGBTQ Victory Fund, which helps LGBTQ candidates run for public office, said Haley’s historic victory will help send the message that “LGBTQ people have a place in American society and can become respected community leaders.” “.
“We are confident that under Morra’s leadership, Massachusetts will reach new heights as one of the most inclusive states in the country,” Parker said in a statement.
This result was expected as Healy, Massachusetts Attorney General since 2014, had a strong lead in pre-election polls, according to an AFP report.
In 2014, Hayley won the position of state’s “Attorney General”, thus becoming “the first lesbian elected to the post”, and was re-elected in 2018 after making the nation’s first successful challenge in 2009 with the Protection Act. marriage.
“He is committed to justice, equality and economic opportunity for everyone in Massachusetts,” Healy says.
Haley’s campaign website reveals an aspect of her upbringing as she was “the eldest of five children and was raised by her mother” as her father was “a captain in the Public Health Service and later worked as a civil engineer for the Department of the Environment.” Defense Agency.
Haley attended Harvard College, led the basketball team, and later went to Northeastern University School of Law and began her career as head of civil rights at the Attorney General’s Office.
She faced her first job challenge after taking charge of holding major banks and lending companies accountable in the aftermath of the 2008 mortgage crisis.
The Human Rights Campaign, which advocates for gay rights in the US, praised Healy’s victory.
“Massachusetts has embraced a platform of equality and inclusiveness by electing an equality champion,” group interim president Johnny Madison said in a statement.
This midterm election marks the first time gay people are running for office in all 50 US states other than Washington, DC, as the voting power of the LGBT community in the United States grows.
In a number of states, polling stations were closed in the US midterm elections, which will determine the fate of the majority in Congress and the margin of maneuver for Democratic President Joe Biden.
Some major states have had heated elections, and the same states already at stake in the 2020 presidential election, such as Georgia, Arizona, Ohio, Nevada, Wisconsin, and North Carolina, have become the scene of intense conflicts that all candidates face. from the Democratic Party. candidates for former Republican President Donald Trump.
More than 40 million people cast their ballots in a nationwide early vote that will upgrade seats in the entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate, as well as a number of local positions.
