Scientists Win First-Time Runs for Congress, Senate

The midterm elections flip several House seats in favor of Democratic candidates with STEM backgrounds.

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More than 10 candidates with backgrounds in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics have won their runs for office across the United States in yesterday’s midterm elections. Several of them have had long political careers, while others were running for the first time in elections that have seen a wave of political newcomers.

With almost all of the votes now counted for the 2018 US midterms, it’s clear that the Democratic Party has won control the House of Representatives, while the Republican Party has strengthened its hold on the Senate.

Representatives succeeding in their runs for re-election include physicians Michael Burgess (R-TX) and Andy Harris (R-MD), as well as physicist Bill Foster (D-IL).

But there were several surprise victories for STEM-trained Democratic candidates who have never run for Congress before. Elaine Luria and Chrissy Houlahan, both of whom have backgrounds in engineering, overturned Republican-held seats in Virginia ...

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Meet the Author

  • Catherine Offord

    Catherine is a science journalist based in Barcelona.
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