Female Democratic candidates won historic nominations in elections in Southern states. “What happened tonight is amazing.” “I’m honored to be here at this moment.” “We are writing the next chapter of Georgia’s future.” In Georgia, Stacey Abrams became the first black woman to be a major party nominee for governor in the United States. “I am so grateful to the thousands of you in this room and around this state and around this country who have joined me on this drive to history.” [cheering and applause] She got more than 75% of the vote. And there were others, too. In Texas, a former Dallas county sheriff, Lupe Valdez, became the state’s first Latina and first lesbian nominee for governor. And Gina Ortiz Jones, an Iraq war veteran and daughter of a Filipino immigrant, became the first lesbian and woman of color to win a nomination for Congress. “When Houston families are threatened, we fight back.” Lizzie Pannill Fletcher also won a hard-fought nomination for a House seat in a state that isn’t known for nominating many women. “When I was 12 years old, I knew exactly what I wanted to do when I grew up.” In Kentucky, Amy McGrath, the first female Marine to fly an F-18 fighter jet in combat, defeated the Democratic establishment’s favored candidate to become the nominee for another seat in the U.S. House. Some of these candidates were backed by the national Democratic Party. But other victories came as a surprise. “— a stronger and fairer Texas.” In November’s midterm elections, all of these women will be running against male opponents, most of them white. They will also be running in traditionally Republican states and districts. So the midterms will tell how much demographic, economic and social forces are shifting politics in conservative parts of America. The Democratic Party has been struggling to define itself — “Thank you.” — after the 2016 presidential loss. But these campaigns now give it a chance to try out a political strategy ahead of 2020 — energizing a coalition of young and nonwhite voters with a progressive message instead of trying to win back rural white voters. [cheering and applause] “I wish the election were today. I think we would win overwhelmingly today. But it’s not today. So we just take it one district at a time.”