Rep. Elisa Stefanik, R-N.Y., applauds on the first day of 2024 Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum, Monday, July 15, 2024, in Milwaukee. (AP photo — Carolyn Kaster)

Rep. Elise Stefanik said her decision to stay in the House, abandoning a push to become the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, was driven by a decision to protect the Trump administration from the “woke left” and ensure that Congress is able to continue Trump’s work.

Stefanik was selected in November as the Trump administration’s choice to be the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, but her confirmation was repeatedly delayed as Republicans grappled with a small margin of majority in the House. On Thursday, the White House asked her to withdraw from the nomination, and she complied.

Stefanik and her team did not comment widely on the withdrawal Thursday, but she appeared on the Hannity program on the Fox News channel. She took brief, largely friendly questions from Kayleigh McEnany, a former Trump White House spokesperson who now serves as a cable news commentator.

In her interview, Stefanik and her interviewer pointed to the tight margin of majority the Republicans have in the House. Stefanik said she was initially chosen for the ambassadorship because of her many notable moments supporting the Trump administration in the House.

“This goes back to fighting against the witch hunt impeachment, this goes back to being the first member of Congress who endorsed him, as well as leading the charge in so many ways to combat antisemitism, which of course he is taking action on today,” she said.

Stefanik had been on track to bring a new approach to the U.N., championing a pro-Israel message and standing in unequivocal support of Israel. She painted her decision to step back from the U.N. ambassadorship as a move to support Trump.

“I have been proud to be a team player — the president knows that. He and I had multiple conversations today, and we are committed to delivering results on behalf of the American people,” she said.

Stefanik pointed to efforts from New York’s Democrats to change the terms of the special election to replace her. Most political watchers expected the seat to go to a Republican, but Democrats floated a potential change in the timeline for state special elections that would have pushed the run to replace her at least a month later than current law requires. That effort was abandoned by the start of March, but Stefanik still blamed Democrats in her interview Thursday.

“(Gov.) Kathy Hochul started threatening to move the ball on election day, you see a highly politicized radical left trying to do everything they can to defeat the president,” Stefanik said.

Republicans have raised specific concerns over the potential for their party to pass a reconciliation budget bill to continue the federal budget. Reconciliation bills are overall easier to complete than regular budget bills, which the GOP has found difficult to secure outright support for this year. Stefanik seemed to give credit to those concerns on Thursday, saying that her presence in the House will allow the party to pass a reconciliation bill that will include a number of Trump priorities.

“It’s tough to count these votes, but we’re gonna continue to defeat these political prognosticators and deliver victory on behalf of President Trump,” she said.

In his statement announcing he had asked Stefanik to step aside, Trump said she would reenter congressional leadership for Republicans. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said the same thing in his own statement. When asked by McEnany, Stefanik didn’t say what role she would take up in her continued position in Congress.

She did say she would be more vocal and opinionated than she has in recent months, acknowledging she had toned down her rhetoric in pursuit of the advanced position.

“Because I’m not pending confirmation, the American people will be hearing a lot more from me, because you’re limited in what you can say when you’re pending confirmation,” she said.

Trump left the door open to putting Stefanik into a new position in his Cabinet, saying in a social media post that he hoped to welcome Stefanik into his administration at a future date. Stefanik on Thursday dodged a question about what role she could fill in the future.

“The president is going to continue to deliver just incredible results,” she said in response to the question.