Voters in eastern New York will find out Tuesday evening whether Jorge Santos' House seat, ousted from Congress over repeated lies, will remain in GOP hands or return to Democrats, nine months before the presidential election.
• Read also: An elected official because of his repeated lies was expelled from the US Congress
This byelection to end Santos' term until January — after he was expelled from the assembly in December — has national resonance because the Republican majority there is so weak.
In the New York district, which includes part of Queens and Nassau County on the Long Island peninsula, Democrat Tom Suozzi faces Republican Mazzie Belep.
Many voters have already cast their ballots in recent days, but the snowstorm that paralyzed New York and its suburbs on Tuesday threatens to reduce participation. Tom Suozzi's campaign team offered residents stuck at home a ride to the polls.
Democratic consultant Amit Bagga told AFP, “There is a good chance that Tom Suozzi will win… but it is a complicated election.”
Echoing campaign themes for the looming November presidential election between former President Donald Trump and his successor Joe Biden, Ms. Belep and Mr. Suozzi sparred over immigration and abortion.
Mazi Pilip has a unique background: Orthodox Jew, mother of seven, was born in Ethiopia in 1978 or 1979, before immigrating to Israel in 1991, serving in the Hebrew state’s armed forces and then immigrating to the United States and obtaining her degree. nationality.
His opponent, Tom Suozzi (61 years old), represented this third district in New York before the election of George Santos in November 2022.
George Santos, a young Republican elected official, distinguished himself for his repeated lies and was accused of financial crimes before Congress impeached him on December 1.
One hundred Republicans and more than 200 Democrats voted in favor of expelling the thirty-year-old man from the House of Representatives, as such a punishment had only been used five times in its history.
After New York Times revelations, Jorge Santos had to admit that he lied about entire parts of his life to embellish his resume. In fact, he never worked for US banks Goldman Sachs or Citigroup or obtained a degree from New York University (NYU).
He was also accused of defrauding donors as well as money laundering and fraud, charges to which he pleaded not guilty.
