Congressman Chris Lee (R NY-26) Crashes and Burns at Ludicrous Speed

That didn't take long. Seriously.

Gawker.com discovered some shirtless pictures Congressman Chris Lee of New York's 26th District sent of himself to a woman he met on craigslist (while the married Congressman described himself as a 'divorced lobbyist') and broke the story at about 2:30 PM Eastern time on Tuesday. By 5:00 PM that day, the Congressman from the district that went between the southwestern suburbs of Rochester to the eastern Suburbs of Buffalo had submitted his resignation.

A married congressman abruptly quit Congress Wednesday after revelations that he had sent flirtatious messages and a bare-chested photograph of himself to another woman on a prominent Internet site.

Republican Representative Chris Lee, 46, issued a statement apologizing for his actions, but did not directly mention an Internet report about his communications on the popular Craigslist Web site with a woman who was not his wife.

He was serving his second two-year term in the House of Representatives, representing a district in western New York state.

And you know what that means- Special election time! Although Gov. Cuomo has yet to set a date, this would make the it the 4th special election for a U.S. House seat in upstate NY since 2009.

The Lonely Conservative- who seems to be perpetually flanked by Congressional districts with a special election- has more on some of the early GOP favorites for NY 26 (and there are plenty!). One thing mentioned was that the sheer number of candidates willing to step into the breech on the Republican side seems to indicate an enthusiasm gap and lack of confidence that the Democrats can take this one back.

NY State Senator George Maziarz (R- Niagara County) had been mentioned as a possibility, but that would mean that the Republicans would relinquish their majority in the state Senate in Albany prior to redistricting and NY State Senate majority leader Dean Skelos (R- Rockville Centre)has put the kibosh on any speculation that Maziarz is running for the vacant seat.

For the Democrat side of the aisle, the only candidate I can think of off the top of my head is Matt Zeller who had unsuccessfully campaigned against Corning, NY mayor Tom Reed for the US House seat in NY-29 left vacant by Congressman Erik Massa's abrupt resignation following allegations of inappropriate conduct towards male staffers last year. By some accounts, Zeller actually listed his residence with family in the Rochester, NY area (outside the NY-29 boundaries) but basically camped out at the Monroe County Democrat Party headquarters while running for the vacant seat in the 29th disrict.