Elise Stefanik suspends New York governor campaign, won't seek reelection

By Nacha Cattan

 

Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik said she’s suspending her campaign to run for New York governor and won’t seek reelection to Congress, halting the ascent of one of the party’s most well-known figures. 

“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 wrote on X in a statement that stunned the state’s political establishment. 

While 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. I did not come to this decision lightly for our family.  I am truly humbled and grateful for the historic and…

— Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) December 19, 2025

Stefanik, 41, who represents an upstate New York district in Congress, announced in November she would challenge Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul for next year’s election. The Albany, New York, native floated the idea of running for the position for months, but chose to announce her candidacy days after Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City, accusing the democratic socialist of being antisemitic and blasting Hochul for endorsing him. 

 

 

A longtime ally of President Donald Trump, Stefanik was widely expected to be the Republican nominee until Bruce Blakeman, the county executive of Nassau County, entered the race this month. Trump declined to take a side and instead praised Stefanik and Blakeman. He also met Mamdani at the White House where he lauded the incoming mayor, undermining one of Stefanik’s chief arguments.

 

Stefanik said in Friday’s social media post that she didn’t take the decision to suspend the campaign and not seek re-election lightly. 

 

“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,” she wrote. 

 

Moments after Stefanik’s surprise statemement, Trump described her on social media as a “fantastic person” and “tremendous talent.” 

 

“Regardless of what she does. She will have GREAT success, and I am with her all the way!”

 

Stefanik is one of roughly two dozen House Republicans who have already said they won’t seek reelection next year. That figure is expected to continue to rise as GOP lawmakers grow wary that their party is poised to lose the House in the midterm elections.

 

Her exit comes after a rapid rise through Republican politics. She first won election to Congress in 2014 at age 30, becoming the youngest woman ever elected to the chamber at the time. Initially a political moderate, the Harvard graduate, rose to national prominence defending Trump during his first impeachment hearings. Stefanik’s profile skyrocketed in late 2023 when she challenged the presidents of some of the most prestigious US universities over their responses to allegations of antisemitism on campus — questioning the leaders on whether “calling for the genocide of Jews” violates their code of conduct or constitutes bullying or harassment. 

 

The presidents of Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania later stepped down after outcry over their responses, which were ridiculed on Saturday Night Live.

 

Stefanik was considered last year for US ambassador to the United Nations before Trump backtracked on concerns over the GOP’s narrow House majority. She then intensified her criticism of Hochul, though a Siena poll released this week showed her lagging Hochul by 19 percentage points. 

 

Blakeman, 70, also trailed Hochul in a theoretical matchup by 25 percentage points, but had the support of some of the state’s leading Republicans, including party chair Ed Cox.

 

Stefanik frequently uses aggressive language on social media to target Democrats, including describing Mamdani as a “jihadist.” Earlier this month though she also went after Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson for not including a provision on Congressional disclosure for FBI probes into political candidates in the defense authorization bill. She described his response to her as “just more lies from the Speaker,” in a blistering post on X. 

 

“There’s a lot of unanswered questions about why she’s leaving political life,” said J.C. Polanco, an assistant professor of business law at the University of Mount Saint Vincent and a political analyst. “A lot of people thought Blakeman would be a better candidate in November because he’s close to the Republican base and leadership and is pro-choice, which makes him more electable in an election in New York.”