Elise Stefanik, Donald Trump’s new pick for UN envoy, supports his attacks on trans people

November 14 2024, 08:15

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. While she entered the House of Representatives in 2015 as a moderate, she has increasingly supported Trump and also Republican policies against transgender people.

Stefanik has little foreign policy experience and will echo Trump’s isolationist and pro-Israel stances at the U.N., having said, “America continues to be the beacon of the world, but we expect and must demand that our friends and allies be strong partners in the peace we seek.” Her somewhat mixed LGBTQ+ rights record implies she’ll be no friend to LGBTQ+ people while serving in the U.N.

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Elise Stefanik at a glance

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Location: Schuylerville, New York
Party Affiliation: Republican
Race/Ethnicity: Czech/Italian-American
Gender Identity: Female
Orientation: Heterosexual
Pronouns: She/her/hers
LGBTQ+ Ally: Somewhat

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Elise Stefanik’s stance on LGBTQ+ issues

Same-sex marriage

In 2022, Stefanik was among 47 House Republicans who voted with Democrats to help pass the Respect for Marriage Act, a law that requires federal and state governments to recognize same-sex unions.

Trans children in sports

In April 2023, she voted in support of a bill that would require federally supported schools and colleges to ban trans athletes from playing sports.

Transgender access to public bathrooms

Stefanik encouraged her supporters to vote against New York’s Proposition 1, known as the Equal Rights Amendment, which would explicitly include LGBTQ+ people in the rights and protections listed in the New York State Bill of Rights.

“Prop 1 would change New York’s Constitution, allowing biological boys in girl’s restrooms in public schools,” Stefanik wrote. The amendment was passed with 61.9% of state voters supporting it.

Don’t say gay/LGBTQ+ discussions in schools

Stefanik has voiced support for the so-called Parents’ Bill of Rights, a bill that would out trans kids to their potentially unsupportive parents and would also require schools to list all library books and curricula online. Its provisions are similar to those sought by other “parent’s rights” advocates who support anti-LGBTQ+ “Don’t say gay” laws in schools nationwide.

She has also proposed a bill to prevent schools run by the Department of Defense from using trans-inclusive personal pronouns or keeping students’ gender identities confidential from parents.

Gender-affirming care for trans youth

In September, she spoke at a campaign event for now-President-elect Donald Trump supporting his pledge to ban gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

Discrimination protections

In 2016, she voted to add a provision to the National Defense Authorization Act that would allow anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination in all federal agencies.

In 2019, was one of eight Republicans who voted in favor of the Equality Act, a law that would add sexual orientation and gender identity to federal anti-discrimination laws. However, in 2021, she voted against it even though the bill’s text hadn’t substantially changed.

In February 2021, she co-sponsored the Fairness for All Act, a law that sought to simultaneously prohibit discrimination against gender identity and sexual orientation while allowing exemptions for religious organizations and service providers to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. She withdrew her support for the bill one year later after religious and conservative groups criticized it for acknowledging the existence of trans people.

Other LGBTQ+ issues

In May 2022, she accused Democrats of being pedophiles in a social media post about the national shortage of baby formula following the COVID-19 supply chain issues. Her use of the slur echoes that of other Republicans who accuse their opponents, LGBTQ+ people, and allies of grooming children for sexual abuse.

The White House, House Dems, & usual pedo grifters are so out of touch with the American people that rather than present ANY PLAN or urgency to address the nationwide baby formula crisis, they double down on sending pallets of formula to the southern border. Joe Biden has NO PLAN
— Elise Stefanik (@EliseStefanik) May 13, 2022

Stefanik’s career

Graduated Harvard College in 2006 with a Bachelor of Arts in Government
Worked from 2006-2009 in President George W. Bush’s Domestic Policy Council staff and the chief of staff’s office
Served in 2012 as an aide to U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI)
Elected in 2015 to serve as New York’s U.S. Representative
Appointed in 2015 to the House Armed Services Committee
Won re-election in 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024
Elected in 2021 to serve as House Republican Conference chair
Appointed in 2024 to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations

A mixed past but an ugly future

Stefanik was the youngest woman ever elected to Congress when she began in 2015. She voted against Trump’s 2017 tax cuts for the wealthy, his pulling out of the Paris climate agreement, his Muslim travel ban, and the FCC’s removal of net neutrality. However, she voted to repeal Obamacare, threatening healthcare access for millions of Americans.

Stefanik has since become an ardent supporter of Trump and his right-wing policies. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA), who serves alongside Stefanik on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, called her U.N. appointment “a gift to [Russian President] Vladamir Putin” as she opposes U.S. funding to help Ukraine fight off Russia’s ongoing invasion and supports Israel’s continued attacks on Palestinian civilians.

While serving as the House Republican Conference chairperson, she has published ads echoing the so-called “Great Replacement Theory,” an antisemitic conspiracy theory that Democrats are allowing undocumented immigrants into the U.S. to outvote and silence Republican voters. This theory has been cited by numerous white supremacists and mass shooters who have targeted communities of color.

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