What to know about Oregon’s 2026 election results

Nationally, the electoral blue wave Democrats hoped for turned out to be more of a tsunami, washing away longtime Republican strongholds.

In Oregon, where Democrats have been in the majority for decades, Democratic gains were more modest. The state will send U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and its six incumbent members of Congress — five Democrats and one Republican — back to Washington, D.C., and give Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek another four years in Mahonia Hall.

And Democrats are on track to start the 2027 legislative session with slightly larger supermajorities in both the House and Senate.

Election officials will continue processing and counting ballots received by 8 p.m. or that were postmarked by Election Day, and some current leads, especially in close races, may change. The Capital Chronicle relies on The Associated Press’ race calls to name winners or losers in individual contests.

Here’s what we know so far.

Congress

Democrats have flipped both the U.S. House and Senate, securing 228 of 435 House seats and 54 of 100 Senate seats as of 1 a.m. Wednesday.

All Oregon congressional incumbents win reelection

The Associated Press has yet to call 68 House seats, as well as Senate races in Alaska and Mississippi.

Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan narrowly leads Democratic U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola in Alaska, which uses ranked-choice voting. If no candidates in the four-way race receive more than 50% of first-preference votes, the candidate with the lowest number of votes will be eliminated and their voters will move to their second-choice candidate.

In Mississippi, Democrat Scott Colom led Republican incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith by fewer than 50 votes in a true tossup.

Oregon governor

Gov. Tina Kotek will get another four years to continue working on priorities including housing, behavioral health and standing up to the Trump administration.

Oregon Democratic Gov. Tina Kotek declares victory in governor’s race

The Associated Press called Kotek’s win over Republican state Sen. Christine Drazan shortly before 1 a.m., a few hours after Kotek declared victory.

“Because of your work and support, I am proud to stand here as your next governor of the beautiful state of Oregon,” Kotek told hundreds of supporters at the Hilton Portland Downtown. “I hope it’s OK, but we have four more years together.”

Drazan, who also lost to Kotek in 2022, declined to concede Tuesday night.

“Now, all the votes haven’t been counted, and I am continuing to pray for the victory for us,” Drazan told supporters at her Hillsboro watch party. “But as they are hard at work counting every last eligible vote, I wanted to come out and tell you guys that this state continues to be worth fighting for. There is nothing I wouldn’t do to serve the people of this state and make life better for all of you and all of your neighbors, and every single person that lives here, because we desperately need it.”

Oregon House

Democrats are on track to control a record number of state House seats in 2027 if current leads hold.

Democrats are leading in each of the 37 districts they held going into the election, as well as two held by Republicans.

Michael Welsh, an occupational safety professional from Keizer, held a nearly 10-point lead in the 21st House District over Rep. Kevin Mannix, a Salem Republican who has been a consistent fixture in state politics for decades.

And in the open 52nd House District in the Gorge, 25-year-old former journalist Hank Sanders had a nearly 10-point lead over Wasco County Commissioner Scott Hege.

The only close House races are in Linn County, where Republican Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis leads Democrat Joanna Robinson by more than 3 points, and on the North Coast, where Rep. Cyrus Javadi leads Republican Max Sherman by 4 points.

Oregon Senate

Democrats are on track to add one seat to their Senate supermajority, with former Salem City Councilor Virginia Stapleton leading former state Rep. Tracy Cramer in the race to fill Republican Kim Thatcher’s 11th Senate District.

If her 10-point lead holds, Stapleton will be the 30-member Senate’s 19th Democrat.

In two other open races, Republicans Jeff Helfrich and Courtney Bangs grew their leads as more results became available. Helfrich, a current state representative, now has a 4-point lead in the 26th Senate District in the Gorge and Bangs, a Wasco County commissioner, leads by 5 points in the 16th Senate District on the North Coast.