Deb Haaland, former interior secretary under Joe Biden, was elected governor of New Mexico and will become the first Native American woman to govern a US state.

The Democrat defeated Republican Gregg Hull, 60, a businessman and the mayor of Rio Rancho. The Associated Press (AP) called the race before 9 p.m. on Tuesday, when she held a 14-point lead. Haaland made history in 2018 as one of the first two Native American women elected to Congress and in 2021 as the first Native American federal cabinet secretary, leading the Interior Department.