Oregon Democrats have likely secured a supermajority in both the state House and Senate, thanks to a narrow win in a rural House seat in Woodburn.
Tuesday was the deadline for voters to fix any issues with their ballot signatures. Both Rep. Tracy Cramer, a Republican from Gervais, and Democratic challenger Lesly Muñoz worked hard with their teams to ensure ballots were counted in the closest race for the 22nd House District in northern Marion County.
Muñoz, a labor organizer from Woodburn, won by just 161 votes out of over 20,800 votes cast. Her victory not only allows Democrats to reclaim a seat they lost two years ago but also gives them the three-fifths majority needed to raise taxes or create new taxes without Republican support. This is significant as lawmakers are preparing a multi-billion-dollar transportation funding package for 2025.
Muñoz described her win as a victory for farmworkers. The district is the only majority-minority House district in Oregon, with nearly half of the residents being Hispanic. Muñoz’s campaign was supported by the farmworkers’ union, which helped with bilingual outreach.
She stated, “Farmworkers need a seat at the table in our state legislature,” highlighting recent progress in securing overtime protections for farmworkers, and now she aims to continue fighting for equal rights in other areas.
House Democratic leaders celebrated the win, with House Majority Leader Ben Bowman emphasizing that Oregon voters want everyone to have the chance to succeed.
He promised that in 2025, House Democrats would focus on improving affordability, making government work better, and ensuring safety for all Oregonians.
Although Muñoz was initially behind in early results, she eventually overtook Cramer as more ballots from Marion County were counted. The county, home to Oregon’s capital, took longer to process ballots due to many write-ins.
County Clerk Bill Burgess explained this delay earlier, and also noted that campaign staff were observing the counting process. Cramer has inquired about a recount, which would only happen automatically if the difference between the top two candidates is less than 42 votes.
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