A majority of Democrats in the Oregon House will be women next year, marking the first time the party controlling that chamber has more female than male lawmakers. Nineteen out of 35 members of the caucus will be women next year, following last week's election.

Democrats in the Oregon Senate made history with that chambers' first female majority in 2009: 10 of the 18 Senate Democrats were women that year, according to the Senate President's office.

Even before the election, Oregon ranked 10th in the nation for the percentage of women in its Legislature.

"At a time when less than a quarter of all legislative seats across the country are held by women, I'm proud that Oregon's House Democrats are working hard to close this troubling gender gap," House Majority Leader Jennifer Williamson, D-Portland, said in a statement. Women also make up a majority of House Democrats' new leadership team.

This was a historic election for female House candidates from both parties in Oregon, with 14 Republican women running for seats in the House. That was a record number of women candidates for the party in that chamber, House Republican Leader Mike McLane, R-Powell Butte, said last month.

In five House races, both the Democratic and Republican candidates were women, according to Preston Mann, a spokesman for Promote Oregon Leadership PAC which works with Republican House candidates across the state. However, the Democratic women won all of those races.

Women Republican candidates running against Democratic men also lost most of their races. As a result, House Republicans will only have three women in their caucus next year.

-- Hillary Borrud

503-294-4034; @hborrud