January 2, 2022 by Nicole Neuman
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WWNY) – “What are your ambitions moving into midterms?” asked 7 News’ Washington D.C. Correspondent Nicole Neuman.
“I think we want to build off of the success of the 2020 election,” said Elise Stefanik.
Are Republican women the key to winning back the majority in Congress in 2022?
“These are the GOP women that will lead the way,” said Stefanik.
n November, GOP House Conference Chair Elise Stefanik introduced the first round of E-PAC endorsed candidates for the midterm elections.
E-PAC, which was founded by Stefanik in 2018, is a political action committee that promotes Republican women for office.
Stefanik says more than 200 women have filed to run.
“We’re seeing the highest number ever of Republican women who have filed to run for Congress, and I want our number to continue to increase,” said Stefanik.
Stefanik says “11 out of 15″ seats that flipped to red in 2020 were won by E-PAC endorsed Republican women.
To put this in a clearer perspective, according to the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University, there are 120 women in the current House of Representatives.
That breaks down to 89 Democrats and 31 Republicans.
It’s a change from 2019, when there were 89 Democrats and 13 Republicans.
“So, it depends on the state, but I do think it’s an opportunity,” said Stefanik.
The Illinois seat being vacated by Democratic Congresswoman Cheri Bustos is one of the seats Stefanik is hoping to flip in 2022.
“I’m running in the Illinois 17th Congressional district,” said Esther Joy King.
Esther Joy King, endorsed by E-PAC, plans on running a second campaign to vie for the seat after her first attempt failed in 2020.
“I get to be part of a movement. It’s not about me. It’s about taking our voice back as Midwesterners,” said King.
Stefanik anticipates at least two more rounds of E-PAC endorsed candidates will be announced before the November election.
To date, according to its website, E-PAC has raised more than $3 million.
Read the full article here.
