Democrat Michael Welsh led Republican incumbent Kevin Mannix by nearly 10 points in House District 21 in early returns on election night, Nov. 3.

Welsh, an occupational safety professional from Keizer, had received 6,067 votes to Mannix's 4,983 as of 11:15 p.m., according to Salem Reporter. Mannix trailed with 45.02% of the vote.

The results are incomplete. Marion County Clerk Bill Burgess told Salem Reporter on Nov. 3 that his office had collected more than 120,000 ballots, but only 60,801 had been counted. Election officials will continue processing ballots postmarked by Election Day.

House District 21 covers parts of north Salem and Keizer.

Mannix, an attorney, first won a seat in the Oregon House in 1989 and served for a decade. He returned to the statehouse in 2022, Salem Reporter reported. Welsh is a political newcomer who has worked in manufacturing for 20 years.

In the other marquee local race, former Salem City Councilor Virginia Stapleton led former state Rep. Tracy Cramer in Senate District 11. Stapleton had 10,591 votes to Cramer's 8,578 as of 11:15 p.m. Nov. 3.

If Stapleton's roughly 10-point lead holds, she would become the 30-member Oregon Senate's 19th Democrat, the Oregon Capital Chronicle reported. Democrats are on track to start the 2027 legislative session with slightly larger supermajorities in both the House and Senate, the Capital Chronicle reported.

Senate District 11 covers much of Marion County, including north Salem, Keizer and Woodburn. The seat was held by Republican Kim Thatcher, who was barred from running for reelection because of absences during the 2023 Republican walkout.

Stapleton served on the Salem City Council from 2020 through 2024. She ran for House District 21 in 2024 and lost to Mannix. Cramer, a small business owner, served in House District 22 for two years before losing that seat in 2025 to Democrat Lesly Muñoz.

Both SD-11 candidates named the rising cost of living as their top priority. Cramer said she would support middle-class tax relief and oppose new taxes. Stapleton said she would advocate to pause rent increases and ban surveillance pricing, Salem Reporter reported.

The two races drew heavy spending. Mannix raised $1,082,453 and Welsh raised $907,518 in cash and in-kind contributions, according to Oregon Secretary of State finance data. In the Senate race, Cramer raised $2,204,675 and Stapleton raised $1,634,591.

Statewide, Democrats led in each of the 37 House districts they held going into the election, plus two held by Republicans, the Capital Chronicle reported. Gov. Tina Kotek won a second term, with The Associated Press calling her race shortly before 1 a.m. Nov. 4.

Both counties are expected to release additional ballot counts in the coming days.