After a tight race for the Arizona Senate seat that was too close to call on election night, Krysten Sinema, a Democrat, was declared the victor on November 12, 2018. She will become the first openly-bisexual member of the U.S. Senate, and only its second out LGBTQ member, along with Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) who is an out lesbian.

Sinema is the first democrat elected to the Senate from Arizona since 1995, swept into office as part of the “blue wave” of the 2018 midterms. Over 600 members of the LGBTQ community ran for office in 2018, with a record-breaking 150+ candidates taking office in all levels of government all over the country in what has been called the “rainbow wave.”

In a time where bi erasure remains a significant problem in the LGBTQ community, The Center celebrates the historic nature of Krysten Sinema’s election to the U.S. Senate and congratulates the citizens of Arizona on this victory for inclusion and equality in their state.