Elise Stefanik facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Elise Stefanik
Official portrait, 2017
United States Ambassador to the United Nations Nominee
Assuming office TBD
President	Donald Trump
Succeeding	Linda Thomas-Greenfield
Chair of the House Republican Conference
In office May 14, 2021 – January 3, 2025
Leader	Kevin McCarthy Mike Johnson
Vice Chair	Mike Johnson Blake Moore
Preceded by	Liz Cheney
Succeeded by	Lisa McClain
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York's 21st district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2015
Preceded by	Bill Owens
Personal details
Born	Elise Marie Stefanik (1984-07-02) July 2, 1984 (age 41) Albany, New York, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Matthew Manda ​ (m. 2017)​
Children	1
Education	Harvard University (BA)
Signature

Elise Marie Stefanik (born July 2, 1984) is an American politician. She has served as the U.S. representative for New York's 21st district since 2015. From 2021 to 2025, she was the Chair of the House Republican Conference. This made her the fourth-highest-ranking Republican in the House.

When she was first elected to the House in 2014, Stefanik was 30 years old. This made her the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at that time. Her district covers a large area of northern New York, including the Adirondack Mountains.

Stefanik was first elected as a moderate conservative. However, she has become more aligned with President Donald Trump over time. She strongly supported him during his first term. She opposed his first impeachment in 2019. She also supported his efforts to challenge the 2020 election results.

In December 2023, Stefanik became widely known for questioning university presidents during a hearing about antisemitism. Her questions led to the resignation of the University of Pennsylvania's president. On November 10, 2024, President-elect Trump announced that Stefanik would be nominated as the United States ambassador to the United Nations.

Early Life and Education

Elise Marie Stefanik was born in Albany, New York, on July 2, 1984. Her parents are Melanie and Kenneth Stefanik. Her family owns a business called Premium Plywood Products. This company sells plywood to other businesses.

When she was 14, Stefanik was featured in a newspaper article. She said she supported the Republican view. Stefanik later said that the September 11 attacks made her think about a career in public service.

Stefanik graduated from the Albany Academy for Girls. She then went to Harvard College and earned a degree in government in 2006. She was also elected vice president of the Harvard Institute of Politics.

Early Career in Politics

Stefanik with President George W. Bush in the Oval Office in the 2000s

After college, Stefanik worked for President George W. Bush's administration. She was part of the U.S. Domestic Policy Council. She also worked in the office of the White House chief of staff. In 2009, she started a blog called "American Maggie." It was a place to share the views of conservative and Republican women. The blog was named after British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

Stefanik helped create the Republican platform for the 2012 United States presidential election. She also managed debate preparation for Paul Ryan, who was running for vice president. After the 2012 election, she returned to New York. She joined her parents' business.

Serving in the U.S. House of Representatives

Becoming a Representative

Stefanik's first official photo as a member of Congress in 2015

In 2013, Stefanik announced she would run for the United States House of Representatives. She ran in New York's 21st district. This district had been Republican for 100 years before a Democrat won in 2009.

Stefanik won the Republican primary election in 2014. She then won the general election with 55% of the vote. At 30 years old, she became the youngest woman elected to Congress at that time.

Re-election Campaigns

• 2016 Election: Stefanik ran for re-election in 2016. She became more supportive of Donald Trump's campaign for president. She won her election with 66% of the vote.
• 2018 Election: Former ambassador John Bolton supported Stefanik's re-election. He praised her work on the House Armed Services Committee. She won with 56% of the vote.
• 2020 Election: Stefanik won her re-election against Tedra Cobb with 59% of the vote.
• 2022 Election: Stefanik defeated Matt Castelli with 59.2% of the vote.

Time in Congress

Stefanik taking the oath of office from House Speaker John Boehner in January 2015.

In January 2015, Stefanik joined the United States House Committee on Armed Services. This committee deals with military matters. She was also chosen to represent new members of Congress on a policy committee.

In 2017, Stefanik became co-chair of the Tuesday Group. This group is made up of moderate House Republicans.

Stefanik also focused on helping more Republican women get elected. She started a group called Elevate PAC (E-PAC). This group helps fund campaigns for Republican women. In the 2020 elections, 18 of the 30 women supported by E-PAC won their elections.

In 2020, Fortune magazine named Stefanik one of its "40 Under 40" in government and politics.

Stefanik with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, July 27, 2023

In May 2021, Stefanik and other House Republican leaders voted against creating a special committee. This committee would have investigated the January 6 United States Capitol attack.

Committee Work

Stefanik has served on several important committees:

• Committee on Armed Services: This committee oversees the military.
• Committee on Education and the Workforce: This committee deals with education and jobs.
• United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: This committee oversees U.S. intelligence agencies.

Becoming a Party Leader

In early 2021, some Republicans wanted to remove Liz Cheney from her leadership role. This was because Cheney disagreed with President Trump's claims about the 2020 election. Stefanik was seen as a possible replacement. On May 5, President Trump supported Stefanik for the role. On May 14, Stefanik was elected Chair of the House Republican Conference. After winning, she thanked Trump.

Hearing on Antisemitism

On December 5, 2023, Stefanik questioned the presidents of three major universities. This was during a hearing about antisemitism. The hearing happened after many anti-Israel protests on college campuses. Stefanik asked direct questions about whether calls for genocide would violate university rules.

