Progressive Cori Bush won Missouri’s first congressional district race in a landslide, becoming the state’s first black congresswoman.
Bush won with 78.9% of the vote.
“This is definitely a night to remember,” Bush said in her victory speech. “This has been a historic day from the beginning to the end.”
Bush, a nurse, has been active in the Black Lives Matter protests and has the backing of several progressive politicians and organizations, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) and Justice Democrats.
She first became a prominent activist following the 2014 police killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager in Ferguson. She has remained engaged in her racial justice work, advocating for reform in the wake of the killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor.
Bush wrote on Twitter that she will bring her racial justice work to Congress.
“Mike Brown was murdered 2,278 days ago. We took to the streets for more than 400 days in protest,” she wrote. “Today, we take this fight for Black Lives from the streets of Ferguson to the halls of Congress. We will get justice. ”
“Shirley Chisholm became the first Black woman elected to Congress 52 years ago,” she continued. “Today, I became the first Black woman elected to represent Missouri in Congress. It’s 2020. I shouldn’t be the first, but I am honored to carry this responsibility.”
