Colorado elects nation's first openly gay governor, CNN projects

She drew some ire from the gay-rights community for appealing to heterosexual voters who weren't naturally sympathetic to the cause by stressing that the ban would curtail the rights of all unmarried couples, but the strategy apparently worked: It was the first time that American voters rejected an antigay measure. Although Sinema says she's "always been out," her first public comment as an elected official came in , after a Republican colleague's speech insulted LGBT people.

Later, when reporters asked about her use of the first person, Sinema replied, "Duh, I'm bisexual. It was only four years ago that the first openly gay person was elected to Congress, Colorado Democrat Jared Polis. Politicians such as Barney Frank and Gerry Studds were reelected after being outed, but Polis was the first nonincumbent.

Bisexual candidate Katie Hill hopes to be part of Democrats' 'blue wave'

The election also saw a lesbian elected to the Senate, Tammy Baldwin; since the nation's fourth-largest city, Houston, has had a gay mayor, Annise Parker; and its first-largest city may not be far behind, with Christine Quinn currently leading the pack of New York City mayoral candidates. Sinema's offhand acknowledgement of her bisexuality and voters' acceptance of it can seem unbelievable to older generations. But her views about sexuality are right in step with her contemporaries': Sinema fits squarely into her demo in other ways: She's highly educated more than a third of Gen-Xers have college degrees, compared with only a quarter of baby boomers and, in her midthirties, she remains single and childless.

With their more laissez-faire attitudes toward family structure and sexual preferences and well-publicized distaste for being "labeled" , Sinema and her generation could perhaps lead us to a time when private lives—whom we sleep with, whether we're parents, or whether the primary breadwinner is the husband or wife—don't determine how voters cast their ballots. But the culture isn't quite there yet, and Sinema, understandably, can sometimes seem trapped between the old and new worlds. I don't think this is relevant," she snapped to a Washington Post reporter who, after pressing her on her sexuality in January, wrote that, when it came to this subject, she turned "lecturing, hectoring, defensive, accusatory, pouty, and curiously repetitive.

Does she want children someday? Not a lot of people ask young men in politics. That's only half true. Politicians' dating lives tend to be public fodder. A blog for the Post profiled "bachelor congressmen" in , and in Time asked unmarried Republican Rep.

Aaron Schock if he was dating anyone. The kid question, however, is often reserved for women. And earlier generations of female lawmakers explicitly campaigned on their commitment to family—Patty Murray ran for Senate as "just a mom in tennis shoes," and Nancy Pelosi was sworn in as Speaker of the House surrounded by her grandkids. Sinema, meanwhile, got herself into some trouble when she made what she thought was an obviously satirical comment about stay-at-home mothers, but then found that her words were trotted out and portrayed as sincere by her congressional opponent six years later.

But there is a unique credibility challenge there.

America's Most Colorful Congresswoman: Kyrsten Sinema

How do you be authentic with yourself? It didn't, of course, but while Sinema has grown adept at emphasizing certain parts of her story, she probably would be well served to come up with a more thoughtful way to discuss the aspects of her life that she wishes everyone would just take for granted. By starting so young, however, Sinema has time to learn—and, at her best, charisma to burn.

Sinema says she doesn't have a or year plan, or specific ambitions for higher office. Yet politicians who begin their careers early often have the best shot at rising to the top: Sinema is part of the first generation of women to follow that timetable, and at 36 has already been in public office for almost a decade.

Consider this: At her age, Nancy Pelosi was 11 years away from winning her first election, Hillary Clinton Liked this story? Get it first when you subscribe to ELLE magazine. Type keyword s to search.

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Today's Top Stories. A Guide to the Dogs of the Presidential Race. Lauren Underwood on Black Maternal Health. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz. Hill is part of a major surge in female candidates this election cycle: If he wins his race in November, he will be the first openly gay man in the Alabama legislature. Incumbent Democrat Felicia Stewart ran unopposed Tuesday and will advance to the general election to face incumbent Republican David Faulkner. Incumbent Democrat Liz Bennett of Iowa, who also ran unopposed, will advance to the general election in her reelection bid for Iowa House of Representatives.

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Paul, Minn. Ilhan Omar, a candidate for State Representative for District 60B in Minnesota, gives an acceptance speech on election night, November 8, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Omar, a refugee from Somalia, is the first Somali-American Muslim woman to hold public office; Rashida Tlaib shares a moment with her supporters on the campaign trail. Erik Paul Howard.