Lost amid some of the understandably bigger headlines were a few stories that would have been remarkable in a normal election season. Up first, the country’s first Muslim congressman has been elected in Minnesota. Keith Ellison, a lawyer and Muslim convert, won the seat held by longtime Democratic Congressman Martin Sabo. If I’m not mistaken, he is also the first U.S. representative who is not either Jewish or Christian. A step towards religious pluralism in Congress?

Also deserving of notice is the fact that ballot initiatives to raise the minimum wage passed in five different states, by an average margin of 31 points. The fact that the federal minimum wage has not been raised in nine years is one of our country’s biggest political shames. It’s safe to assume the Speaker-to-Be Pelosi will try to change that come January.