Women thoroughly crashed through the glass ceiling in the Senate in Tuesday's election, bringing their total to 20, an historic first. But longtime Senate members believe more are needed to help break the gridlock in the chamber.

Sen. Charles Schumer said Thursday that "More women in the Senate would probably make the place more willing to compromise."

Schumer saw Democrats add four women in the Senate when he headed the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. "I prefer women candidates," he said at a media roundtable hosted by the Christian Science Monitor. "All things being equal, women make better candidates. The electorate wants people to compromise and come together and women are very good at doing that in the Senate. I'd like to see more."

He noted that women comprise 52 percent of the population, "so we have a long way to go."

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Five new women elected to the Senate: Republican Deb Fischer of Nebraska, and Democrats Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Rep. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Rep. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota.