Oregon Democrats have seemingly established a supermajority in both the state House and Senate, following a close victory confirmed late Tuesday in a House seat based in rural Woodburn. Democratic leaders celebrated this outcome, with House Majority Leader Ben Bowman, D-Tigard, emphasizing that Oregonians have sent a clear message by electing Democrats, expressing a desire for everyone to have the freedom and opportunity to thrive.
Tuesday marked the deadline for voters to correct any missing or mismatched signatures on their ballot envelopes. Campaign staff and volunteers for Rep. Tracy Cramer, R-Gervais, and Democratic challenger Lesly Muñoz dedicated several days to ensuring that voters were contacted to confirm their ballots were counted in this highly competitive race for an Oregon House seat.
Muñoz, a labor organizer from Woodburn, appears to have won by a narrow margin of just 161 votes out of over 20,800 cast in the 22nd House District of northern Marion County. Her victory not only reclaims the seat lost to Republicans two years ago but also secures House Democrats the critical three-fifths majority necessary to raise or enact new taxes without needing Republican approval. This is particularly significant as lawmakers prepare for the 2025 session to develop a multi-billion-dollar transportation funding package.
Initially trailing Cramer in results released on November 5, Muñoz managed to surpass the Republican incumbent as more ballots were processed in Marion County. The county, which includes Oregon’s capital, experienced slower ballot counting compared to other areas due to a high volume of write-in votes, which require additional time for election workers to process, as explained by county clerk Bill Burgess earlier this month.
On Tuesday, Burgess noted that campaign staff were present to observe the ballot counting, and Cramer had inquired about a potential recount. According to state law, recounts are automatically triggered if the margin between the top two candidates is less than one-fifth of 1 percent of the total votes cast—approximately 42 votes in this case. Otherwise, candidates may opt to pay for a recount.
