Harvard University announced on Tuesday that it has taken action against US Representative Elise Stefanik after her comments further incensed baseless voter fraud accusations.
Harvard Kennedy School Dean Douglas Elmendorf decided to remove Stefanik from the Senior Advisory Committee of the school’s Institute of Politics when she declined to resign from her post voluntarily.
Petitions from students and alumni urged the university to cut ties with the 2006 Harvard graduate due to her continuous objections to the presidential election results, especially after the violent insurrection that took place at the US Capitol.
Elmendorf clarified that the decision was not based on Harvard’s political ideology, nor was it a consequence of Stefanik’s choice of president. In a statement released on Tuesday, the dean explained that it was baseless accusations against the elections that pushed Harvard to act.
“In my assessment, Elise has made public assertions about voter fraud in November’s presidential election that have no basis in evidence, and she has made public statements about court actions related to the election that are incorrect,” the statement read.
Badge of Honor
The US representative released an official statement stating that such actions were expected since being boycotted, protested, and canceled by US colleges and universities was a “rite of passage and badge of honor” for a conservative Republican.
Stefanik described the Harvard administration’s decision as bowing to the Democrats. Such practices can lead to a culture of fear for students she asserted, seeing as a conservative viewpoint will be silenced.
“The decision by Harvard’s administration to cower and cave to the woke Left will continue to erode diversity of thought, public discourse, and ultimately the student experience,” she wrote.
Stefanik was among the 147 Republicans who opposed the certification of Joe Biden’s victory in the election. While she denounced the riot at Capitol Hill, the Republican congresswoman continued to protest against voting irregularities and fraud.
“Tens of millions of Americans are concerned that the 2020 election featured unconstitutional overreach by unelected state officials and judges ignoring state election laws. We can and we should peacefully discuss these concerns,” she said.
Despite the criticism, Stefanik has been reelected to a fourth term and promised to continue doing her best. “I earned the highest number of votes of any congressional candidate in the history of the North Country. I’m going to continue to work my very hardest,” she told WCAX.