He was elected to Congress in 1972 to represent New York's 26th congressional district, defeating John G. Dow, a Democratic incumbent who had been serving in the New York's 27th congressional district (which included most of the territory and population of the new 26th district), and served from January 3, 1973 until January 3, 2003. During his time in Congress, he was chair of the House Committee on International Relations (104th through 106th Congresses).