OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
In New York’s 3rd Congressional District, which the disgraced former GOP Rep. George Santos previously represented, Democrats went all-in to flip the seat.
Republicans Mazi Pilip, a lower-profile legislator from Nassau County, and former Representative Tom Suozzi, a well-known Democrat in the area who previously represented the district before quitting to run for governor in 2022, ran a close race against one another.
Suozzi has been declared the winner, allowing Democrats to pick up a seat in the U.S. House.
The race on Long Island drew millions of dollars and prominent New York politicians, which experts said is a key battleground for the House’s control later this year and a gauge for messaging on immigration, crime, and other issues.
Decision Desk HQ projects Tom Suozzi wins the special election for New York’s 3rd congressional district.#DecisionMade: 9:58pm ET
Follow more results here: https://t.co/o9p36jtIuF pic.twitter.com/pFZGG51Cek
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) February 14, 2024
Former Democratic Rep. Tom Suozzi and Republican Nassau County legislator Mazi Pilip are facing off Tuesday in the special election to finish the term of former GOP Rep. George Santos. https://t.co/jWNILu11lB
— CBS News (@CBSNews) February 14, 2024
In early December, Republican Rep. George Santos of New York was expelled from the U.S. House of Representatives.
With a vote of 311 to 114, the House went above and beyond the two-thirds necessary to remove the indicted Republican from office in New York. There were two abstentions and two present votes among Democrats in favor of the measure, while 104 Republicans were in favor of it.
House Ethics Committee Chairman Michael Guest (R-Miss.) sponsored the expulsion bill after his panel released a report that found “significant evidence” of Santos’ criminal wrongdoing, Politico reported.
As the vote came to a close, the Republican from New York told reporters: “It’s over. They have just established a harmful new standard for themselves. Additional comment was declined by him.
“As unofficially already no longer a member of Congress, I no longer have to answer a single question. That is the one thing that I’m going to take forever,” Santos said.
Even though all four top GOP House leaders opposed the measure at the last minute, which weakened Republican support for the measure, the motion still passed with a comfortable margin.
In an explosive report, Guest’s panel found Santos’ conduct “beneath the dignity of the office and to have brought severe discredit upon the House” and that there was “significant evidence” of Santos’ criminal wrongdoing. Following the release of this report, Guest introduced the motion.
🚨 #BREAKING: George Santos has officially been EXPELLED from the House of Representatives pic.twitter.com/3GBqUDQurZ
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) December 1, 2023
In November, Santos announced that he won’t seek reelection following the release of a highly damning House Ethics Committee finding involving potential criminal behavior.
According to Fox News, the chairman of the committee said he planned to move to expel Santos, accusing him of having “used campaign funds for personal purposes” and “engaged in fraudulent conduct,” among other allegations.
“Chairman Guest feels that the evidence uncovered in the Committee’s investigation is more than sufficient to warrant punishment and that the most appropriate punishment is expulsion,” Republican Mississippi Rep. Michael Guest’s office told Fox News.
Santos “knowingly caused his campaign committee to file false or incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission; used campaign funds for personal purposes; engaged in fraudulent conduct in connection with RedStone Strategies LLC; and knew and willfully violated the Ethics in Government Act as it related to his Financial Disclosure (FD) Statements filed with the House.” This was agreed upon by the bipartisan subcommittee.
The panel found that includes $50,000 in campaign donations wired to the congressman’s personal account on Oct. 21, 2022, that was allegedly used, among other things, to “pay down personal credit card bills and other debt; make a $4,127.80 purchase at Hermes; and for smaller purchases at OnlyFans; Sephora; and for meals and for parking.”
That includes $50,000 in campaign donations that were wired to Santos’ personal account on Oct. 21, 2022, and allegedly used to, among other things, “pay down personal credit card bills and other debt; make a $4,127.80 purchase at Hermes; and for smaller purchases at OnlyFans; Sephora; and for meals and for parking.”
BREAKING: New York Republican Congressman George Santos announces that he will NOT run for re-election in 2024. pic.twitter.com/1HGvwE4XBd
— Proud Elephant 🇺🇸🦅 (@ProudElephantUS) November 16, 2023
The GOP lawmaker also reportedly spent more than $2,200 at Atlantic City, N.J., resorts between July 23, 2022, and July 24, 2022, though a staffer told the subcommittee that “he was not aware of any events in Atlantic City and did not attend any campaign events in Atlantic City.”
“Likewise, in the same month, the campaign spent $1,400 at Virtual Skin Spa in Jericho, New York, a full-service medical spa based in Long Island that performs cosmetic procedures such as Botox, micro-needling, and facials,” the report added.
