Final answer:
During Reconstruction, two African Americans from the South were elected to the US Senate: Hiram Revels and Blanche K. Bruce, both from Mississippi. They were part of a larger movement that saw about 2,000 Black men holding political offices until the end of Reconstruction.
Step-by-step explanation:
African Americans Elected to the US Senate During Reconstruction
During the era of Reconstruction, there were two African Americans from the South elected to the US Senate. These trailblazers were Hiram Revels and Blanche K. Bruce, both chosen to represent the state of Mississippi. Revels, a freeborn man from North Carolina, had been a minister and a state senator before ascending to the U.S. Senate in 1870. Blanche K. Bruce was born into slavery but managed to receive an education, eventually also serving as a U.S. Senator from Mississippi.
These historic elections were part of a broader wave of African American political representation that saw approximately 2,000 Black men serve in various political offices across the nation, including the national Congress, state legislatures, and local positions. Their presence in politics was a direct result of the efforts to eliminate racial discrimination in voting and the participation of Black men in the political process during this period.
Reconstruction was a significant time for African American political involvement, but it was curtailed by the eventual return of white Democrats to power in the South, leading to the end of widespread Black political representation until well into the 20th century.