Tipsheet

George Santos Expelled From the House

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  December 01, 2023 12:15 PM

On Friday morning, the House of Representatives successfully voted to expel now former Rep. George Santos (R-NY), after previous attempts that had failed. Ultimately, the vote was 311-114, clearing the necessary two-thirds requirement by a healthy margin.

Almost as many Republicans voted to expel Santos as did not, with 105 voting to do so and 112 voting to not. House Republican leadership voted against expulsion, but many New York Republican freshman, including those also from Long Island, were among Santos' fiercest critics.

Nearly every Democrat voted in favor of expelling Santos, including Rep. Robert Menendez (D-NJ), whose father, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), is under federal indictment for a "corrupt relationship with three New Jersey associates and businessmen." Like Santos, Sen. Menendez refused calls to resign. 

Two Democrats did, however, vote against the resolution, including Reps. Bobby Scot (VA) and Nikema Williams (GA). Democratic Reps. Al Green (TX) and Jonathan Jackson (IL) voted "present."

Santos thus became the sixth member of Congress to be expelled from the House in the country's history. He was the only Republican and the only member not convicted of a crime or who had fought for the Confederacy. Santos is, however, facing numerous charges from the the United States Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York. A report had also been released last month by the House Ethics Committee.

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Thus, a new precedent had been sent to expel members before they were found guilty. However, those debating on Thursday in favor of expelling Santos spoke about how the House still had a right to expel Santos, citing Article I, Section 5, Clause 2. Rep. Marc Molinaro (R-NY) also spoke out against the need to stick to precedent.

"I was not elected, nor any of us, to defend precedent," Molinaro declared from the House floor. "I was elected to defend the United States constitution!"

After the vote was tallied, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), read the results, pointing out that the House now will now only have 434 members. The Republicans' already narrow majority has now gotten thinner, although Republicans could still keep the seat with a special election that is expected to be quite competitive. The House adjourned not long after. 

A smattering of applause could be heard after Johnson read the results of the vote. According to POLITICO's Olivia Beavers, the clapping came from Rep. Max Miller (R-OH). 

During his 15 seconds of time during debate on Thursday, Miller had spoken direcly to Santos claiming "you, sir, are a crook," despite despite how members are to only direct their comments to the chair, something Miller acknowledged. Thursday's presider, Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI), declined to grant Santos' request to strike Miller's comments from the record, given Santos' request was "not timely," though he did remind Miller of the rules. 

Miller has shared that he and his mother were personally affected by Santos, and Republican members who did vote in favor of were convinced by a email Miller sent his colleagues, according to Rep. David Joyce (R-OH).

There have already been numerous trends over X to do with Santos' expulsion, including ones such as "Bye George" and "DIVA DOWN."