George Santos Indicted, Expulsion Requires Two-Thirds Vote

(RepublicanDaily.org) – Representative George Santos (R.New York) has been officially charged by the Justice Department in a federal probe, CNN reported. Santos has been charged with federal fraud and surrendered to authorities on May 10, NPR News reported. Reportedly, the motion to expel him from the House of Representatives would require a two-thirds vote.

Prosecutors accused Santos of instigating a fraud scheme around political donations. Additionally, Santos reportedly faces charges for fraudulently receiving unemployment benefits when he was employed and running for Congress. At the time of this report, Santos had been arrested and taken into custody, but says he won’t resign, ABC News reported.

Santos pleaded “not guilty” to charges brought against him that he had faked his life story to deceive campaign donors to give him money, the Associated Press reported. Santos faces 13 counts of federal fraud charges, for crimes allegedly committed during the 2020 and 2022 election cycles, a court document obtained by the Associated Press detailed.

Santos, at the time of the alleged crimes, was a resident of Queens and Suffolk counties in New York. At the time of the alleged crimes, Santos was elected as representative of New York’s Third Congressional District, which extends into parts of Queens and Nassau counties, the court document explained. The court account goes on to explain how Santos’ campaign company, Devolder Organization LLC, was formed in Florida, with a principal place of business located in Florida. Santos was reportedly the only beneficiary of this company.

This company was referred to in legal text as “Company #1” in relation to other companies owned by Santos’ political campaign. The court document accused Santos of a scheme to deceive campaign donors to give money to Company 1 under the “pretense” that it would be used to further his political campaign. Under Santos’ direction, political consultants of Santos’ campaign were urged to communicate to donors that the first company, which was registered as an LLC, was actually a social welfare organization with 501 c(4) tax status. Santos is then accused of converting the funds gathered for Company #1 for his “personal benefit,” the court document explained.