Also note that these special elections can just as quickly flip back come the next election.
2011: Chris Lee resigns after his Craigslist dalliances are exposed. Jane Corwin, unpopular phone book heiress who sent a staffer to stage an assault and frame a third-party gadfly, loses to Democrat Kathy Hochul.
2012: Hochul promptly loses her seat to Chris Collins, who has held the seat ever since.