After 5 gruelling days with all the world’s eyes on the United States, Democratic party candidate Joe Biden has won the presidential race, defeating Donald Trump. His running mate Kamala Haris became the first woman, the first black woman and the first woman of Indian descent to be elected vice president

By all means, there is still so much wrong with the US and world politics at large, but for a moment we get to bask in the good news. To prolong the feelings of hope and energise us to take action, we will be sharing more good news regarding people who have been recently elected or appointed to serve the people of the US.

Oklahoma State Legislator Mauree Turner

On the 5th of November, 27-year-old community organiser Mauree Turner won a seat in Oklahoma’s state senate and made history as the first openly non-binary and Muslim state lawmaker in the US.

In an interview with the Washington Post, Turner said, “The legislature hasn’t always been a friendly or welcoming place to many folks, and this was about drawing space — not fighting for a seat at the table, but creating a new table altogether."

Mauree Turner was raised by their single mother in Oklahoma who worked three jobs to keep her family afloat. Their father has been in jail for most of Turner’s childhood. Their childhood experiences of living from paycheck to paycheck and having an incarcerated father shaped their path as a criminal justice and economic equity activist.

Prior to running for the Oklahoma House of representatives, Turner led a criminal justice reform initiative for the American Civil Liberties Union.

Turner’s platform focuses on listening to their community and working from the ground up in order to structure solutions for their district’s problems. They believe it’s crucial to listen to the actual people who suffer from the consequences of these problems in order to solve them.

Turner is fighting to provide criminal justice, healthcare access and public education for their community. If you’d like to support organisations who are fighting for the same causes across the world, you can donate to the ones we picked below. All organisations are vetted by our research team and are amongst the best in their fields.

Cover image: Mauree Turner via MAUREE FOR HOUSE DISTRICT 88