by Sharon Rondeau
(May 4, 2025) — In an interview with Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures” at approximately 10:37 a.m. EDT, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY21), 40, a former nominee for United Nations ambassador, said she is “strongly considering” running for New York governor in 2026.
On January 21, Stefanik testified at a Senate confirmation hearing for the United Nations post for which Donald J. Trump nominated her following his re-election in November.
Born in Albany in 1984, Stefanik has served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015 and as Republican Conference chair from 2021 to earlier this year, when she resigned in light of her U.N. nomination.
In 2006, she graduated from Harvard University with a B.A. in government and later served on President George W. Bush’s Domestic Policy Council. While in Congress, she has served on three subcommittees of the Committee on Education and the Workforce; the Subcommittee on Intelligence, Emerging Threats, and Capabilities of the Committee on Armed Services; and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI).
In the wake of Republicans’ holding of the U.S. House by only a slim margin in 2024, in late March Trump announced he asked Stefanik to remain in her House seat, to which she agreed.
Against the backdrop of the “big, beautiful bill” Bartiromo invoked which Trump wishes Congress to deliver to his desk by Memorial Day, Stefanik said the Trump-agenda tax cuts, “unleashing energy independence” and “no-tax-on-tips” will be included.
“We are committed to a fiscally responsible, pro-growth bill that also secures our borders,” Stefanik said, contrasting it with legislation signed by Joe Biden which she said ushered in “rampant waste, fraud and abuse of U.S. taxpayer dollars.”
If passed, the bill will reportedly reduce government spending by “at least $1.5 trillion.”
New York is a “high-tax” state, Stefanik acknowledged. Cue to its high taxes, it is one of at least three “blue” states impacted by the SALT (state and local tax) $10,000 tax-deduction limit imposed by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).
“A lot of people in the Senate and in the House do not — they don’t want to subsidize these high-tax states,” Bartiromo said. “Maybe when you become governor of New York, maybe you’ll cut taxes, Congresswoman, but right now, they don’t feel that now is the time to raise that deduction with $37 trillion in debt.”
“This is a commitment President Trump made on the campaign trail…so we are in the midst of negotiating that,” Stefanik replied. “I represent New Yorkers; this has been a key issue that we have worked on for a number of years, and we’re working in the New York Republican delegation as well as my colleagues in House Republican leadership to get this done.”
“…With this slim majority, we understand it’s important to relieve taxes for all Americans across this country,” she continued. “And what’s interesting, Maria, is if you look in New York, no state moved more to the Republican direction than New York State in terms of President Trump’s historic support that he earned from voters in New York.”
Following the 2024 elections, Wikipedia reported, “Though it remained comfortably Democratic, New York was the state that had the biggest Republican swing out of any state in the nation in the 2024 election, with Trump greatly improving his performance by winning 43.31% of the state’s vote, compared to 36.75% in the 2016 election and 37.74% in the 2020 election. New York follows a trend of blue states, such as Massachusetts, New Jersey, Illinois and California shifting red.[2][3]“
On the topic of antisemitic demonstrations on college campuses, Stefanik faulted current New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) for failing to take firmer action. She also criticized Hochul’s “bail reform” policies, which she said cause the “releasing of illegals onto our streets.”
If elected governor, Stefanik said, “We will certainly lower taxes so that we are no longer the highest-tax state in the nation.”
“Kathy Hochul is the worst governor in America,…and it’s showing in her poor, abysmal approval ratings,” she asserted.
On April 30, citing a Siena College poll, SpotlightNews reported Hochul’s approval rating to have improved to 44%-43%, “up from 40-50 percent in March.”
She is “honored” to be considered a possible contender, Stefanik said and the New York Post reported Saturday. According to the paper, “She already boasts more than $10 million in federal campaign funds, which could easily be transferred for a statewide run.”
“We’ll be watching for your gubernatorial campaign,” Bartiromo concluded the interview at 10:43 a.m.