After U.N. nomination falls through, Elise Stefanik to revert back to representing Northern NY

Trump: North Country congresswoman’s exit from House posed a concern for Republicans due to razor-thin majority

By Lucy Hodgman, Times Union Staff Writer

Editor’s note: This has been updated as of 9 a.m. on March 28

ALBANY —  The White House has withdrawn U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik’s nomination to serve as United Nations ambassador in order to retain the North Country congresswoman as part of the slim Republican majority in the House of Representatives. 

President Donald J. Trump nominated Stefanik, a staunch ally of the president since his election in 2016, for the post in November; she was the first cabinet pick Trump announced upon reelection. But the congresswoman’s nomination had been held up for months by Republicans in Washington who feared her departure from the House would erode their legislative power. 

“With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat,” Trump wrote in a post to Truth Social on Thursday afternoon. “There are others that can do a good job at the United Nations. Therefore, Elise will stay in Congress, rejoin the House Leadership Team, and continue to fight for our amazing American People.” 

Trump added that Speaker of the House Mike Johnson was “thrilled” and that he looked forward to Stefanik joining his administration at some point in the future. 

Stefanik struck a similar tone in an interview with Fox’s Kayleigh McEnany on Thursday night. She attributed the White House’s reversal to a combination of the slim margin in the House and “the corruption that we’re seeing under (Gov.) Kathy Hochul,” referencing state Democrats’ scuttled proposal to extend the special election timeline. 

“I have been proud to be a team player,” Stefanik said. “The president knows that. He and I had multiple conversations today, and we are committed to delivering results on behalf of the American people. And as always, I’m committed to delivering results on behalf of my constituents.”

Based on recent activity, her reversal of fortune might have come as a surprise to the congresswoman: She has spent the past week posting a “Congressional Throwback” series on social media, revisiting her decade representing New York’s 21st District as recently as Thursday morning. On Wednesday, she posted a photo with Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, referring to them as her “cabinet colleagues.”

Stefanik thanked supporters during a farewell tour of the district in February, after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee advanced her nomination to the full Senate. She also relinquished her role as chair of the House Republican Conference, a position Michigan Rep. Lisa McClain has since filled.

The U.N. ambassadorship is seen as a political stepping stone, one which Madeleine Albright, John Bolton and George H.W. Bush all held on their way to higher office. Stefanik has spoken often in recent months about her plans to “root out the rot” at the U.N, calling the world body a “den of antisemitism.”

The demise of Stefanik’s nomination saves regional Republicans from engaging in a potentially contentious special election. North Country state Sen. Dan Stec won the backing of the state’s Conservative party this week: Chairman Gerard Kassar recommended that Republican party leaders select him as the nominee, listing Assemblyman Chris Tague and former congressional candidate Liz Joy as acceptable alternatives. The chairs of the district’s 15 Republican committees planned to name a candidate after Stefanik resigned, which they anticipated happening as soon as next Wednesday.  

“Congresswoman Elise Stefanik would have made an exceptional United Nations ambassador,” Tague said in a Thursday statement. “While the withdrawal of her nomination is unfortunate for America, her continued service in Congress is a tremendous advantage for New York’s 21st District.” 

Stefanik’s appointment remained in limbo even as the rest of Trump’s cabinet nominees were confirmed. Party leaders had planned to delay her confirmation until April 2, one day after a pair of special elections in Florida that they hoped would send two more Republicans to the House. But recent fundraising numbers have called the security of one seat into question: Randy Fine, who is running to replace former U.S. Rep. Mike Waltz, has been vastly outraised by his Democratic opponent. 

One hopeful for Stefanik’s seat, Sticker Mule CEO Anthony Constantino, recently threatened to pursue an independent run if party leaders handed the nomination to another candidate. That, too, could have posed trouble for Republicans: the last time a Democrat was elected to Congress in the North Country, in 2009, it was because a Republican and a Conservative candidate split the vote in a tight special election. 

“I respect the President’s decision,” Constantino wrote in a post to X. “It was tough call as Congresswoman Stefanik’s appointment to the U.N. was among the best he made.”

And Democrats in the deeply red NY-21 were gearing up for a fight. Presumptive nominee Blake Gendebien, a Lisbon dairy farmer, raised almost $3 million. Lynne Boucher, the chair of the Warren County Democratic Committee, said she saw the Republicans’ wariness to run in the district as proof of the strong campaign Democrats had already mounted. In a statement on Thursday, Gendebien suggested that he had not given up on a potential run for office.

“The administration is abandoning Congresswoman Stefanik’s campaign because they need her vote to cut Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, VA benefits and rural education in order to give billions of dollars in handouts to the ultra-wealthy,” Gendebien wrote. “I’m committed to representing the community that raised me, regardless of when that election is.”

Top photo: Rep. Elise Stefanik at her rally in 2022. Photo by Nancie Battaglia