New York has always preferred its Republicans in the mold of the late Gov. Nelson Rockefeller — socially liberal and fiscally conservative. "We don't send right-wingers to Congress," said Republican Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (news, bio, voting record), whose retirement after 12 terms creates a competitive open seat in central New York.
Rockefeller's tenure as governor ended in 1973, his brief, Watergate-generated time as Gerald Ford's vice president in 1977, and while the notion of "Rockefeller Republicans" lived on, the number of GOP moderates has dwindled some 30 years later.
In states such as Connecticut, New Hampshire and Pennsylvania, moderate Republicans are trying to remain more relevant than other '70s icons like disco music and white suits. Eight Republicans in those states are facing tough races.
In New York, a half dozen House incumbents are fighting off Democratic attempts to fuse them to Bush, whose approval rating stands at just 22 percent in the state. They hope that the party can get past its internal feuding to settle on candidates for senator and governor, and avoid no-shows at the polls in the fall.
