“The insanity in Washington, D.C. and the absurdity of Jorge Santos in the United States Congress is clear to all,” Suozzi said in a statement. Report On social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Susie has held New York’s 3rd Congressional District seat for three terms, defeating Santos in her first run in 2020.
Suosi gave up her congressional seat to launch a bid for governor last year, but lost to incumbent Gov. Kathy Hochul (D). Prior to serving in Congress, Suozzi was a Nassau County executive and mayor of Glen Cove, NY.
Last week, former Santos campaign accountant Nancy Marks pleaded guilty to making false statements, obstructing federal campaign regulators, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with the congressman’s fraud and money laundering charges.
Santos was charged with multiple financial crimes, including defrauding campaign donors by misappropriating funds and lying about his work status to receive unemployment benefits he was not entitled to during the pandemic. He was also accused of falsifying information about required financial documents submitted to the House of Representatives.
The new legislator, who announced his re-election bid in April, has denied all the allegations.
The Congressional scandals earned him national notoriety when it was revealed that he had made an astonishing number of false claims about his background and qualifications when he came to office.
Suozzi has been a longtime critic of Santos. In an op-ed In a New York Times op-ed shortly before Santos took office in January, Suozzi called his successor “a gun man.” He called for “Santos to be removed from office by Congress or prosecutors because there is no indication that he would voluntarily resign out of conscience.”
Democratic challengers vying to replace Santos include Democratic fundraiser Zach Malamet, former NY State Senator Anna Kaplan and Nassau County Assemblyman Josh Lafason.
In reports Tuesday, both Malamate and Kaplan criticized Susie for leaving her congressional seat to run for governor.
“The last time Tom Suozzi represented this district, he decided to drop out and start a long-term gubernatorial campaign — making way for George Santos,” Malamate said. “Voters on Long Island know better than to give him a second chance when he comes back after paying him as a lobbyist.”
“Suozzi thinks voters on Long Island have forgotten that they abandoned us to George Santos,” Kaplan said.
“The Democratic Party is a pro-choice party, and unlike Tom Suozzi, I will always stand for a woman’s right to choose her period,” she added.
Santos faces Republican primary challengers including investment banker and Afghanistan war veteran Kellen Curry, former New York Police Department detective Mike Sabrygone and former Israel Defense Forces member Daniel Norber.
Shayna Jacobs and Isaac Stanley-Becker contributed to this report.
