The midterms are creeping closer and a lot of good news is (hopefully) on the horizon, but we still have a little over seven weeks to push through. Extremists want us to feel demoralized and hopeless, but in the face of their cruelty, women keep stepping up to defend their neighbors.
Here are three good news stories from this week that you might’ve missed.
There are officially more women running for Governor in 2026 than ever before!
Last week, incumbent Governor Maura Healey won her primary in Massachusetts. It wasn’t a surprise — she was running unopposed — but her win set a new record for the number of Democratic women running for governor in November. There are now 17 Democratic women who will on the ballot, breaking the previous record of 16 that was set in 2022.
There are also currently 7 Republican women who will be on the gubernatorial ballot this year. 39 states will be voting for governor this year, so let’s do a little back-of-the-napkin math, shall we? 17 Democrats + 7 Republicans = 24 women running for governor out of 39 states. That means more than 60% of states will have a woman on the ballot!
This is a win for representation, of course, but it goes deeper than that. Studies show that women are more effective than men as political leaders, including the role of governor. They’re more likely to value collaboration and compromise, successfully turning their policy ideas into state law at 1.2 times the rate of male governors.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, states with women governors had both lower rates of deaths and lower unemployment rates than did states that were led by men. They’re also more likely to ensure that the residents of their state have access to healthcare, especially reproductive healthcare.
Of course, that’s not true of all women governors; Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders and former South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, for example, have rolled back protections for women and children in their states. And across the nation, we’ve still never elected a Black woman to the role of governor, although Georgia could change that this year by electing Keisha Lance-Bottoms.
Let’s continue making history in November!
Meanwhile, in Texas, a nun is helping unaccompanied kids facing deportation.
Every week, 78-year-old Sister Rose Kuhn drives 40 miles to an immigration court in the border town of Harlingen, Texas, to sit beside children facing immigration hearings alone. Some of these kids are as young as four years old.
Sister Rose says, “I introduce myself as a Catholic nun. I tell them I went to Mass this morning for you, and I’m not a hearing officer. I have nothing to do with the whole process; I’m here to accompany you, to go in with you if that’s OK, and to pray for you during your appointment.”
In the U.S., there is no shortage of immigrant children who need someone in their corner. Last year, nearly 23,000 unaccompanied minors were referred to federal services — children who may walk into court without a parent, a lawyer, or anyone they know. But every Wednesday, they have Sister Rose.
In California, another woman is helping immigrant kids too. Through her nonprofit, Each Step Home, Casey Revkin has been sending $10,000 a day to families at the infamous Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas.
Dilley is primarily used for detaining families with children and is known for its deplorable conditions. There have been reports of cockroaches and worms in the food, as well as kids vomiting after drinking the tap water. No humans should be kept in conditions like that, but especially not children.
As a mom, Casey couldn’t just stand by and watch it happen. Her organization now sends thousands of dollars to families at Dilley so they can buy bottled water, ramen, toothpaste, and other necessities at the commissary. They also provide legal and medical resources.
“She’s a fairy godmother,” said Kristin Etter, an attorney with the Texas Immigration Law Council. “People literally could not survive in Dilley without her.”
We’re all worried about families in ICE detention centers, but it can be hard to know how we can help. Casey’s amazing work shows us that one person can make a difference.