Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik announced Friday she was ending her short-lived bid for governor of New York and would not run for another term in Congress.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile spending precious time with my family this Christmas season, I have made the decision to suspend my campaign for Governor and will not seek re-election to Congress,\u201d Stefanik wrote in a post on social media. \u201cI did not come to this decision lightly for our family.\u201d<\/p>\n
The announcement came less than two months after Stefanik launched a campaign seeking to challenge Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2026, making what would have been a long-shot race in a heavily Democratic state. Stefanik recently drew a primary competitor in Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, whom she invoked in her statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile 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,\u201d Stefanik wrote.<\/p>\n
Stefanik\u2019s upstate congressional district is conservative terrain, with the congresswoman winning reelection last November by 24 points and Trump carrying it by more than 20 points. Those margins are outside the average Democratic overperformance in House special elections this year and would make it a reach for the party in its pursuit to flip control of the chamber next year, when it needs a net gain of only 3 seats to win the majority.<\/p>\n
The abrupt move brings yet another twist in Stefanik\u2019s political arc. It\u2019s unclear what she will do next, but for now, she is set to leave elected office in early 2027.<\/p>\n
\u201cElise is a tremendous talent, regardless of what she does. She will have GREAT success, and I am with her all the way!\u201d President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social<\/a>.<\/p>\n Once a Trump critic<\/a>, Stefanik rose to national prominence with her questioning of witnesses during Trump\u2019s first impeachment and became one of his highest-profile supporters on television and on the campaign. She strongly backed his 2024 bid for the White House, urging the party \u201cto unite around the most popular Republican in America.\u201d<\/p>\n Stefanik had moved up the ranks of the party\u2019s House leadership and with Trump\u2019s return to the White House, she was nominated for the position of US ambassador to the United Nations. Her nomination was later pulled as the GOP navigated a narrow majority with Trump saying at the time it was \u201cessential that we maintain EVERY Republican seat in Congress.\u201d<\/p>\n That left her to stay in the US House, with at least one plan for a farewell toast to her scrapped and her old leadership position<\/a> already taken by GOP Rep. Lisa McClain of Michigan.<\/p>\n She entered the New York governor\u2019s race accusing Hochul of not doing enough to reduce costs in the state or fight antisemitism, seeking to link the incumbent to New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist who will become the city\u2019s first Muslim mayor.<\/p>\n