Republican Nick Langworthy elected to Congress over Max Della Pia in NY's 23rd district

Nick Langworthy has shaped the narrative and called the shots for the New York State Republican Committee for the last three-plus years.

Now, Langworthy is going to work for New York’s 23rd Congressional District, and the district that encompasses a wide swath of the Southern Tier will remain solidly red as both parties battled for control of Congress during the midterm elections.

Langworthy won his first term in Congress on Tuesday night, defeating Democrat Max Della Pia. Langworthy declared victory before 10 p.m. as results from Erie County, which holds around 43% of the population in NY-23, rolled in. Langworthy finished with 60.7% of the vote in Erie County, running up just under 86,000 votes. The other six counties in the district also leaned in Langworthy's favor in early tallies as results continued to be reported late Tuesday night.

"This is the first step. We have so much work ahead of us," Langworthy said in his victory speech at the Embassy Suites in Buffalo. "Jan. 3 I’ll be sworn into Congress, and a new era of leadership starts in this country. We will make you proud. We will restore this congressional district to the esteem that the people of Western New York and the Southern Tier deserve."

Della Pia delivered a concession speech around 10 p.m., and the Associated Press officially called the race in Langworthy's favor shortly before 11.

Langworthy ended the night with 17,265 votes in Chemung County, around 65%. In Steuben County, Langworthy earned 23,870 votes to 9,501 for Della Pia. Langworthy took 76% of the vote in Allegany County with 11,321 votes. Langworthy took 64.6% in Schuyler County, adding 4,855 votes.

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Langworthy departed his election party early to travel to New York City, where Republican gubernatorial hopeful Lee Zeldin was awaiting election results.

Langworthy said his top priority in Washington is reducing inflation and energy costs “that are crushing household budgets.” He supports the Republican Commitment to America plan that aims to curb spending and regulations, increase American manufacturing and work towards American energy independence.

"Talk is cheap, but this country needs action," said Langworthy. "Tonight I will pledge to the people of the 23rd Congressional District that I will work with anyone in Washington, D.C. who is committed to a common sense agenda that puts America back on track for Western New York and the Southern Tier."

Langworthy, 41, currently resides outside the borders of the new 23rd District in Niagara County. Post-redistricting, the 23rd’s borders now include Allegany, Steuben, Chemung, Schuyler, Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties, plus a large part of Erie County.

A native of South Dayton in Cattaraugus County, Langworthy has worked in politics throughout his career with stints in the district offices of Congressmen Tom Reynolds and Chris Lee. He was elected Erie County Republican Chairman in 2010 and was later named the state GOP chair in 2019. Langworthy said he will relinquish his position as chairman if elected to Congress.

The 23rd District was considered solidly in the Republican camp leading up to election day. The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index gave the district a ranking of R+12. Langworthy defeated controversial Buffalo businessman Carl Paladino in the Republican primary by four points.

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Della Pia, a retired Air Force Colonel who resides in Tioga County, ran unopposed in the Democratic primary. In his concession speech, Della Pia said his run in a deep-red district was worth the effort.

"It is always important to provide the voters a choice, even when the odds are against you," said Della Pia. "The election results show many voters want their representative to be bipartisan and oriented toward public service rather than one committed to divisive partisanship and self-interest. Unfortunately, there were not enough of them."

Corning Republican Tom Reed represented the 23rd District for about 12 years before resigning in May to take a position with a Washington lobbying firm. Reed had previously announced he would not seek a new term after being accused of inappropriate behavior toward a lobbyist.

Joe Sempolinski, a former Reed staffer and Steuben County GOP Chairman, defeated Della Pia in an Aug. 22 special election to complete the remainder of Reed’s term.