By:  Hadassa Kalatizadeh

With Rep. George Santos becoming the 6th lawmaker ever to be expelled from Congress, a replacement candidate will be needed to run in the special election early next year.

As reported by the NY Post, Democrats will likely nominate former Congressman Tom Suozzi, sources said Sunday.  By mid-week a nomination needs to be made for who will run for the seat vacated by Santos, who was expelled over ethics violations.  The embattled 35-year-old Republican newbie had thwarted other attempts to oust him, when it became apparent at the beginning of his term, that he had lied about numerous things on his resume when he ran for the house.  Recently though, a scathing ethics report was released which concluded that he sought to “fraudulently exploit” his House candidacy for personal financial profit.  The expulsion, which required the high bar of two-thirds of the majority vote to succeed, will leave the house clerk to assume control of his office for the time being.  New York Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul will schedule a special election to replace him.

As per the Post, the most likely candidate for the Democrats is Suozzi, who had retired from Congress in 2022 to run for the Democratic primary for position of NYS Governor.  He lost to incumbent Gov. Hochul.  Suozzi, 61, had served as the U.S. representative for New York’s 3rd congressional district from 2017 to 2023.  The Democrat has previously served as county executive of Nassau County from 2002 to 2009.  He had also served four two-year terms as mayor of Glen Cove.  In 2006, Suozzi had also unsuccessfully run for governor against Eliot Spitzer.

Per the Post, State Democratic Party Chairman and Nassau County leader Jay Jacobs said that a final decision announcing the nominee will come either Tuesday or Wednesday of this week.  Jacobs also added that Gov. Hochul has no interest in blocking Suozzi’s bid, despite the fact that they were rivals in the primary campaign last year.  Suozzi had taken a more conservative stance than Gov. Hochul on issues including public safety as well as the infamous cashless bail law.  Jacobs said Hochul, a former congresswoman from the Buffalo-area, does not hold it against Suozzi, and just wants the Democrats to win the seat.   “It’s not in the governor’s character to hold a grudge. It’s not who she is. She’s looking for the candidate with the best chance of winning. She’s made that clear to me,” Jacobs said.

The seat, representing the 3rd Congressional District, which covers Long Island and parts of Queens, seems earmarked for Suozzi as the Democratic candidate, insiders say.  Sources for the Post said that House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee have made clear they want Suozzi for the nomination.  He has already proven his appeal in previous elections for the House and Nassau County executive, and he is a moderate candidate, which the party will need to succeed in what is expected to be a close race.  “There’s no question it will be Tom.  Hakeem and the DCCC are driving this process,” one Democratic source told the Post.

The Republican party in Nassau and Queens are also expected to name their party’s candidate for Santos’ vacated seat by the end of the week. The party was deeply criticized for not vetting Santos, and this time around they have said they will do a better job.