George Santos Announces End Of Independent Run In 1st Congressional District

LONG ISLAND, NY — Shamed former congressman George Santos, who was punted from the house last year over ethics violations, announced in a post on his X account last night that he has decided to call it quits in his independent run for the 1st Congressional District.

In the post, he says he doesn't want his run to be portrayed as reprisal against incumbent U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota, a Republican from Amityville.

"Although Nick and I don’t have the same voting record and I remain critical of his abysmal record, I don’t want to split the ticket and be responsible for handing the house to Dems," he wrote.

"It is clear that with the rise of antisemitism in our country we cannot afford to hand the house to Dems as they have a very large issue with antisemitism in their ranks."

Staying in the race "all but guarantees a victory" for the Democratic party, he wrote.

"I have meet (sic) with leaders and with constituents and I have made the decision to hang it up here and stop perusing this race, THIS YEAR!," he continued.

"The future holds countless possibilities and I am ready willing and able to step up to the plate and go fight for my country at anytime (sic)."

He goes on to say that he will continue to take part "in the public policy discussion" and will do his "part," adding, "I will always strive to stand on the right side of history."

"It’s only goodbye for now, I’ll be back," he concluded.

Patch has reached out to LaLota for comment.

Democrats former CNN political commentator and journalist John Avlon and Nancy Goroff, the former chair of Stony Brook University’s chemistry department, have announced bids against LaLota, and are running in the Democratic June primary, Newsday reported.

Santos first sought a Republican primary against LaLota, but announced in March that he was opting to campaign as an Independent.

A spending bill approved by the House had led to Santos leaving the Republican party.

There were also calls for House Speaker Mike Johnson to be ousted.

"After today's embarrassing showing in the house I have reflected and decided that I can no longer be part of the Republican Party," Santos wrote on X at the time. "The Republican Party continues to lie and swindle its voter base. I in good conscience cannot affiliate myself with a party that stands for nothing and falls for everything."

Santos had an embattled tenure in Congress.

Not long after his taking office after his 2022 election, it came to light that his background was fabricated. He was expelled from Congress in December 2023 while facing 23 federal fraud and conspiracy counts.

At the time of his announcement to run in the 1st Congressional District, he wrote, "I will take my Ultra MAGA/Trump supporting values to the ballot in November as an Independent. I'll see you boys in November!"

Santos's trial is expected to begin in September.

Jerry Barmash contributed additional reporting to this story.