This week was a historic week for our country. Interfaith America is a nonpartisan organization and the work of pluralism is to cooperate across difference, no matter how you vote. Elections are, by their nature, zero-sum: some people are celebrating this week while others are disappointed. We are committed to building a nation big enough for all of us.
Americans elected one of the most diverse groups of leaders in our country’s history.
Nevertheless, at the heart of our mission is our profound belief that diversity is a treasure. And whatever one’s politics, something remarkable happened this week: Americans elected one of the most diverse groups of leaders in our country’s history.
Diversity is something all of us at Interfaith America can celebrate. The beauty of this organization is that we are building a culture for people to live and lead together across deep difference. Whether Tuesday’s results left you elated or deflated, pluralism gives us something larger to affirm: that our democracy is strengthened when people of different races, religions, generations, and political traditions can participate fully in it — and when individuals from those identity communities are elected to lead.
The history-making selections crossed partisan lines and included:
- The first Black woman elected governor in American history, Keisha Lance Bottoms of Georgia.
- The first Native American woman elected governor, Deb Haaland of New Mexico.
- The first Black Republican elected governor, Byron Donalds of Florida.
- The first Muslim elected to the U.S. Senate, Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan.
- The first Native American woman elected to the U.S. Senate, Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota.
- The first Jain elected to the House of Representatives, Dr. Amish Shah of Arizona.
- The first openly gay man elected to the U.S. Senate, Chris Pappas of New Hampshire.
- Historic representation at the state level as well, including Tennessee’s first female governor, Marsha Blackburn; Texas’s first Latina governor, Gina Hinojosa; Ohio’s first female and first Jewish governor, Amy Acton; and Wisconsin’s first Black governor, David Crowley.
- A generational milestone: Colorado’s Melat Kiros will become the first Gen Z woman in Congress.
- Historic numbers of Muslims in Congress, Black governors across the nation, and women in governors’ offices as well.
These leaders are Democrats and Republicans, and together they offer a striking picture of an American democracy in which Americans, through their votes, affirmed the contributions that these leaders’ expertise, qualifications, and identities offer our public leadership.
These successes are particularly important in a time when the very concept of American identity is being contested. The Michigan Senate race, in particular, surfaced America’s struggle with Islamophobia; antisemitic tropes were also a troubling dynamic in several races this election season. Negotiating what counts as “authentic” Christianity has marked political campaigns such as Senator-elect James Talarico from Texas and Senator-elect Adam Hamilton of Kansas.
The election may be over, but the work of healing is not. A key part of pluralism is respect for individual identities, building a nation where religious identity is not used to diminish someone’s humanity and welcome.
Elections determine who governs. They do not determine who belongs.
Elections determine who governs. They do not determine who belongs. As our Founder and President, Eboo Patel, shared with our staff this week, “Part of what we saw is a people — not based on ethnicity, not based on religion, not based on language — say that they are comfortable with many-ness, that we love the diverse people around us. That is what it means to be a people, and every once in a while, the sense of decency of a people shows.”
This election reinforces why pluralism and bridgebuilding matter: helping Americans live constructively with electoral outcomes, remain in relationship across political difference, and find opportunities to act together amidst disagreement.
– Amber Hacker and Mary Ellen Giess, Managing Directors, Interfaith America
