Former Rep. George Santos (RN.Y.) announced online Friday that he is leaving the Republican Party and will run as an independent in the New York House of Representatives this fall.
“I am officially suspending my petition in #NY01 for ballot access as a Republican and plan to apply to run as an independent…” Santos posted on X, Formerly known as Twitter. “I intend to bring my ultra-MAGA/pro-Trump values to the November ballot as an independent.”
Santos, who faces multiple federal fraud charges, comes just weeks after the House Ethics Committee released a damning report saying there was “substantial evidence” that he committed serious crimes. He was expelled from the House of Representatives in a historic vote in December.
The former lawmaker has remained active online since leaving Congress, making a surprise appearance at President Biden’s State of the Union address earlier this month.
During his speech, Santos announced he would run again against Congressman Nick Larota (R-New York).
In a recent post, Santos referred to the “embarrassing display” in the House of Representatives after it passed a spending bill to stop the government shutdown. Immediately after the vote, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) filed a motion to remove House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana).
Santos said he had “reflected” and decided “I can no longer be a member of the Republican Party.” He argued that the Republican Party “continues to lie and deceive” voters and can no longer be affiliated with “a party that stands for nothing and follows everything.”
In his post, Santos tagged Larota and former CNN anchor John Avron, who is running as a Democrat. He said, “See you in November!”
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