These 8 Senate candidates made history on election night : NPR

When the newest class of U.S. senators are sworn into office in January, it will include some of America’s firsts.

The 2026 midterm election resulted in a significant shift in the landscape of Congress as Democrats won in a big way up and down the ballot. While not all the races have been called, Democrats have flipped more than 40 House seats and picked up 7 Senate seats, giving them control of both chambers of Congress.

Here are some of the new faces to expect in the Senate who made history on Election Day.

Josh Turek of Iowa

Josh Turek speaks during an election night event Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, in Des Moines, Iowa.

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Ellen Schmidt/AP

Turek will be the first Paralympian to serve in the Senate. The Democrat is a two-time gold medalist in wheelchair basketball. Turek is paraplegic and uses a wheelchair due to spina bifida. He beat Republican Ashley Hinson in the general election.

Julia Letlow of Louisiana

Julia Letlow speaks to media during an election night watch party on May 16, 2026, in Baton Rouge, La.

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Matthew Hinton/AP

Letlow has now made history twice. She was the first Republican woman elected to the U.S. House from Louisiana in 2021. Letlow ran for the House in a special election to replace her late husband, Congressman Luke Letlow, who died of COVID-19 in 2020. Now, Louisiana voters have decided to send her to the Senate, where she will be the first Republican woman from the state to serve. She will succeed Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, who Letlow beat in the primary election.

Abdul El-Sayed of Michigan

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed visits a polling precinct on the campus of the University of Michigan on November 3, 2026 in Ann Arbor, Mich.

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Salwan Georges/Getty Images

The incoming Democratic senator is the son of Egyptian immigrants and is the first Muslim person elected to the upper chamber. El-Sayed is an epidemiologist and the former health director for the city of Detroit. He beat Republican Mike Rogers for the hotly contested seat.

Peggy Flanagan of Minnesota

Peggy Flanagan walks with her husband as they arrive to vote at a polling location on Election Day in St. Louis Park, Minn. on November 3, 2026.

Tim Evans/AFP via Getty Images

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Tim Evans/AFP via Getty Images

Minnesota’s Democratic Lt. Governor is the first Native American elected to the Senate. Flanagan is a member of the White Earth Band of Ojibwe. She also made political history more than once. She was also the first woman of color elected to state office in Minnesota. Flanagan will replace outgoing Democratic Sen. Tina Smith.

Chris Pappas of New Hampshire

Chris Pappas walks onstage to deliver his acceptance speech at a watch party at the Puritan Backroom on November 3, 2026 in Manchester, New Hampshire.

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Joseph Prezioso/Getty Images

Pappas is the first openly gay man elected to the Senate and is also the first gay man to represent the state of New Hampshire. He served four terms in the House and beat Republican John Sununu in the election.