A wave of Black women nationwide are seeking office or reelection in the 2026 midterm elections. Here are some of the races to watch with sistas on the ballot. These are not endorsements. Just acknowledgements of some of the Black women showing up on ballots. Who did we leave off the list?
MAYOR
Letitia Clark (I-Calif.)
Candidate for Mayor – Tustin, California
Unaffiliated incumbent Letitia Clark (I-Calif.) is running for reelection for mayor of Tustin, California. The “Mommy is the Mayor” author also served on the Tustin City Council from 2016 to 2024.
Raquel Carter (I-Ky.)
Candidate for Mayor – Lexington, Kentucky
Raquel Carter (I-Ky.) is running to become mayor of Lexington, Kentucky. She is a member of the Kentucky Real Estate Commission and previously served as chair of the Lexington Board of Adjustment.
GOVERNOR
Keisha Lance Bottoms (D-Ga.)
Candidate for Governor – Georgia
Atlanta’s former mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms (D-Ga.) is running to become the state’s first Black and first female governor. Bottoms served as a senior advisor to the White House during the Biden administration.
Lisa Demuth (R-Minn.)
Candidate for Governor – Minnesota
Minnesota House of Representatives Speaker Lisa Demuth (R-Minn.) is vying to become the state’s first Black and first female governor. Demuth made history in 2025 as the first Black lawmaker and first Republican woman to serve as Minnesota Speaker of the House.
U.S. SENATE
The Senate’s balance could shift this November. More than 30 of the 100 seats are up for election. The following Senate candidates may shift the makeup of Congress in the midterms.
Angie Nixon (D-Fla.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Florida
State Representative Angie Nixon (D-Fla.) is the Democratic frontrunner in a Florida’s special election for U.S. Senate. The Senate seat was vacated by Marco Rubio when he joined the Trump administration. The winner of this Senate race will serve the reminder of his term which ends in January 2029.
Catherine Fleming Bruce (D-S.C.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – South Carolina
Write-in candidate and activist Catherine Fleming Bruce (D-S.C.) is seeking to fill the Senate seat formerly held by the late Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.). He passed away while serving in the Senate seat that he has held since 2003. His sister, Darline Graham was appointed to the Senate seat. She is the Republican frontrunner in the November 2026 election. The Democratic frontrunner is pediatrician Dr. Annie Andrews.
Juliana Stratton (D-Ill.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Illinois
Illinois Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton (D-Ill.) has her eyes on the U.S. Senate. The Democratic candidate is vying to replace Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) who has held the position since 1997.
Marquita Bradshaw (D-Tenn.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Tennessee
Activist Marquita Bradshaw (D-Tenn.) is the Democratic nominee for Tennessee’s U.S. Senate seat. The Memphis native faces incumbent Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), who she also ran against in 2020. Bradshaw also ran in the Senate Democratic primary in 2024.
N’Kiyla Jasmine Thomas (D-Okla.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Oklahoma
Nurse and self-proclaimed democratic socialist N’Kiyla Jasmine Thomas (D-Okla.) is running for the Oklahoma U.S. Senate seat. If she wins, she’ll be Oklahoma’s first Black and Native American woman voted into the Senate seat.
Cassandra Easton (I-Ga.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Georgia
Cassandra Easton (I-Ga.) is an unaffiliated candidate running a write-in campaign for a chance at Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat.
Christina Loren Clement (R-Ga.)
Candidate for U.S. Senate – Georgia
Christina Loren Clement (R-Ga.) is a Republican candidate running a write-in campaign for a chance at Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat.
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Amanda Hollowell (D-Ga.)
Candidate for U.S. House of Reps. – Georgia District 1
Amanda Hollowell (D-Ga.) is the Democratic frontrunner in the Georgia race for U.S. House of Representatives District 1. Hollowell is a political strategist and the Color Of Change campaigns chief.
Christian Maxwell (R-Ill.)
Candidate for U.S. House of Reps. – Illinois District 1
Christian Maxwell (R-Ill.) is running against an incumbent to take the U.S. House Illinois District 1 seat. The entrepreneur’s campaign focuses on bringing a conservative values platform to the South Side of Chicago.
Dr. Jasmine Clark (D-Ga.)
Candidate for U.S. House of Reps. – Georgia District 13
State Rep. Dr. Jasmine Clark (D-Ga.) has her eyes on representing Georgia on Capitol Hill. The Emory University professor and microbiologist is running for Georgia’s District 13 seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Melat Kiros (D-Colo.)
Candidate for U.S. House of Reps. – Colorado District 1
Democratic socialist Melat Kiros (D-Colo.) could become the first Gen Z woman elected to congress if she wins the race for Colorado’s District 1. The Ethiopian immigrant earned her law degree from the University of Notre Dame in 2022 and is currently a public policy Ph.D. candidate at the University of Denver.
Tyler L. Davis (I-Fla.)
Candidate for U.S. House of Reps. – Florida District 1
Artist Tyler L. Davis (I-Fla.) is an unaffiliated candidate running for Florida’s District 1 U.S. House of Representatives seat. The panhandle resident is centering education, employment and veterans in her campaign.
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