Category: Elise stefanik
‘Unnecessary and protracted’: Elise Stefanik drops out of New York governor’s race
Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York suspended her gubernatorial campaign on Friday just weeks after joining the race in November.
Stefanik becomes one of many prospective Republican retirees, clarifying that she will not seek to return to Congress either. Stefanik maintained that she would have won the Republican gubernatorial primary but that her candidacy would draw away crucial resources in an electorally “challenging” state like New York.
This is not the first time Stefanik’s career has taken an abrupt turn.
“I am truly humbled and grateful for the historic and overwhelming support from Republicans, Conservatives, Independents, and Democrats all across the state for our campaign to Save New York,” Stefanik said in a Friday post on X.
“However, as we have seen in past elections, while we would have overwhelmingly won this primary, it is not an effective use of our time or your generous resources to spend the first half of next year in an unnecessary and protracted Republican primary, especially in a challenging state like New York,” Stefanik added.
Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images
Stefanik said her family was a big part of her political calculus, saying she would regret taking more time away from being with her young son.
“And while many know me as Congresswoman, my most important title is Mom,” Stefanik said. “I believe that being a parent is life’s greatest gift and greatest responsibility. I have thought deeply about this and I know that as a mother, I will feel profound regret if I don’t further focus on my young son’s safety, growth, and happiness — particularly at his tender age.”
This is not the first time Stefanik’s career has taken an abrupt turn.
RELATED: GOP feud breaks out after Elise Stefanik accuses Speaker Johnson of protecting the deep state
Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Stefanik was President Donald Trump’s first pick to serve as ambassador to the United Nations, even forfeiting her leadership position in the House and going through the early stages of Senate confirmation at the beginning of the year. Her nomination was later pulled, with Republican leadership citing the historically narrow House margins. Mike Waltz was instead confirmed to the position.
Stefanik returned to the House and later announced her gubernatorial run in November, before announcing on Friday she would step back from public service altogether.
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Don’t Crown Stefanik Yet
As New York Republicans eye the 2026 gubernatorial race, the party faces a familiar dilemma: how to reclaim the governor’s…
‘FIRE HOCHUL’: Stefanik officially launches bid to save New York from the ‘Worst Governor in America’
New York Rep. Elise Stefanik (R) on Friday officially announced her run for governor, challenging incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul (D).
Stefanik called Hochul the “Worst Governor in America” and slammed her for endorsing Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, the New York City mayor-elect.
‘I have a record of flipping a district that was previously held by a Democrat.’
“Under her failed leadership, New York is the most unaffordable state in the nation with the highest taxes, highest energy, utilities, rent, and grocery bills,” Stefanik wrote Friday in a post on social media. “When New Yorkers were looking for leadership from our Governor, she bent the knee to the raging Defund the Police, Tax Hiking Communist causing catastrophe for New York families.”
Stefanik vowed that under her leadership, she would “make New York affordable and safe FOR ALL.”
“Democrats, Republicans, and Independents will unify to save our state,” she continued. “It’s time to: FIRE HOCHUL. SAVE NEW YORK.”
Stefanik released a campaign video highlighting New York’s affordability crisis and the influx of crime, prompting middle-class residents to flee the state, which she blamed on Hochul’s failed policies.
RELATED: SHOCK POLL: Republican leads NY Governor Hochul one year before the election
Elise Stefanik. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
On Friday, Stefanik told Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” that “toxic” Hochul “bent the knee” to Mamdani “because she is hemorrhaging support, even in her own party.”
Hochul won by 5.8 points in 2022 against Republican candidate Lee Zeldin, who is now the Environmental Protection Agency administrator under President Donald Trump. The last time New Yorkers elected a Republican governor was in 2002. Despite the long streak of Democrat wins, Stefanik remains unfazed.
“I have a record of flipping a district that was previously held by a Democrat,” Stefanik stated. “I’ve won every primary and general election, and we’ve overperformed — winning not just Republicans but independents and a fair share of Democrats as well — because my record has been delivering results for families, for small businesses, for our veterans, for our farmers.”
Stefanik has secured endorsements from 34 Republican state assembly members and 12 state senators, according to her campaign. New York GOP Chairman Ed Cox also endorsed Stefanik, calling her “a unifier and a party builder with the brains, the guts, and the resources to win statewide next year.”
RELATED: Trump slams Hochul’s endorsement of ‘communist’ Mamdani: ‘No reason to be sending good money’
Kathy Hochul. Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Hochul’s campaign fired back at Stefanik, describing her as a “sellout” because she has been Trump’s “number-one cheerleader in Congress and his right-hand woman in his war on New York.” The governor’s campaign accused the lawmaker of “gutting health care, jacking up costs with expensive tariffs, and cutting funding for our police, schools, and hospitals.”
“Apparently, screwing over New Yorkers in Congress wasn’t enough — now she’s trying to bring Trump’s chaos and skyrocketing costs to our state. While Stefanik puts Trump first and New York last, Governor Hochul is lowering costs, cutting middle-class taxes, and fighting for the New Yorkers Stefanik abandoned,” Hochul’s campaign communications director Sarafina Chitika said.
Blaze News contacted the campaigns of Stefanik and Hochul for comment but did not receive a response.
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