Peggy Flanagan Became The First Native American Woman In The U.S. Senate

• 4.11.2026, 17:55

She was elected from Minnesota.

Minnesota Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan became the first Native American woman to be elected to the U.S. Senate. This marked yet another milestone in her political career, during which she has repeatedly broken barriers.

Flannagan, 47, defeated Republican Michele Tafoya, a former NFL sideline reporter, and retained Minnesota’s Senate seat for the Democratic Party.

She will succeed retiring Democratic Senator Tina Smith.

Her election was a significant milestone for the representation of Native Americans in Congress. Prior to this victory, only four Native American men had served in the Senate. There had been no Native American representatives in the Senate since former Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin left the Senate earlier this year to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security in the Trump administration.