<p><b>Update/Clarification [Nov. 10]: </b><i>This issue is muddied a bit by redistricting and its effects on the geography of congressional representation. <a href="http://www.swingstateproject.com/diary/5072/amazing-political-history-of... target="_blank">Swing State Project in June 2009</a> noted that &quot;Almost two-thirds of the population of the current district (62%) live in territory&quot; in the New York 23rd &quot;that has not elected a Democrat since 1890 or earlier.&quot; However, a sizable part of the district (38%) includes parts of counties that as late as 1976 and 1978 voted Democratic in congressional races.</i></p><p>If you've heard it once, you've heard it 1,000 times: the New York 23rd Congressional District (NY-23) has had a Republican incumbent since the 1870s. It's a helpful talking point for mainstream media types bent on portraying the Hoffman loss in the district last night as evidence of how the Republican mainstream has moved away from conservatism. </p><p>The only trouble with the talking point is it is patently false and the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/1990/09/14/obituaries/samuel-s-stratton-73-former... target="_blank">New York Times can prove it.</a> (h/t EyeBlast.tv's Stephen Gutowski) </p><p>From the 1990 obituary for one Samuel Stratton:</p><blockquote>