Indicted Republican George Santos’ brief career in the US House of Representatives could come to an end on Friday, when fellow lawmakers are due to vote on whether to expel him over criminal corruption charges and accusations of misspending campaign money.
Santos, 35, has been mired in controversy since his 2022 election.
He has admitted fabricating much of his biography, and federal prosecutors accuse him of laundering campaign funds and defrauding donors.
Santos has pleaded not guilty to those charges.
He survived a previous expulsion attempt in early November, when 182 of his fellow Republicans and 31 Democrats voted against his removal on the grounds that his criminal case should be resolved first.
Without his seat, Republicans’ already slim 222-213 majority would narrow further.
His district, which includes parts of New York City and Long Island, is seen as competitive.
Santos could fare worse in Friday’s vote.
A bipartisan congressional investigation last month found that he charged almost $4,000 for spa treatments, including Botox, to his congressional campaign account.
He also spent more than $4,000 of campaign money at the luxury retail store Hermes and made “smaller purchases” from OnlyFans, an online platform known for sexual content.
That prompted several Republicans who backed him in November’s vote to say they would support kicking him out. Santos has said he will likely be expelled.
He has spurned calls to resign but has said he will not run for reelection next year.
Expelling a lawmaker from the House requires a two-thirds majority.
At least 77 Republicans, along with the chamber’s 213 Democrats, will have to vote for expulsion to meet that threshold.
House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Wednesday that he had reservations about the vote, but had called on members of his party to “vote their conscience.”
Santos would be only the sixth member to be expelled from the House, and the first who has not been convicted of a crime or fought for the Confederacy during the 1861-65 US Civil War. (NYPost)
