Brian Higgins has represented his New York district, which includes his hometown of Buffalo and Niagara Falls, since 2005. Though he once called himself “the most independent and conservative Democrat in New York State,” Higgins has adopted more mainstream Democrat positions in Congress and earned seniority on some prominent House committees. He began his political career in his twenties, as a member of the Buffalo Common Council, serving for nearly six years. In 1993, he lost the race for Erie County comptroller to Nancy Naples, the woman he would later defeat in 2004 for a seat in Congress.

Learn what Brian Higgins says about finding common ground