The rumor that was floating around social media on Thursday that the Trump administration was considering pulling the nomination of Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations are true. It's not that Stefanik has done anything to jeopardize her nomination or gotten on the wrong side of the president, it's that Republicans cannot afford to lose her seat in the House.
President Trump made the announcement on Truth Social, saying he had asked Stefanik to remain in the House of Representatives to help enact his legislative agenda.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) March 27, 2025
As we advance our America First Agenda, it is essential that we maintain EVERY Republican Seat in Congress. We must be unified to accomplish our Mission, and Elise Stefanik has been a vital part of our efforts from the very beginning. I have asked Elise, as one of my biggest Allies, to remain in Congress to help me deliver Historic Tax Cuts, GREAT Jobs, Record Economic Growth, a Secure Border, Energy Dominance, Peace Through Strength, and much more, so we can MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. With a very tight Majority, I don’t want to take a chance on anyone else running for Elise’s seat. The people love Elise and, with her, we have nothing to worry about come Election Day. 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. Speaker Johnson is thrilled! I look forward to the day when Elise is able to join my Administration in the future. She is absolutely FANTASTIC. Thank you Elise!
How did we get here?
First, the numbers, which were never all that great for Republicans. The GOP entered the 119th Congress with a majority of the slimmest of margins -- the GOP had 218 seats to the Democrat Party's 215. Republicans had one vacancy at the time following the resignation of former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who was President Trump's first pick to become Attorney General; Gaetz later withdrew his nomination, also deciding against taking his seat in the House. It didn't seem like a big deal because Trump won Gaetz's district, Florida's 1st Congressional District (FL-1), by nearly 40 percent.
MORE: Is It Time to Hit the Panic Button on the Special Election in FL-6?
Then in January, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL) resigned his seat in Florida's 6th Congressional District (FL-6) to become national security advisor to the president, narrowing the GOP's majority even further. Again, this looked like a safe gamble due to the fact that Trump won Waltz's district by 30 percent. But, alarm bells are now ringing as the GOP candidate in the special election to replace Waltz is losing badly in the fundraising stakes, and early voting numbers seem weak.
Senate Republicans have been slow-walking Stefanik's nomination precisely because no one could be completely sure the special elections to replace Gaetz and Waltz would go their way.
Scoop: Elise Stefanik's nomination for UN ambassador is in jeopardy as pressure mounts for her to back away from the UN ambassador position, partly because Republicans hold a small majority in the US House. There are discussions being held this morning about whether she should…
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) March 27, 2025
There are discussions being held this morning about whether she should pull her nomination as soon as today, sources told @gabrielle_ake and me.
Raiding the House to fill top administration positions came at the risk of shrinking the Republicans' majority in the House, but more alarm bells sounded as a special election earlier this week in Pennsylvania signaled electoral problems in supposedly "safe" Trump districts.
In a surprising development, a Democrat won the special election to fill now-Sen. Dave McCormick's seat in the PA state senate. This is great news for the Democrat Party, which is looking for any way to stop its current free fall, as the area leans Republican. Along with the news out of FL-6, the GOP is staring down an even narrower majority in the U.S. House of Representatives.
This has got to be a blow to Elise Stefanik, a Trump loyalist whose star was on the rise after climbing through the ranks of the Republican conference. She knows her chief job is to protect the majority, and she's taking one for the team to make sure that happens.
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