The U.S. House of Representatives voted this morning to expel New York Republican Congressman George Santos. The vote was 311 in favor and 114 against. A two-thirds vote was needed in order for the resolution to expel Santos to pass. Santos is now required to be out of his office on Capitol Hill by the end of the business day. The seat formerly held by Santos will remain vacant at least in the short-term.
Under state law, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has 10 days in which to call for a special election to fill the vacancy. Hochul is not empowered to appoint a replacement for Santos. The election would be scheduled no later than about 80 days after Hochul calls for it to be held.
Shortly after the House voted to expel Santos, Hochul issued the following brief statement:
“I am prepared to undertake the solemn responsibility of filling the vacancy in New York’s 3rd District by scheduling a special election. The people of Long Island and Queens deserve nothing less.”
Political parties in the Congressional District would select candidates to run on their respective party lines in the special election.
New York State Conservative Party Chairman Gerard Kassar reacted to the expulsion by saying, “A stain on Congress has been cleansed. Good riddance, Mr. Santos. Let the special election process begin.”
House Speaker Mike Johnson brought the expulsion resolution to the House floor.
This was the third attempt to oust Santos. House Speaker Mike Johnson said that House members should vote their conscience but he expressed doubts that Santos should be expelled because he has not been convicted of a crime in court. The House Ethics Committee investigated and concluded that Santos had not only committed ethical violations but engaged in enough possibly criminal behavior for it to recommend that the Justice Department consider filing additional criminal charges. Santos already is under federal indictment and has pleaded not guilty to charges of stealing from campaign contributors and using campaign funds for his personal expenses. Santos currently faces 23 federal charges.
Santos had fabricated just about everything on his resume, ranging from past employment to education.
The expulsion of Santos marks only the sixth time in U.S. history that a Congressman has been expelled from the House. In 2002, the House voted to expel Democrat James Traficant of Ohio who had been found guilty in court of federal corruption charges. In 1980, Democrat Michael Myers was expelled after being convicted of bribery in the ABSCAM scandal. Before that, the previous four expulsions were because the House members had sided with the Confederacy in the Civil War.
