Darren Halstead, Unsplash.
New York Rep. George Santos managed to avoid expulsion from his position in a House vote on Wednesday. The vote came down to 179 for expelling Santos and 213 against, which included 31 Democrats and a majority of Republicans against removing Santos from his position at this time.
The resolution required a two-thirds majority to pass.
This comes after the House voted to send an expulsion resolution to the Ethics Committee back in May. The committee is set to reveal its “next course of action” as a result of the investigation by Nov. 17. However, this particular vote, led by fellow Republican New York representatives, was the first true attempt to “rally the troops” and remove Santos from his post.
Santos has been in the limelight since he started his post, especially once he admitted to “embellishing his resume” last year. He also emphasized in an interview with WABC Radio in December 2022 that he “is no criminal, and has no record.” However, he has been in legal trouble for months.
The vote results mark a temporary reprieve for the disgraced representative facing criminal charges, including charging donor credit cards without their knowledge, using money from donors for his campaign toward personal use, receiving unemployment benefits during the pandemic and making false financial disclosure statements to the House. These charges, according to CNN’s coverage, amount to counts of wire fraud, unlawful monetary transactions and a theft of public money. He currently has a total of 23 charges against him.
Representatives like Ark. Steve Womack, along with spearheading Republican Reps. Anthony D’Esposito, Nick LaLota and Mike Lawler want Santos out now.
“Mr. Santos is a stain on this institution and not fit to serve his constituents in the House of Representatives,” D’Esposito said during the debate.
However, Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin voted against removing Santos from his post. Raskin released a statement about the importance of due process, and that Santos has not been convicted of a crime.
“If and when Santos is convicted of these serious criminal offenses or ethics charges, I will certainly vote to expel him,” Raskin said in a statement. “Until then, it’s a very risky road to go down and we have to stick by due process and the rule of law, as obvious as the eventual result seems. In these times of war, chaos, insurrection, division and lawlessness, the rule of law is a lifeline for us.”
After the House vote, Santos made a statement on his social media account. This included a declaration that it was a “victory for due process.”
“This was never about me, and I’ll never let it become about me,” Santos wrote on X. “We all have rights under this great Constitutional Republic and I’ll fight for our right to uphold them till my last dying breath.”
Santos’ trial is set for September 2024.
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