Politics
Black Firsts in Politics & Government
From the first Black senator during Reconstruction to the first Black president in 2008, these leaders shattered barriers in American government at every level.
7 firsts documented
politics 2008 Who Was the First Black President of the United States? Barack Obama 44th President of the United States, breaking a barrier that stood for over two centuries of American history. politics 2021 Who Was the First Black Vice President? Kamala Harris Also the first woman and first South Asian to serve as Vice President, previously the first Black woman Attorney General of California. politics 1967 Who Was the First Black Supreme Court Justice? Thurgood Marshall The civil rights attorney who won Brown v. Board of Education before being appointed to the highest court by President Johnson. politics 1870 Who Was the First Black U.S. Senator? Hiram Revels Republican from Mississippi who filled the Senate seat once held by Jefferson Davis during Reconstruction. politics 1989 Who Was the First Black Person Elected Governor? Douglas Wilder Democrat from Virginia whose election was a breakthrough given the state's history with segregation. politics 2001 Who Was the First Black U.S. Secretary of State? Colin Powell Also the first Black Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, serving under three presidents before leading the State Department. politics 1966 Who Was the First Black U.S. Cabinet Secretary? Robert C. Weaver Appointed by President Lyndon Johnson as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.