It arguably hasn’t been the best election for women: Clinton came within a hair’s breadth of being the first female in the Oval Office, and the president elect’s comments on women leave much to be desired.
However, one glimmer of hope comes in the form of Ilhan Omar, who has made history as the country’s first Somali-American woman to hold office.
Omar is a Democrat and a former refugee, and faced little Republican opposition in her quest to become elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives.
She was born in Somalia and fled the country’s civil war, spending four years in a Kenyan refugee camp before moving to the US.
She’s a vocal activist for women’s rights, and is director of policy at Women Organizing Women Network, which helps East African women take on political leadership positions.