JOHNSTOWN — Republican U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik of the 21st Congressional District on Tuesday was returned to Congress for a fourth, two-year term, defeating Democratic Canton civic leader Tedra Cobb by a nearly two to one ratio.
For Cobb, it was her second consecutive Congressional defeat at the hands of Stefanik, who had been endorsed by President Donald Trump.
According to unofficial votes from the state Board of Elections, Stefanik was re-elected in the 12-county 21st Congressional District by a count of 164,938 to 91,233. Stefanik beat Cobb by roughly 64 percent to 35.1 percent.
Stefanik and Cobb couldn’t be reached for comment this morning.
The Willboro resident did very well in Republican-dominant Fulton County, winning 13,250 to 4,254. That was a 73.6 percent to 23.6 percent victory over Cobb.
In Hamilton County, Stefanik also enjoyed a 1,986 to 809 victory; translating to a 69.8 to 28.4 percent win.
New York State District 21 absentee ballots requested and sent out by Tuesday were 68,164. District 21 absentee ballots received as of Tuesday were 55,722.
Stefanik, the 36-year-old incumbent, has served in Congress since 2015.
Cobb, 53, has worked as a consultant and educator and served as a St. Lawrence County legislator from 2002 to 2010.
Stefanik has been serving as the U.S. Representative for New York’s 21st Congressional district since 2015. First elected at the age of 30, she was the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the time.
The Albany native entered Harvard University, graduating in 2006 with a B.A. in government. While at Harvard, she was awarded the Women’s Leadership Award. After graduating from Harvard, she joined the administration of President George W. Bush, working as staff to the Domestic Policy Council.
Stefanik also worked in the office of the White House Chief of Staff for Joshua Bolten, Bush’s second deputy chief of staff. She has worked as communications director for the Foreign Policy Initiative and as the policy director for former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty during his 2012 presidential campaign.
Stefanik managed Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan’s debate preparation as he ran for vice president of the United States in the 2012 general election. Following the Romney-Ryan loss in the 2012 presidential election, she returned to upstate New York to join her parents’ wholesale plywood business, located in Guilderland Center.
In January 2015, Stefanik was appointed to the House Armed Services Committee. She was elected by the freshman Representatives in the 114th Congress to serve as the Freshman Representative to the Policy Committee.
In February 2015, she was appointed vice chairwoman of the House Armed Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Readiness.
Stefanik has served as a member of the Republican Main Street Partnership[27] and the Climate Solutions Caucus.
She successfully led the New York State delegation in saving Fort Drum from up to 16,000 military personnel cuts due to sequestration.
Stefanik authored the Be Open Act – legislation that passed the House of Representatives and was signed into law by the president. This was the largest fix to Obamacare of the 114th Congress and repealed the auto-enrollment mandate that reduces choices in health coverage and has created confusion that can lead to significant tax penalties on both the employer and employee.
She authored the Flexible Pell Grant for 21st Century Students Act — bipartisan legislation developed from her higher education roundtables that will help students complete a postsecondary education quickly and at a lower cost.
Stefanik helped pass the Bipartisan Budget Act — a two year budget agreement that lifted the devastating defense sequester cuts and put an end to crisis-to-crisis governing.
She was the sole freshman negotiator for two consecutive years on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and fought hard to include language to help protect and strengthen Fort Drum.
She co-authored U.S./Canadian pre-clearance legislation that passed the House of Representatives in 2016 and will help grow North Country commerce, tourism and border security.
Stefanik brought a new commitment to transparency to Congress, posting her legislative votes to Facebook and keeping her website updated with her legislative work and public schedule.
She has worked hard on behalf of North Country veterans, helping to recover hard earned benefits from the VA and helping pass critical legislation to support our North Country heroes, including the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act.
She helped pass the 21st Century Cures Act — critical, bipartisan legislation designed to help accelerate the discovery, development, and delivery of promising new treatments and cures for patients with diseases ranging from Alzheimer’s to Lyme.
Michael Anich covers Johnstown and Fulton County news. He can be reached at [email protected]
