The News
George Santos says he’s running for Congress again. The recently expelled former House member, who is still fighting a host of federal criminal charges, plans to seek election in New York’s first district. He’ll take on former colleague Rep. Nick LaLota, who led the charge to remove him from office.
Santos made the announcement on X during President Biden’s State of the Union speech Thursday night while sitting on the House floor among lawmakers who voted to oust him. (Santos still has floor privileges, despite having been removed from office.)
“Tonight, I want to announce that I will be returning to the arena of politics and challenging Nick [LaLota] for the battle over #NY1,” Santos told Semafor in a statement. “I look forward to debating him on the issues and on his weak record as a Republican. The fight for our majority is imperative for the survival of the country.”
Santos told Semafor he’ll file with the Federal Election Commission Friday and plans to move to the district within the coming weeks. The district encompasses the most eastern parts of Long Island in New York, and has been considered a swing district for three decades. Donald Trump won the area in 2016 and 2020 after voters there backed Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. But recent changes to congressional maps have placed more Republican voters in the district.