As votes continue to be tallied, many Americans are on edge to find out which presidential candidate will be victorious in the 2020 election.
While the presidential results are undoubtedly among the most anticipated in decades, votes for congressional positions are also making history.
So far, 134 women are set to represent their states in the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate — a new record. The previous record was set last year when 127 women served in Congress, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University.
In the House, at least 109 women are expected to serve, making up more than 25% of all seats, according to CAWP. Among them, so far, are 85 Democrats and 24 Republicans.
So far in Senate elections, 25 women are set to serve next year, with 17 Democrat women and eight Republican women. Women are expected to make up about 25% of all Senate seats in 2021.
Four women of color — all Democrats — have been elected to serve in the Senate. In the House, 44 women of color have been elected to serve, including two Republican women and 42 Democrat women.
As of Friday evening, 20 congressional races with female candidates remained too close to call, according to CAWP.
The number of seats filled by women in the Senate is still fluid.
In Georgia, Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R), who was previously appointed to the position by Gov. Brian Kemp, has advanced to a runoff in the special election for the seat.
If Joe Biden is elected president, Sen. Kamala Harris' seat will become available in the state of California.
“Women’s representation in American politics has been, through struggle and persistence, on a long, if occasionally fitful, upward trajectory," CAWP director Debbie Walsh said in a statement. "With all that progress, at best, women will still make up less than 30% of Congress in 2021.”
Cox Media Group
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