Republican U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik is working for governor of New York, her marketing campaign introduced Friday.
In a Stefanik known as Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul “the worst governor in America” and known as New York “probably the most unaffordable state within the nation.”
Stefanik, who represents a strong purple congressional district in upstate New York, has for months teased a run for governor, leveling heavy criticism at Hochul and extra just lately towards Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect of New York Metropolis.
“I’m working for governor to convey a brand new era of management to Albany to make New York reasonably priced and protected for households all throughout our nice state,” Stefanik mentioned in an announcement issued Friday.
Final 12 months, President Trump picked Stefanik, a staunch ally, to be the administration’s ambassador to the United Nations, however months later rescinded the nomination over issues about Republicans’ tight margins within the Home.
Although any Republican faces lengthy odds of profitable the governor’s mansion in New York, Stefanik’s marketing campaign will convey strong title recognition, fundraising prowess and deep ties to the Trump White Home. Her marketing campaign introduced Friday that she has acquired the backing of practically three-quarters of the state’s county Republican chairs.
In an announcement, Hochul marketing campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika known as Stefanik “Donald Trump’s primary cheerleader in Congress.”
“Apparently, screwing over New Yorkers in Congress wasn’t sufficient — now she’s making an attempt to convey Trump’s chaos and skyrocketing prices to our state,” Chitika mentioned.
The Republican major discipline stays unclear forward of the 2026 race. U.S. Rep. Mike Lawler had been considering a run and was thought-about a doubtlessly sturdy candidate, however mentioned earlier this 12 months that he would as a substitute search reelection in his battleground Home district within the New York Hudson Valley.
Hochul is dealing with a contested major, together with her personal lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, working in opposition to her.
Stefanik, a Harvard graduate, was 30 when she was first elected to the Home in 2014. She entered Congress as a average Republican however quickly hooked up herself to Trump, reshaping her persona into extra of a brash, outspoken MAGA disciple.
Her nationwide profile received a giant increase after she aggressively questioned a gaggle of college presidents over antisemitism on their campuses, main to 2 of their resignations and profitable reward from the Republican president.
Democrats have a significant voter registration edge in New York. The final Republican governor within the state was former Gov. George Pataki, who left workplace about 20 years in the past. Nonetheless, Republican Lee Zeldin, a former Lengthy Island congressman and present head of the Environmental Safety Company, made a severe run for the workplace in 2022, coming inside placing distance of upsetting Hochul.
Izaguirre writes for the Related Press.
