#GoodNews: Indian-American Becomes 1st Muslim in Virginia Senate

Following her win in the election, Hashmi will now represent Virginia’s 10th Senate district.

Indian-American Democrat Ghazala Hashmi. 

(Photo Courtesy: Twitter/@GhazalaHashmi)

Indian-American Democrat Ghazala Hashmi has become the first Muslim to be elected to the Virginia State Senate following her stunning victory over sitting Republican Senator Republican Glen Sturtevant.

Following her win in Tuesday's election, Hashmi will now represent Virginia's 10th Senate district.

The race was one of the most watched contests in the state as the Democrats were looking to flip the Senate by cutting the narrow 20-19 Republican edge, reports The American Bazaar.

Hashmi was born in India and emigrated to the US as a child with her family. She is also a former director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching & Learning at Reynolds Community College.

Her impressive win in her first ever campaign for a public office shows that Hashmi may have struck the right note with the voters. She feels strongly about gun violence in the country and actively campaigned against it.

Hashmi dedicated her win to her supporters with a tweet saying it belonged to all those who believed in the need for "progressive change in Virginia".

“Thank you all for your support and passion in helping me become the next state Senator for Virginia’s 10th District! I couldn’t be more honoured to be a part of the change to come for Virginia.”

Ghazala Hashmi

Hashmi also reached out to her voters through social media to inform them about the causes that she would be undertaking, The American Bazaar reported.