New York Rep. George Santos’ (R) political future could be in the hands of voters now that a second attempt to oust him has failed. This attempt, incited by Republicans, was quickly opposed as 31 Democrats joined 182 Republicans in voting to keep George Santos in Congress.
Texas Reps. Colin Allred (D), Henry Cuellar (D), and Lizzie Fletcher (D) are among the Democrats that joined Republicans in keeping Santos in Congress.
The final vote was 213-179-19 against the resolution to boot Santos from Congress. A two-thirds threshold is necessary to oust a member of Congress, and this is the second effort against Santos that doesn’t receive the needed support. This effort was led by New York Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R), a fellow first-term Rep.
Though the majority of Republicans voted to keep Santos in Congress, 24 Republicans joined 155 Democrats in voting to kick him out.
With the results tallied, Democrats are now sharing their reasons for having voted to keep Santos in Congress.
Allred released a statement on social media, explaining that “there is not a member of the House of Representatives who is less deserving of our respect than George Santos,” citing that Santos “was elected on a platform of dishonesty and has repeatedly been exposed as a fraud.” However, Allred warns “that voting to expel a member without due process being fully carried out, whether that is the pending House Ethics investigation that will conclude shortly or the multiple criminal indictments against him, would set a dangerous precedent.”
“Once these processes have run their course and he is found guilty of these charges, I will vote to expel him,” Allred concluded.
The Ethics Committee is scheduled to present its finding in two weeks, which will also come with renewed efforts to expulse Santos.
Santos faces 23 federal charges as well as a September 2024 trial start date.
