Rep. Tim Kennedy (D-N.Y.) was sworn in on the House floor Monday, replacing the now-retired Rep. Brian Higgins (D-N.Y.) and leaving Republicans with just a one-vote margin for any partisan vote.
Kennedy, previously a state senator, defeated GOP candidate Gary Dickson in a special election for New York’s 26th Congressional District last week.
“I stand before you humbled by the opportunity God has given us to be together in this moment,” he said on the floor after being sworn in. “This awesome and magnificent responsibility that’s been granted to me by the people of Western New York.”
The total number of lawmakers in the House now stands at 430 — 217 Republicans and 213 Democrats — narrowing the GOP conference’s razor-thin majority. The margin has thinned in recent months as multiple Republican members have elected to resign from office early.