The 23rd district has been redistricted several times. I’m counting 17 Democrats that have served in this seat since the Civil War.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York%27s_23rd_congressional_district
Now of course the redistricting is the key factor here. Are you going to count people that only won in NY-23 without a redstricting?
It’s really impossible to do. The region has been redistricted 7 times since 1965. Given the fact that NY keeps losing population it will be redistricted again.
If this were a Senate seat that hadn’t gone D or R since reconstruction this might be a legitimate point. However House seats never have a true historical track records given census trends redistricting counties, partial counties etc.
Democrats who Represented the 23rd Congressional District of New York since the Civil War:
Scott Lord (March 4, 1875 – March 3, 1877)
John T. Spriggs (March 4, 1883 – March 3, 1887)
Henry W. Bentley (March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1893)
Joseph A. Goulden (March 4, 1913 – May 3, 1915)
Daniel C. Oliver (March 4, 1917 – March 4, 1919)
Richard F. McKiniry (March 4, 1919 – March 4, 1921)
Frank A. Oliver (March 4, 1923 – June 18, 1934)
Charles A. Buckley (January 3, 1935 – January 3, 1945)
Walter A. Lynch (January 3, 1945 – January 3, 1951)
Sidney A. Fine (January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1953)
Isidore Dollinger (January 3, 1953 – December 31, 1959)
H. Gilbert (March 8, 1960 – January 3, 1963)
Charles A. Buckley (January 3, 1963 – January 3, 1965)
Jonathan B. Bingham (January 3, 1965 – January 3, 1973)
A. Peyser (January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1983)
Samuel S. Stratton (January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1989)
Michael R. McNulty (January 3, 1989 – January 3, 1993)