George Santos’ short and strange congressional career came to an abrupt end Friday morning, when the House of Representatives voted 311-114 to expel him from the chamber.
Santos, who has represented his constituents in Nassau County and Queens for less than 11 months, left the Capitol when his fate became clear and jumped into a waiting car.
Below, The Post explains where Congress, voters and Santos himself go from here.
How rare is removal from the House of Representatives?
The House began working on April 1, 1789, 234 years ago. In that time it has fired only six members – and only three since the Civil War.
The first three lawmakers to get the boot — Missouri Democrats John Bullock Clark and John William Reid and Kentucky Democrat Henry Cornelius Burnett — were expelled for leading Confederate regiments against Union troops in 1861, although Reid technically resigned four months before his expulsion. . .
Former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) departed the US Capitol. Rod Lamkey – CNP
After the war, the House did not expel another member until 1980, when Rep. Michael Myers (D-Pa.) was impeached after he was caught on hidden video accepting a $50,000 bribe from an undercover FBI agent as part of the bureau’s Abscam corruption investigation.
A little more than two decades later, a corruption case indicted another House Democrat, James Traficant of Ohio, who was ousted in July 2002 after being convicted three months earlier of bribery, racketeering and tax evasion.
Which brings us to Santos, who is awaiting trial on nearly two dozen federal charges including campaign finance fraud, embezzlement and lying to Congress.
With Friday’s vote, the 35-year-old has earned the dubious distinction of being the first Republican House member to be ousted.
Santos held office for less than a year. Getty Images
When might there be a vote to replace Santos?
Under New York state law, Governor Kathy Hochul has 10 days to announce the date of a special election to replace Santos.
The election must be held within 70 to 80 days of its announcement — setting a special vote before the end of February.
“I am ready to take on the full responsibility of filling the vacancy in New York’s 3rd District,” Hochul said in a statement at X following Santos’ ouster. “Long Islanders deserve nothing less.”
Who might replace Santos in Congress?
Santos announced earlier this month he would not seek a second term in 2024, but his sordid past means he has no shortage of challengers.
On the Republican side, Bayside small business owner Daniel Norber, retired NYPD detective Mike Sapraicone, and Afghanistan war veteran and former JP Morgan vice president Kellen Curry are among those challenging for the seat.
Sources told The Post Friday that Nassau County Republican Committee Chairman Joseph Cairo is considering other candidates to run for the special election.
The top two contenders are Nassau County legislator Mazi Pilip — an Ethiopian-Israeli American who is a veteran of the Israel Defense Forces — and State Senator Jack Martins.
Contenders on the Democratic side include former state Sen. Anna Kaplan, whom Martins unseated in 2022; Nassau County Legislator Josh Lafazan; Professor University of St. John William Murphy and activist Zak Malamed.
However, Democratic insiders with ties to the district told The Post that former Rep. Tom Suozzi, who has represented the district for six years, is favored to win the party’s nod.
Suozzi, 61, gave up his seat in 2022 to mount an ill-fated primary challenge to Hochul, a move that helped pave the way for Santos to win the seat — and angered some Democrats.
However, the source said Hochul would not intervene to board Suozzi’s submarine if he was considered the strongest candidate.
“Tom is a known quantity, a known vote-getter,” the source explained. “[House Minority Leader]”Hakeem [Jeffries] and [Queens Democratic Party Chairman Gregory Meeks] have a good relationship with Tom. I don’t see why they would go the other way.”
The race in New York’s 3rd District is expected to be one of the tightest in next year’s cycle. Santos defeated Democrat Robert Zimmerman by 7.5 percentage points in 2022, but the Cook Political Report rates the district’s Partisan Voting Index in favor of Democrats.
Santos will face trial next September. AFP via Getty Images
What’s next for the House?
Santos’ removal means the Republican majority has shrunk by one.
With 434 members, the House now has 221 Republicans and 213 Democrats, creating a headache for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) — who was only able to lose three GOP votes and pass the bill along party lines. (The tie vote failed in the House.)
Johnson’s headache could worsen if Democrats win a special election, giving them another seat by the time the deadline to avoid a partial government shutdown looms.
What’s next for Santos?
The former congressman now has almost a full year to prepare his defense before his federal trial in the Eastern District of New York begins on September 9, 2024.
Santos will face an uphill battle to avoid conviction after two of his allies – former campaign treasurer Nancy Marks and former fundraiser Samuel Miele – pleaded guilty to related charges in the case.
Marks pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud, telling authorities he and Santos falsified financial reports to say he loaned his own campaign $500,000 to lure potential donors.
Marks also said in a prepared statement that he had provided the Federal Election Commission with a false list of people who had allegedly given money to the campaign, but had not actually done so.
Miele pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud after defrauding donors by posing as a top aide to former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in calls and emails.
Santos was initially charged in May with a dozen federal charges alleging false statements, money laundering, fraud and theft – including allegations that he embezzled $50,000 in campaign funds to buy designer clothes and pay personal expenses.
Federal prosecutors allege the scandal-plagued Santos also cheated on COVID unemployment benefits and lied to Congress on financial disclosure forms in which he claimed to be a millionaire.
With a report by Carl Campanile
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
