Wikipedia

Elise Stefanik

United States Representative from New York since 2015 (Republican)

Elise Marie Stefanik (/stəˈfɑːnɪk/; born July 2, 1984) is an American politician. She is a member of the U.S. Representative for New York's 21st congressional district since 2015. She was the chair of the House Republican Conference from 2021 to 2025.

Elise Stefanik
Official portrait of Elise Stefanik. She is a middle-aged woman with dark hair.
Official portrait, 2017
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New York's 21st district
Assumed office
January 3, 2015
Preceded byBill Owens
Chair of the House Republican Conference
In office
May 14, 2021 – January 3, 2025
Leader
Preceded byLiz Cheney
Succeeded byLisa McClain
Personal details
Born
Elise Marie Stefanik

(1984-07-02) July 2, 1984 (age 40)
Albany, New York, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Matthew Manda
​
(m. 2017)​
Children1
EducationHarvard University (BA)
Signature
WebsiteHouse website
Elise Stefanik's voice
Stefanik on researching the impact of the hemlock woolly adelgid species on trees
Recorded May 18, 2018

Stefanik was seen as a possible running mate for former President Donald Trump's 2024 campaign.[1] She campaigned for him during the 2024 presidential election. In November 2024, President-elect Trump nominated Stefanik to be the United States Ambassador to the United Nations, however her nomination was withdrawn in March 2025.

Early life

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Stefanik was born in Albany, New York. She studied at Harvard University. She became interested in politics in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001.[2] She was elected vice president of the Harvard Institute of Politics in 2004.[3]

After graduating from Harvard, she joined the George W. Bush administration, as a staff member for the U.S. Domestic Policy Council.[4] Stefanik later worked in the office of Joshua Bolten, the White House Chief of Staff.[4]

In 2009, she founded the blog American Maggie, to promote the views of "conservative and Republican women", named after British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.[3]

U.S. House of Representatives

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When elected in 2014, Stefanik, then aged 30, became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the time.[5] She was also the youngest Republican woman ever elected to Congress at the time.[5]

Stefanik has long supported empowering women in the Republican Party and helped change the party's culture to focusing on electing more women. After her election in 2014, Stefanik named Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg as a major influence on her decision to run for Congress.[6]

At first, she was elected as a moderate conservative, however Stefanik has become more conservative and has supported former President Donald Trump. She strongly opposed the first impeachment of Trump in 2019 and supported Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election. As the U.S. House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack began to investigate, Stefanik blamed then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi instead of Trump over the January 6 United States Capitol attack.[7]

Stefanik criticized Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris Agreement.[8]

Stefanik was elected as the chair of the Republican House Conference in May 2021 after Liz Cheney was removed.[9]

On July 19, 2022, Stefanik was one of the 47 Republican representatives who voted in favor of the Respect for Marriage Act, which would codify the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.[10]

Stefanik has supported the idea of "expunging" both of Trump's impeachments. In 2022, Republican Congressman Markwayne Mullin introduced resolutions to remove Trump's first impeachments from the Congressional Record.[11] This received support from Stefanik.[12]

Stefanik became well known in December 2023[13] for her intense questioning of university presidents during a widely televised U.S. congressional hearing on antisemitism.[14] Her hearings led to criticism and resignation of two of the presidents.[13][15]

Stefanik was seen as a possible running mate for former President Trump's 2024 presidential campaign.[16]

Committee assignments

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Stefanik with President Donald Trump in August 2018

Stefanik's committee assignments include:[17]

Ambassador to the United Nations nomination

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In November 2024, CNN reported that President-elect Donald Trump had offered Stefanik the position of United States ambassador to the United Nations.[18]

 
Stefanik in February 2025

Stefanik appeared before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on January 21, 2025. During the hearing, she promised to fight antisemitism and support Israel and Taiwan.[19][20]

The committee advanced Stefanik's nomination in a 19–3 vote on January 30, 2025.[21] Although observers believed that Stefanik was likely to secure Senate confirmation without difficulty, Senate Republicans delayed the confirmation process due to concerns about the narrow Republican majority in the House of Representatives.[22] Stefanik was expected to be confirmed after April 1, if two vacant House seats were won by Republican candidates in special elections on that date.[23]

On March 27, 2025, President Trump said that he had withdrawn Stefanik's nomination because of the slim Republican majority margin in the House of Representatives. Trump said that he personally asked Stefanik to remain in Congress, calling her "one of his biggest allies".[24] He also hinted that she could be considered for another position in his administration at a later date.[25]

Personal life

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Stefanik married Matthew Manda in 2017.[26] In December 2018, Stefanik and Manda moved to Schuylerville, near Saratoga Springs.[27] Their first child was born in 2021.[28]

