Rep. Elise Stefanik announced Friday that she is suspending her campaign for governor and will not seek re-election to Congress.
Stefanik was facing Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman in what was expected to be a fierce primary to face Democrat incumbent Kathy Hochul in the general election next year. Hochul faces her own primary challenge from Lt. Gov Antonio Delgado, viewed as an underdog.
“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,” Stefanik said in a statement. “I did not come to this decision lightly for our family. 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, 41, added that “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.” She has served as a U.S. representative since 2015 in a district that includes 15 counties and borders Vermont and Canada.
Earlier this week, a Siena poll released showed that Hochul had a 19-point lead over Stefanik in a hypothetical 2026 general election matchup and a 25-point lead over Blakeman, who won his bid for a second term as Nassau County Executive by a wide margin in November. He previously served on the Hempstead Town Council and later held an appointed position as commissioner of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
Blakeman responded to the Siena poll by guaranteeing a win in next year’s election.
“Four years ago, I started a campaign 24 points behind against a well-funded, popular incumbent in a county with 110,000 more Democrats, and I won,” Blakeman said in a statement. “I was re-elected this year in a landslide. I will get the Republican nomination, and I will be elected Governor.”
Comments