Deb Haaland, who won the Democratic nomination, will likely win in the general. Deb Haaland, who won the Democratic nomination in her New Mexico district Tuesday night, is likely to become the first Native American congresswoman in U.S. history come November. “Tonight, New Mexico made history. Thank you to the tens of thousands of volunteers, grassroots donors, and supporters who won this election today. I’m honored and humbled by your support. Our win is a victory for working people, a victory for women, and a victory for everyone who has been sidelined by the billionaire class," Haaland said in a statement on the victory. Haaland won the Democratic nomination in the state's 1st Congressional District, previously held by Democratic Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham and is likely to go blue again in the general election. Haaland will face off against Republican candidate Janice Arnold-Jones. “Donald Trump and the billionaire class should consider this victory a warning shot: the blue wave is coming,” Haaland said in her statement Tuesday night. Haaland is an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, a federally-recognized Native American tribe. “It’s home to me, I go home as often as I can,” said Haaland. But growing up, she never saw a future for herself – or anyone who looked like her – in politics. “In 230 years, there’s never been a Native American woman in Congress. I have never seen myself in that body of our government,” Haaland said in an interview on Friday with ABC News. There are currently two Native American representatives in the House — both men from Oklahoma. Unfortunately, that lived experience can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy for some. “Ten years ago, when I was out in Indian country knocking on doors and driving folks to the polls, I never thought I would run for Congress,” Haaland acknowledged. But eventually, a desire to serve her community led her to politics. Before deciding to run for the House of Representatives, Haaland volunteered in former President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign. She then became the chair of the Democratic Party of New Mexico and helped flip the state House back to blue. In 2014, she ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor. Her mother, who served in the Navy, still lives in the Pueblo of Laguna. Her father, a Marine, is buried at Arlington National Cemetery. Now, Haaland wants to bring diversity to Congress, she said Friday, both as a woman of color and as someone who feels she’s lived through many of the difficulties facing the constituents of New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District. As a single mom, she knows what it’s like to struggle, she said, whether that meant facing the reality of food stamps or trouble accessing affordable healthcare. “I think it's important to always have diversity, in our Congress or anywhere, but you also need diversity not just for women of color who are most underrepresented, but diversity in different walks of life,” Haaland said. Haaland faced a crowded Democratic race with four opponents on Tuesday. Haaland and two of her opponents, former U.S. Attorney Damon Martinez and former law school professor and activist Antoinette Sedillo-Lopez, raised the most money and came out as frontrunners. But the race was diverse among the remaining five candidates in gender, career and ethnicity — a reflection of the majority-minority state. The current governor, Susana Martinez, was the first Hispanic female elected governor in the history of the United States. More than 10 percent of the state is Native American, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Lonna Atkeson, a political science professor at the University of New Mexico, said before the race that the diversity in the state and its legislature set New Mexico up as more likely to heed this new ground for Native American candidates. “From that perspective, we’re uniquely qualified because we’ve been doing it for a long time,” she said of New Mexico. WATCH LIVE TUESDAY: You can watch livestreaming coverage of all the primary action starting Tuesday at 10 PM Eastern/7 PM Pacific on ABCNews.com or on the ABC News app available on the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, Apple TV App Store, and Roku Channel Store. Don’t forget to sign up for Midterm Elections Alerts to get more coverage of this year’s election season from our powerhouse politics team.<doc-sep>Former Democratic state party leader Deb Haaland could potentially become the first Native American woman in Congress after winning the primary for New Mexico's 1st Congressional District on Tuesday. "Tonight, New Mexico made history," Haaland, who is an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, said in a statement on Tuesday evening. She called the win a "victory for working people, a victory for women and a victory for everyone who has been sidelined by the billionaire class." Included in that billionaire class was President Donald Trump, who Haaland warned "should consider this victory a warning shot" that the "blue wave is coming." Haaland will be running against Republican Janice Arnold-Jones, who ran unopposed in November to replace Representative Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is