Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester is the first woman and person of color to represent the state of Delaware.
Brian Witte/AP Photo

Since the creation of the Senate in 1789, there have only been 10 years when the chamber had a Black woman among its ranks. Moseley Braun served only one term in the 1990s before losing to a Republican. Kamala Harris served four years as a California senator before she ascended to the vice presidency.

But if a Black woman were to win a deep-blue seat, she could hold it for decades with little fear of an electoral threat.

That’s part of the reason Black Democrats were so excited about the clear path ahead in Delaware.

When Blunt Rochester walked into the House Chamber hours after Carper’s announcement, she was swarmed by cheering colleagues vying to embrace her. “Can I get an amen?” asked Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), prompting cheers from other Democrats.

“The Senate wins,” Cleaver said later. “It’s almost like Jackie Robinson going into Major League Baseball.”

“We always talk about Harriet Tubman. We talk about Shirley Chisholm,” said Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus. “Little girls now will be talking about Lisa Blunt Rochester.”

Holly Otterbein contributed to this report.