Stefanik is a Roman Catholic.[29][30]

References

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  1. ↑ "Elise Stefanik to campaign with Trump in New Hampshire, amid veepstakes speculation". CNN. January 18, 2024.
  2. ↑ Fandos, Nicholas P. (August 12, 2014). "The youngest congresswoman?". Politico. Retrieved June 4, 2021.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Garvey, Declan (May 13, 2021). "'I Probably Won't Ever Speak to Her Again'". The Dispatch. Archived from the original on May 13, 2021. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Hagerty, Meg (May 4, 2014). "Stefanik's campaign ramping up". The Post-Star. Archived from the original on December 26, 2017. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Center, Shira T. (November 12, 2014). "How Elise Stefanik Became the Youngest Woman Ever Elected to Congress". Roll Call. Archived from the original on November 23, 2018. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  6. ↑ He, Alan (January 6, 2015). "Facebook COO's influence on new member of Congress, Elise Stefanik". CBS News. Archived from the original on January 6, 2015. Retrieved 2021-05-13.
  7. ↑ Herbert, Geoff (July 27, 2021). "House panel begins Capitol riot hearings; Rep. Elise Stefanik deflects blame to Pelosi". syracuse.
  8. ↑ Harding, Robert (June 2, 2017). "GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik: Trump withdrawing from Paris Agreement is 'misguided'". Auburn Citizen.
  9. ↑ Jacobs, Emily; Brufke, Juliegrace (2021-05-14). "Rep. Elise Stefanik wins GOP conference chair vote to replace Liz Cheney". New York Post. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  10. ↑ Lai, Stephanie (2022-07-19). "House Passes Same-Sex Marriage Bill Amid Concern About Court Reversal". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
  11. ↑ Brooks, Emily (18 May 2022). "Mullin legislation would expunge Trump Jan. 6 impeachment". The Hill. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
  12. ↑ Wagner, John (12 January 2023). "McCarthy says he's willing to look at expunging a Trump impeachment". Washington Post. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Saul, Stephanie; Hartocollis, Anemona (2023-12-06). "College Presidents Under Fire After Dodging Questions About Antisemitism". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  14. ↑ Levy, Marc (December 9, 2023). "Liz Magill, UPenn president, resigns after antisemitism testimony draws backlash". Associated Press.
  15. ↑ Hensley, Sarah Beth (2023-12-06). "Harvard's president answers backlash over response to calls for 'genocide of Jews'". ABC News. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  16. ↑ "Congresswoman rumored as possible VP pick to hit trail with Trump in New Hampshire". MSN. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
  17. ↑ "Congressman Elise Stefanik: Committees and Caucuses". Congresswoman Elise Stefanik. Washington, DC: US House of Representatives. Archived from the original on March 31, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2020.
  18. ↑ Collins, Kaitlan (November 10, 2024). "Trump offers Rep. Elise Stefanik role of UN ambassador, sources say". CNN. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  19. ↑ Bazail-Eimil, Eric (2025-01-21). "Stefanik paints a grim picture of a UN she wants to reform". POLITICO. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  20. ↑ "Trump's U.N. envoy pick pledges to advocate for Taiwan's int'l participation - Focus Taiwan". Focus Taiwan - CNA English News. 2025-01-22. Retrieved 2025-01-22.
  21. ↑ Mollenkamp, Allison (2025-01-30). "Senate panel backs Stefanik as Democrats protest foreign aid pause". Roll Call. Retrieved 2025-02-05.
  22. ↑ "Elise Stefanik's UN posting is on ice". POLITICO. 2025-02-13. Retrieved 2025-02-14.
  23. ↑ Kavi, Aishvarya (2025-03-19). "Trump and Zelensky Discuss Russia-Ukraine War: Live Updates". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
  24. ↑ "White House yanks Stefanik's UN nomination". POLITICO. 2025-03-27. Retrieved 2025-03-28.
  25. ↑ Karni, Annie; Haberman, Maggie (2025-03-27). "Trump Asks Stefanik to Withdraw Bid to Be U.N. Ambassador". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-03-28.
  26. ↑ "Weddings: Elise Stefanik, Matthew Manda". The New York Times. August 20, 2017. Retrieved August 20, 2017.
  27. ↑ Stanforth, Lauren (December 10, 2018). "U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik moves to Saratoga County". Times Union.
  28. ↑ @EliseStefanik (August 30, 2021). "👼💙A Very Special Announcement💙👼" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  29. ↑ "UPDATE: Trump picks several Catholics for Cabinet: Kennedy, Rubio, Stefanik, Ratcliffe, Duffy". Catholic News Agency. November 18, 2024.
  30. ↑ "Elise Stefanik's Biography". Vote Smart - Facts For All.

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