Article snippet: The first openly transgender person elected and seated in a state legislature defeated her conservative Republican opponent in a closely watched Virginia election. In a historic bid, Democrat Danica Roem beat Republican incumbent Bob Marshall, one of Virginia's most socially conservative lawmakers, in Tuesday's election in the northern Virginia district, according to The Associated Press. Marshall has served in the House since 1992 and has been a lightning rod for controversy. He has often drawn the ire of even his own party. Roem's gender identity wasn't a key part of her campaign. Instead, she focused on jobs, schools and northern Virginia's traffic congestion. Here are a few other races to keep an eye on: All 100 seats in the House of Delegates are up for election. Republicans hold 66 out of 100 seats in the chamber and Democrats are not expected to be able to take back the legislature, but there are a number of higher-profile races that garnered national attention. The exact number of seats that Democrats are able to pick up could be a good indicator of the strength of the party's brand in different parts of a swing state like Virginia. Forty-three of the 88 Democratic candidates running for the House of Delegates are women. Virginia races of note: 13th district - Roem (D) v. Marshall (R): Roem, the state's first openly transgender elected official, defeated 13-term incumbent Bob Marshall. 12th district - Hurst (D) v. Yost (R):... Link to the full article to read more