When it became clear that Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) was going to drop out of the race to challenge Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, allies of President Donald Trump privately reached out begging her to change her mind, but to no avail.
Stefanik, a former moderate Republican lawmaker turned hard MAGA loyalist in the Trump era, announced her campaign to great fanfare and a few widely-mocked stumbles in early November, vowing to defeat Democrats in a staunchly liberal bastion state. But after just a few weeks, she announced she is ending her campaign and retiring from Congress to spend more time with her family.
According to political analyst Rachel Bade, this move triggered chaos behind the scenes.
"I'm told the president and his team always intended to endorse her around the state's Feb convention, viewing her as the stronger candidate. When she called to say she was bowing out, they made a soft pitch for her to stay in the race, reminding her of the Trump support to come," Bade wrote on X. However, "it was too late" to get her to change her mind.
With Stefanik out of the race, the only notable Republican candidate is Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman — and according to Bade's sources, the New York GOP is divided on just how hard to commit to him.
"In upstate New York, some party chairs are fretting that Blakeman doesn’t have the name recognition to turn out the base the way Stefanik could have," wrote Bade. Furthermore, per a GOP source, "donors are reneging on commitments to contribute millions to turnout efforts because they were set on Stefanik and have questions about Blakeman’s chances. And the bitterness about Stefanik getting a raw deal is dividing the party in a critical midterm year."
Stefanik's exit from Congress and suspension of her gubernatorial campaign come amid reports that she is resentful of House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and that his leadership is silencing key voices ahead of a challenging midterm year.