First on FOX: House GOP Conference chairwoman Elise Stefanik took another step on Tuesday to bolster the roster of Republican women in Congress by endorsing four candidates in battlegrounds.
Stefanik, a New York Republican and rising star, told Fox News Digital the endorsements were the latest in a series by Elevate PAC, political action committee.
“From Virginia to Colorado to Illinois to New Jersey, these four women are proven conservative fighters in their communities and well on their way to flipping key battlegrounds from blue to red,” said Stefanik. “Thanks to E-PAC’s historic efforts, we went from having 13 Republican women in Congress to 35 serving today—the highest number ever in our nation’s history.”
The 28 candidates who have now received Stefanik’s endorsement come from a wide array of backgrounds and states.
Some — including Sue Kiley in New Jersey, Barbara Kirkmeyer in Colorado and Yesli Vega in Virginia — are local elected officials vying to move up to Congress. Others, like Regan Deering, a small business owner running for a Democratic-leaning central Illinois district, are first-time candidates.
Each of the four women is running for a seat that is either currently held by a Democrat or was won by President Biden in 2020. Stefanik says the path for Republicans to retake control of Congress runs directly through such districts.
In 2020, 11 out of the 15 seats that flipped from red to blue were won by women candidates, many of whom were backed by Stefanik’s group.
“E-PAC’s Rising Star GOP women this cycle are prepared to grow our ranks even more and make no mistake, they are leading the charge to flip the House and fire [Speaker Nancy] Pelosi once and for all,” she said.
Stefanik’s endorsement comes with a $10,000 contribution from E-PAC to each of the candidates. The contribution is made possible by Stefanik’s strong fundraising prowess.
Since founding the PAC, Stefanik has donated more than $4 million to female GOP candidates. This cycle alone, Stefanik has contributed more than $1 million to bolster the ranks of women Republicans in Congress.
“The chairwoman continues to make history with E-PAC and I look forward to joining this year’s class of majority makers,” said Deering, the Illinois Republican. “I am proud to have earned this endorsement in my race.”
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