The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Stefanik echoed racist theory allegedly espoused by Buffalo suspect

The No. 3 House Republican ran Facebook ads parroting the ‘great replacement’ claims, illustrating the radical turn taken by an increasing number of GOP lawmakers

By
Updated May 16, 2022 at 4:07 p.m. EDT|Published May 15, 2022 at 6:24 p.m. EDT
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) disembarks a U.S. Border Patrol air boat on a tour of the U.S.-Mexico border in Eagle Pass, Tex., in April. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)
8 min

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), the No. 3 House Republican, and other GOP lawmakers came under scrutiny Sunday for previously echoing the racist “great replacement” theory that apparently inspired an 18-year-old who allegedly killed 10 people while targeting Black people at a supermarket in Buffalo.

The baseless conspiracy theory claims that politicians are attempting to wipe out White Americans and their influence by replacing them with non-White immigrants. The theory was cited repeatedly by 18-year-old shooting suspect Payton Gendron in an online document that appeared to have outlined his intention to carry out his planned attack in Buffalo because of its significant population of Black people.