First two Muslim women elected to US Congress

CHICAGO • US voters elected two Muslim women, both Democrats, to Congress on Tuesday, marking a historic first in a country where anti-Muslim rhetoric has been on the rise.

Ms Ilhan Omar, 36, a Somali refugee, won a House seat in a heavily Democratic district in the Midwestern state of Minnesota, where she will succeed Mr Keith Ellison, himself the first Muslim elected to Congress.

Ms Rashida Tlaib, 42, a social worker born in Detroit to Palestinian immigrant parents, won a House seat in a district where she ran unopposed.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

First openly gay person set to be governor

LOS ANGELES • Democratic Congressman Jared Polis has won the governor's race in Colorado, networks projected, making him the first openly gay person to be elected governor in the United States.

The five-term congressman, 43, who defeated Republican Walker Stapleton, was open about his sexual orientation during the campaign, often referring to it in his criticism of US President Donald Trump.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE

TV news anchors tread carefully

NEW YORK • Election night on television is all about the projections. But the slogan of Tuesday night's midterm election coverage might as well be "let's not get ahead of ourselves".

Scarred by the quick-change twists of US President Donald Trump's victory in 2016, when anchors and pundits looked as stunned by the outcome as their viewers at home, TV news producers are treading carefully this time round.

"I'm going to say this a lot tonight and forgive me if I'm a broken record," Mr John King, CNN's digital map maestro, said shortly after 6pm. "It's early. Let's just strap in for the night."

NYTIMES

Celebrities get into the act

WASHINGTON • Celebrities are sometimes just like anyone else. The latest example was on Tuesday, when athletes, actors, musicians and those famous for being famous joined ordinary Americans to vote on Election Day.

"I voted because I honour those that have fought and died for these rights," singer Pink posted on Instagram. "In order to have an opinion, you must participate... Go vote."

A bunch of celebrities, including actresses Maggie Gyllenhaal and Zoe Kazan, encouraged their fans to vote and offered them an incentive to do so: Share a photo of your "I Voted" sticker, they said, and we will share it with our followers.

NYTIMES