Elise Stefanik on whether she'll run for NY governor: What she said
Stefanik, a Saratoga County Republican who has represented northeastern New York for more than a decade, gave that extended timeline after another Republican opted out of the governor's race on Wednesday, July 23. Rep. Mike Lawler of Rockland County had been weighing a challenge against Gov. Kathy Hochul since last year but announced he will seek re-election instead.
His exit clears a path for now for Stefanik, who plans to keep up the suspense for more than three months.
"As I have previously stated, I am focused on supporting strong Republican local and county candidates on the ballot this November to lay the groundwork with a strong team for next year," she said in a statement right after Lawler's decision was reported on Wednesday. "I will make a final decision and announcement after this year's November election which we are all focused on."
Stefanik hinted at gov run earlier this year
Stefanik, 41, emerged this spring as a potential rival for Lawler, revealing in April that she was considering the next governor's race. That came after another political ambition fell through — President Donald Trump withdrew her nomination to be United Nations ambassador out of concern Democrats might win her vacated House seat in a special election.
Republicans hold a thin majority in the House and needed to retain every seat in case of close votes.
Stefanik is a close Trump ally who represents New York's 21st Congressional District, a giant swath of upstate bordered on two sides by Vermont and Canada. She routinely bashes Hochul as "the worst governor in America" and she got a chance to grill her potential opponent in person last month, when Hochul and two other governors testified at a House hearing on sanctuary state policies.
Her campaign announced this month she had raised a whopping $4 million from April to June and had more than $11 million in her House campaign accounts.
Hochul gears up for campaign, faces familiar rival in Delgado
Hochul, who took office in 2021 after Andrew Cuomo resigned as governor, won a full term in 2022 and plans to run for a second next year. Her own lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, is her only declared challenger at this point, having launched a campaign in June to run against her in a Democratic primary in June 2026.
Ambassador bid: Elise Stefanik's district, reelection: What to know about the NY congresswoman
Hochul's campaign, meanwhile, reported a nearly $12 million haul since January for her own re-election account and the state Democratic Committee.
In addition to Stefanik, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman is seen as a potential Republican candidate for governor in 2026. He's up for re-election as county executive this November and is unlikely to announce before then a decision on the governor's race.
Chris McKenna covers government and politics for The Journal News and USA Today Network. Reach him at cmckenna@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Elise Stefanik on whether she'll run for NY governor: What she said
Solve the daily Crossword
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
41 minutes ago
- Yahoo
AOC isn't radical enough for the anti-Israel Left. It's a sinister sign of the future
'AOC funds genocide in Gaza', announced a sign posted outside the Bronx campaign office of progressive New York Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In a particularly chilling gesture, the office's windows were splattered with red paint, including a splotch big enough to blot out an image of her face. An anti-Israel group called the 'Boogie Down Liberation Front' took responsibility for Monday night's act of vandalism in a message to a local journalist, stating 'The Bronx is sick and tired of people like AOC … using us as a stepping stone for their own political careers'. It added that their community 'stands with the people of Palestine and we denounce the hypocrisy of AOC who voted to fund Israel's ongoing genocide and starvation campaign in Gaza.' At immediate issue was Ocasio-Cortez's vote last Friday against an amendment to a military spending bill that would have cut millions in aid to Israel for its air defence systems. The amendment, which only six Congressmen supported, was proposed by Ocasio-Cortez's polar political opposite, Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican Congresswoman from Georgia, whose apparent motivation was her belief that Israel no longer requires American taxpayer assistance due to its successful military operations earlier this year. Greene's amendment was also supported by noted anti-Israel Congresswomen Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ilhan Omar of Minnesota. Ocasio-Cortez has argued that the amendment would have done 'nothing to cut off offensive aid to Israel nor end the flow of US munitions being used in Gaza'. She maintains that she still believes Israel is committing genocide, but that it should not be denied defensive weapons. That was not enough for some increasingly extreme factions on the Left, however, which consider approving any amount of support for Israel to be unacceptable. It should go without saying that nobody should be cheering on the vandalism of any politician's campaign office. Ocasio-Cortez's campaign has also revealed that she has received an increased number of death threats in recent days – a disturbing reminder that political violence is never far from the surface in American politics today. It also says something very concerning about where the American Left is heading that she should become a target of their vitriol. Back in 2018, she had a roaring start on the Left-wing of the Democratic Party. A one-time barmaid who claimed to speak progressive, working class truth to corporate power, regardless of party, she rode the anti-incumbency trend in the midterm elections of Donald Trump's first presidency to become the youngest woman ever to sit in the US Congress. She went on to be one of the very few American politicians so well known that her initials often supersede her name, a distinction usually reserved for presidents of the order of FDR or JFK. In office, AOC emerged as the best known member of the 'Squad', a small group of Left-wing Congresswomen whom many progressives hailed as the future of US politics. Her radical agenda made her a role model for young Democrats who distrust their party's older and more moderate leadership, and a bugbear for flustered Republicans who only made her more popular in constant media attacks. In recent years, however, AOC seems to have lost her progressive lustre, even if her politics haven't really changed. Last year, her stance on Israel caused the Democratic Socialists of America – a national progressive organisation that had backed her since her first standing for office – to withdraw its endorsement, accusing her of 'deep betrayal'. AOC clearly retains substantial popularity among Democrats – at over $15 million, her campaign contributions in 2025 exceed those of all other members of Congress this year as she considers greater ambitions, possibly including a primary challenge to fellow Democrat Chuck Schumer for his New York Senate seat. Some 72 per cent of those funds came from outside her congressional district. But the vandalism at her office – alongside other trends, like the emergence of Zohran Mamdani as the Democrat nominee for mayor of New York City – suggests that the Left is beginning to turn in a far more sinister direction. Paul du Quenoy is a historian and president of the Palm Beach Freedom Institute. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Gov. Hochul's latest redistricting threat is dangerous and undemocratic
