Virginia State Sen. Jennifer McLellan (D) (above) defeated conservative pastor Leon Benjamin in a special election to fill the seat vacated by Rep. Donald McEachin (D), who died of colorectal cancer last November, weeks after the midterm elections. McLellan becomes the first Black female to represent Virginia in Congress, according to The Washington Post, and represents parts of Richmond, south to the North Carolina border. She counted McEachin as a friend and mentor.

Meanwhile: Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) becomes the third announced candidate for Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s (D-CA) seat in the 2024 election, USA Today reports, and the first of them to announce only after Feinstein, 89, said she will not seek another term after three decades in the Senate. 

The first two are fellow Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Adam Schiff. Lee, 78, a former chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, represents Oakland and parts of Northern California.