stepping down from the post to run for governor. Mostly held by Republicans since the district was created in January 1969, New Mexico's 1st Congressional District has had a Democratic representative since January 2009, when Martin Heinrich was elected. He retired to run for U.S. Senate in 2013 and was succeeded by Lujan Grisham. If elected as the next Democrat to represent the district, Haaland would also become one of the first sitting members of Congress who supports an emerging movement calling for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency to be abolished. The politician has joined a number of 2018 candidates in demanding that the increasingly contentious agency be defunded and dismantled. "It is time to pull our tax dollars from an agency whose policies demean and abuse people," Haaland recently told Newsweek in a statement. "The role of Immigration and Customs Enforcement should never include killing people, ripping children from their parents' arms, or sexual assault. Until we can stop this violence and dehumanization, we must stop ICE," she said, referring to the recently announced practice of separating parents and children at the southern border and to reports of abuse by ICE agents and officers against undocumented children. Haaland said the issue is a personal one for her as a Native American woman who views ICE's practices as a continuation of the state-sponsored violence endured by those in the Native American community, including her grandparents, who were "torn from their families" by the U.S. government. "The story of brutal family separation—of ripping children from their parents' arms—is as old as America," Haaland said. "But we've had enough. We can rise above our past. Every human life has value and we cannot allow one rogue agency—under the direction of an immoral president—to terrorize people across America." In a statement posted online, Haaland has said Trump's immigration policies "are downright hateful and must be stopped." In addition to fighting to see ICE abolished, Haaland has also vowed to work to see the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program "protected and expanded into a permanent solution for children and young people who immigrate to the U.S. with their families." She also said she stands in support of sanctuary cities and would continue to "raise my voice to protect them" in Congress, adding that law enforcement should not play a role in "intimidating and targeting hardworking, taxpaying families to advance an agenda of hate and xenophobia" by working with federal immigration authorities. She also vowed to fight against the long-promised development of Trump's border wall, separating the U.S. and Mexico, calling the proposed wall "as divisive as the president pushing it." Her rival Arnold-Jones's stance on U.S. immigration policies are less clear, however. Responding to a Vote Smart 2018 Political Courage Test, Arnold-Jones said she supports the Trump administration's plans for construction of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico and said she also supports requiring immigrants who are unlawfully present to return to their country of origin before being eligible for citizenship. She did say that the 10-year waiting period, in some cases, "is excessive." During a Latino Community Congressional District 1 Candidate Forum on May 16, Arnold-Jones said she would "do the work to make sure we get the best kind of legislation" for New Mexico's "diverse culture." During the same forum, Haaland said Congress needs "new strong voices." She added, "I have never seen myself in that body, and I should also say that right now, women of color are a drastic minority in any level of government." "A woman of color should represent this diverse state," Haaland said, also noting, "We've never had a Native American woman in Congress in 240 years." According to New Mexico's Indian Affairs Department, there are 23 tribes in the state and Native Americans make up nearly 10.5 percent of its population.<doc-sep>Deb Haaland. Photo: Juan Labreche/AP/REX/Shutterstock After winning the Democratic primary for New Mexico’s 1st congressional district on Tuesday night, Deb Haaland is on track to become the first Native American woman ever to serve in Congress. In her victory speech, Haaland — an enrolled member of the Laguna Pueblo, one of New Mexico’s 23 federally recognized tribes — told the audience, “Tonight, New Mexico made history,” saying hers is a “victory for working people, a victory for women and a victory for everyone who has been sidelined by the billionaire class.” “Donald Trump and the billionaire class should consider this victory a warning shot,” she added. “The blue wave is coming.” Haaland is a lawyer and a single mother who worked on Barack Obama’s presidential campaign in 2008, and has been a vocal advocate for abortion rights and universal health care. She has also endorsed the elimination of ICE, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. “We must be welcoming to those who flee their country because of violence and abject poverty in hopes of a better future — that’s who we are as Americans,” she said. New Mexico’s 1st congressional district is solidly blue, meaning there’s a high likelihood Haaland will secure the seat in