Ilhan Omar has made history by becoming the first Somali female legislator in the United States.
Ms Omar will be a lawmaker in the US state of Minnesota after winning House District 60B, which comprises parts of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, south-east Minneapolis and the University of Minnesota, Minnesota Public Radio News reports.
Her win carries a “huge symbolic importance in Minnesota”, where many Somali immigrants live, the report says.
It came just days after Donald Trump accused Somali immigrants in the state of “spreading extremism”.
Ms Omar said she would be a voice of the “marginalized”, the Associated Press news agency reports
“I think I bring the voice of young people,” she said.
“I think I bring the voice of women in the East African community. I bring the voice of Muslims. I bring the voice of young mothers looking for opportunities,” she said.
Omar won as a member of Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party