The university presidents' answers were criticized by many. This led to the resignation of the University of Pennsylvania's president. After the hearing, a committee started an investigation into antisemitism at these universities.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations

Nomination for Ambassador

In November 2024, news outlets reported that President-elect Trump offered Stefanik the job of United States ambassador to the United Nations. On November 10, Stefanik confirmed she had accepted the position. Trump officially announced her nomination on November 11.

Stefanik will appear before the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations for her confirmation hearing. She has said she will fight antisemitism and support Israel and Taiwan. She also plans to counter China's growing influence in the U.N.

Political Views

Stefanik's political views have changed over time. She was once seen as a moderate Republican. However, she has become more conservative and supportive of Donald Trump.

COVID-19 Vaccine

Stefanik is against federal rules that would require private businesses to make their employees get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Economy

Stefanik supported the Keystone Pipeline. She also opposed cuts to the U.S. military budget.

She voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. She said the law did not protect a tax deduction that many New Yorkers rely on. In March 2021, Stefanik voted against the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. This was a large bill to help with COVID-19 relief.

Donald Trump

Stefanik has been a strong supporter of Donald Trump. She has been called a "Trump loyalist."

First Impeachment of Trump

In September 2019, Stefanik said she did not support the impeachment of President Trump. During the impeachment hearings, she became a key defender of Trump. She accused the committee chairman of making up rules to prevent Republicans from asking questions.

2020 Election Claims

After Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, Stefanik supported Trump's efforts to challenge the results. She made claims about voter fraud, which were later found to be false by fact-checkers. She also expressed concerns about voting machines. After the attack on the U.S. Capitol in January 2021, Stefanik condemned the violence. However, she did not blame Trump. She voted against accepting Pennsylvania's electoral votes. She also opposed Trump's second impeachment.

Efforts to Remove Impeachments

Stefanik has supported the idea of "expunging" both of Trump's impeachments. This means removing them from the official record. In June 2023, she introduced resolutions to do this.

Defense

Stefanik has a strong background in foreign policy. She was the only new member of Congress on the defense policy bill committee in 2015. This showed that party leaders saw her as a future Republican leader.

Environment

Stefanik criticized Trump's decision to leave the Paris climate agreement. She said it was "misguided" and "harms the ongoing effort to fight climate change." In 2017, she joined the Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus. This group works on climate change issues.

Health Care

In May 2017, Stefanik voted to repeal the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). She supported the Republican-backed American Health Care Act. She defended her vote, but her claims about the new law were disputed by fact-checkers.

She also voted for the Championing Healthy Kids Act in 2017. This bill would extend the Children's Health Insurance Program.

Immigration

Stefanik opposed Trump's 2017 executive order. This order temporarily banned travel and immigration from seven Muslim-majority countries. She did not condemn the Trump administration family separation policy. Instead, she congratulated Trump after he signed an order to stop new family separations.

In 2019, Stefanik was one of 14 Republicans who voted to override Trump's veto. The veto was about his declaration of a national emergency at the southern border. While she previously supported DACA, in 2021, Stefanik voted against the DREAM Act.

Postal Service

Stefanik was one of 26 Republicans who voted for a $25 billion relief bill for the US postal service. This happened during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Taxes

In December 2017, Stefanik voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. She said the bill did not protect the state and local tax deduction. She felt this deduction was important for families in New York.

Net Neutrality

After the Federal Communications Commission decided to end net neutrality in 2017, Stefanik urged Congress to pass a law to bring it back.

Cybersecurity

In 2018, Stefanik helped sponsor a bill called the Cyber Ready Workforce Act. This bill would create a program to train people in cybersecurity. It aims to increase the number of workers for federal jobs in this field.

LGBT Rights

In the 116th Congress, Stefanik was one of eight Republicans to vote for the Equality Act. This act would prohibit discrimination against LGBT people. Later, she introduced a different bill called The Fairness for All Act. This bill would also protect LGBT people from discrimination but would include exceptions for religious groups. In 2021, she voted against the Equality Act.

In 2015, Stefanik was one of 60 Republicans who voted to support President Barack Obama's order. This order banned federal contractors from discriminating based on sexual orientation or gender identity. In 2022, Stefanik was one of 47 Republican representatives who voted for the Respect for Marriage Act. This act would protect the right to same-sex marriage in federal law.

Voting Rights

Stefanik opposes the For the People Act. She made a false claim that the law would "prevent removal of ineligible voters from registration rolls." Fact-checkers rated this claim as false.

Women in Politics

Stefanik has always supported empowering women in the Republican Party. She has worked to help more women get elected. After her election in 2014, Stefanik said that Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg influenced her decision to run for Congress.

Electoral History

Personal Life

After the 2012 election, Stefanik bought a home in Willsboro, New York. Her parents had owned a vacation home there for many years.

Her father's family is from Poland. Stefanik keeps the Polish tradition of cooking pierogis on Christmas Eve. She makes them stuffed with sauerkraut and cheese.

On August 19, 2017, Stefanik married Matthew Manda in Saratoga Springs, New York. Matthew works in marketing and communications. They moved to Schuylerville in December 2018. As of 2022, Matthew works for the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Elise and Matthew have one child, Samuel Albritton, who was born in 2021.

Images for kids

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  Stefanik with Defense Secretary Ash Carter in 2015

See also

In Spanish: Elise Stefanik para niños

• Women in the United States House of Representatives
• List of United States representatives from New York