Democratic State Sen. Timothy Kennedy won a special election Tuesday for a New York congressional seat further narrowing House Republicans already slim majority, for now.
Kennedy defeated Republican Gary Dickson to replace retired Democratic Rep. Brian Higgins in New York’s 26th Congressional District, according to the Associated Press.
Higgins retired from Congress in February, citing growing dysfunction and the “slow and frustrating” pace of progress in D.C.
Kennedy will finish the rest of the year in Higgins’ seat before running for a full term in the House in November.
Democrats are expected to hold on to the seat in the reliably blue district where Biden won by more than 20 points in 2020 and where Democrats out number Republicans 2–1.
“The dysfunction [in Congress] has become an embarrassment across this country and across the global community,” Kennedy told NBC news. “And we have to restore honor and civility and functionality back into the halls of the House of Representatives.”
Kennedy’s victory temporarily shrinks the GOP House majority to just 217-213, meaning House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) can only afford to lose one Republican vote on a party-line vote.
Republicans are expected to win special elections in May and June to replace former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy(R-Calif.) Reps. Bill Johnson (R-Ohio) and Ken Buck (R-Colo.) to extend their majority.
