Your example does work for me. However, the difference is that I need for column 2 to show the elides and column 4 to be hidden. What I'm doing is more:

Qt Code: 
  1. #include <QtGui>
  2.  
  3. int main(int argc, char *argv[])
  4. {
  5.     QApplication a(argc, argv);
  6.  
  8.     model.setStringList(QStringList() << "Very very long line of text"
  9.                         << "Very very long line of text"
  10.                         << "short text"
  11.                         << "short text");
  12.  
  13.     QTableView view;
  14.     view.setModel(&model);
  15.     view.horizontalHeader()->setResizeMode( 0, QHeaderView::Interactive);
  16.     view.horizontalHeader()->setResizeMode( 1, QHeaderView::Stretch );
  17.     view.setSectionHidden( 2, true );
  18.     view.setSectionHidden( 3, true );
  19.     view.show();
  20.  
  21.     return a.exec();
  22. }
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For me this approach (I'm using c++ not python) the table view INSISTS on wrapping the contents of the column. If I don't stretch the second column, the text is still wrapped, but the user can resize the column. However, it has a huge block of dead space. ( there is a reason that those columns are hidden. )

It's looking like my only option is to handle the elide myself, in the column's delegate.