Although voters narrowly gave Republicans control of the House of Representatives, the once-“Grand Old Party” was keen to throw its majority away. Despite the GOP’s declasse candidate quality in the 2022 midterm elections, the coattails of Lee Zeldin’s quixotic bid to unseat Gov. Kathy Hochul in indigo New York provided Republicans a crucial four-seat margin in the House, carrying them to 222 seats at the start of 2023.