November, against the uncontested GOP candidate Janice Arnold-Jones. As HuffPost points out, Haaland’s election would be a historic one, given that, of the “more than 10,000 people have served in the House and nearly 1,300 have served in the Senate since the first Congress met in 1789” not a single one has been a Native woman. (“Crazy, right?” Haaland told them.”) When I was 11, my godmother, Ada Deer, became one of the first Native American women to win a Congressional primary. She narrowly lost the general. There’s still never been a Native American congresswoman. Tonight, Deb Haaland won her primary—and is on track to make history. — Ben Wikler (@benwikler) June 6, 2018 Exciting news: Looks like America is going to FINALLY have its first Native American congresswoman! Deb Haaland has won #NM01. It’s a rock-solid Democrat district so in theory November will be even easier than tonight was. — Adam Best (@adamcbest) June 6, 2018 Currently, there are two registered Native Americans serving in Congress — Oklahoma Republican congressmen Tom Cole and Markwayne Mullins.<doc-sep>New Mexico is poised to elect the first Native American woman to serve in Congress. Deb Haaland, a member of the Pueblo of Laguna, won the Democratic nomination for New Mexico’s First Congressional District. The district is considered solidly Democratic, paving the way for Haaland to take the congressional seat vacated by Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is running for governor. Haaland, who is the former chair of the state’s Democratic Party, beat out her opponents, former US Attorney Damon Martinez and former law professor Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, with 40 percent of the primary votes. Tuesday evening, Haaland described her victory as a win for women, the working class, and “everyone who has been sidelined by the billionaire class.” Haaland represents the progressive flank of the Democratic Party, touting a pro–abortion rights, pro-immigrant policy agenda focused on fighting climate change and creating a clean energy economy. She is one of more than 300 women across the United States who registered to run for US House seats in 2018 — a record number. The previous record was 298 in 2012, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University. In November, Haaland will face GOP nominee Janice Arnold-Jones, a former member of the New Mexico House of Representatives. It will be Arnold-Jones’s second attempt to wrestle the First District seat away from Democrats. In 2012, she also won the GOP nomination for the seat but lost in the general election to Lujan Grisham with 41 percent of the vote. If Haaland wins, she will join the only two other Native Americans who currently serve in Congress: Republican Reps. Markwayne Mullin and Tom Cole, both of Oklahoma.<doc-sep>
(CNN) — Deb Haaland has won the primary for New Mexico’s 1st Congressional District, CNN projects, putting her on track to become the first Native American woman in Congress. The former Democratic state party leader, an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Laguna, is seeking to replace Rep. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is leaving her post representing the solidly Democratic district to run for governor. Haaland outlasted a strong field that included former US Attorney Damon Martinez and Antoinette Sedillo Lopez, an activist and former law professor. “Tonight, New Mexico made history,” Haaland said in a speech Tuesday, calling hers a “victory for working people, a victory for women and a victory for everyone who has been sidelined by the billionaire class.” She included a message for the White House. “Donald Trump and the billionaire class,” she said, “should consider this victory a warning shot: the blue wave is coming.” There are 23 tribes in New Mexico, according to the state’s Indian Affairs Department, and Native Americans make up a little more than 10% of the total population. Haaland will face Republican Janice Arnold-Jones, who ran unopposed, in November. The congresswoman they’ll be vying to replace, Lujan Grisham, easily beat out a pair of male candidates in her primary and will go on to face GOP nominee Rep. Steve Pearce. Both Lujan Grisham and Pearce are leaving Congress in hopes of following the first – and so far only – Hispanic woman elected governor from either party, term-limited Republican Susana Martinez. The Democratic Governors Association, in a statement late Tuesday, touted Lujan Grisham as a trailblazer, while taking a shot at Martinez. “It’s time for New Mexico to turn the page,” association Chairman Jay Inslee said in a statement, pointing to “disastrous Republican policies that have stifled economic growth and prevented too many children from receiving a quality education.” Lujan Grisham echoed that in a tweet after the race was called, calling her win “a giant step towards respecting our teachers. Our educators, our teachers, they are sacrificing so much for our future, so let’s finally give them the raise they warrant.” The Republican Governors Association, meanwhile, called Lujan Grisham the “the worst kind of politician,” accusing her of ethical violations – a charge she parried during an intense Democratic primary – and a spirit of “extreme partisanship (that) would divide the state.”