Gov. Kathy Hochul and fellow Democrats are again threatening to rig New York's congressional voting-district maps to win seats for their party. And in mid-decade, no less, in clear violation of the state Constitution. It's sleazy, anti-democratic — and illegal. Even Hochul admits it, but suggests Dems may do it anyway since Texas and Ohio are moving to draw up new districts in their states. Gov. Kathy Hochul and Democrats are again threatening to rig New York's congressional voting-district maps, writes The Post Editorial Board. Andrew Schwartz / 'All's fair in love and war,' she huffed last week. 'If there's other states violating the rules and are trying to give themselves an advantage, all I'll say is, I'm going to look at it closely.' Huh? If Texas and Ohio rig their maps, that doesn't give Hochul & Co. the right to break New York's laws — even if her goal is to offset any advantage Republicans get in those states. Note, too, that Hochul is huffing not about protecting New York's influence in Congress but her party's. And at the expense, presumably, of Republican voters in New York, since the goal would be to draw district lines favorable to Democrats. True, Texas and Ohio Republicans are expected draw lines they hope will favor them. But if those states cheat their Democratic voters, those voters can sue. Hochul and her party are worried that if more Republicans are elected from those states, it'll make it harder for Democrats to win control of the House in next year's midterms. But again, if the donkeys think those states are breaking any laws, they can go to court, too. Meanwhile, if Hochul tried to gerrymander in time for the midterm, she'd be doubly violating the state Constitution. First, redistricting can take place only once every 10 years, after the Census, not mid-decade. Second, in 2014 New Yorkers passed a constitutional amendment that empowered an independent decennial redistricting commission and specifically banned partisan gerrymandering. But Democrats ignored the amendment and tried to gerrymander anyway a few years ago, and it took a ruling by the state's top court to stop them. We don't condone gerrymandering, by either party, in any state. It cheats voters, skews representation and undermines democracy. As even Democratic boss Jay Jacobs warns, 'We need to be careful about democracy,' adding, 'You don't change the rules of the game to your advantage just because you can.' Given the tight timeframe, it's unlikely Democrats could pull this off. But then, if New York Dems were willing to violate the Constitution before, who can be sure they won't 'break the rules' again to push through corrupt new district lines in time? New Yorkers of both parties should demand Hochul take back her threat and obey the law.
CNBC
an hour ago
- CNBC
Massie warns blocking Epstein vote in the House could be political liability for GOP in midterms
House Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday criticized the push to force a vote in the U.S. House on releasing more federal files pertaining to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as "reckless," while the measure's co-sponsors fired back against Republican Party leadership. "House Republicans insist upon the release of all credible evidence and information related to Epstein in any way," Johnson, R-La., said on NBC News. "But we are also insisting upon the protection of innocent victims," Johnson continued. "And our concern is that the ... discharge petition is reckless in the way that it is drafted and presented, it does not adequately include those protections," he added, referring to the measure introduced by Reps. Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Ro Khanna, D-Calif. Meanwhile, Massie and Khanna took to the airwaves on Sunday to defend their bill — and criticize the Republican leadership, whom they see as standing in the way of holding a vote on the measures. Massie and Khanna both repudiated the allegations that releasing the Epstein files would hurt victims of the financier and convicted sex abuser. In an interview on NBC News, Massie said that Johnson was making a "straw man argument" when the speaker said that the bill does not include protections for victims. "Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted and that no child pornography will be released," Massie said. The lawmaker's comments underscore the ongoing divisions within the GOP over the Epstein files, which continue to fuel conspiracy theories among the party's MAGA base and infuriate some of President Donald Trump's strongest supporters. On Friday, Trump deflected questions about Epstein, a former friend. Epstein died from suicide while in jail weeks after being arrested on child sex trafficking charges in 2019. "I have nothing to do with the guy," Trump said of the man he had socialized with for years before a falling out in the mid-2000s with the convicted pedophile. The Trump administration has faced growing backlash in recent weeks after the Justice Department walked back on earlier plans to release the files related to Epstein's case. Massie also criticized Johnson on Sunday for beginning its August recess early in the U.S. House, avoiding being forced to take the vote on the motions related to the Epstein files. "The question is, why isn't Mike Johnson having this vote? Why did he send us home early?" Massie said on ABC News. He also warned of the political implications if Johnson does not hold a vote on the bill. "I'll tell you what's politically going to be a liability is, if we don't vote on this, and we go into the midterms and everybody ... they just check out because Republicans didn't keep their promise," he said. "We'll lose the majority," he continued. Massie said that he thinks pressure will build to hold a vote on it through the August recess period. Some Democrats, including Reps. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) are also backing the bill. Massie was also asked how he would react if Trump granted convicted Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell some form of clemency. "I don't think she deserves that or needs that," Massie said on ABC News, adding that "it's hard to believe that she, herself, and Epstein did these crimes by themselves," which means it's "time to find out who else was involved," by evaluating documents, bank records and others including plea bargains previously under seal. In recent days, Maxwell was granted limited immunity by the Justice Department to answer questions about the Jeffrey Epstein case. This type of immunity allowed Maxwell to answer questions from Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, Trump's former personal lawyer, without fear that the information she provided could later be used against her in any future cases or proceedings. When Johnson was asked what he thought of a possible pardon for Maxwell, he reiterated that the decision is ultimately up to Trump. "Obviously that's a decision of the president," Johnson said, adding, "that's not my lane."
