On Friday, scandal-plagued Rep. George Santos (R-NY) formally turned the sixth-ever lawmaker to be expelled from the Home. Santos’s expulsion adopted two earlier failed expulsion votes, important scrutiny of the lies he’s advised about his work and private historical past, a federal indictment, and a scathing investigation by the Home Ethics Committee.

In the long run, the Home voted 311-114 to expel Santos, with 105 Republicans and 206 Democrats voting in favor of eradicating him. Two Democrats and 112 Republicans voted in opposition to eradicating him, whereas two different Democrats voted current.

One massive factor that tipped some lawmakers over the sting — and supplied Republicans cowl to help Santos’s expulsion — was the eight-month investigation by the Home Ethics Committee, which was launched in mid-November. That report discovered “substantial proof” that Santos broke federal legislation and that he “fraudulently exploit[ed] each facet of his Home candidacy for his personal private monetary revenue.”

A lot of Santos’s GOP colleagues gave the findings important weight as a result of the report was put collectively by a bipartisan Home committee of lawmakers, a incontrovertible fact that gave some members the concrete justification they wanted to take motion. “I didn’t vote prior to now to expel George as a result of I didn’t imagine there was due course of,” Colorado Rep. Ken Buck, a Republican who had beforehand opposed expelling Santos, advised MSNBC. “I feel he’s been given the honest due course of now.”

Santos has known as the report’s findings “biased” and a “politicized smear” created by colleagues who need him out of workplace. He advised members in an X House (an audio chat on the platform previously often known as Twitter) that an expulsion vote wouldn’t be about any expenses he might face, however that, “I’ll be expelled as a result of individuals merely didn’t like me.”

Santos lobbed different critiques — and threats — at his colleagues forward of his expulsion, saying, “I’ll have enjoyable on my manner out. Don’t fear about it. And I’ve loads of receipts.”

In remarks earlier this week, Santos referred to allegations of home violence that Rep. Max Miller (R-OH) has confronted, and accused the lawmaker of “hypocrisy.” Beforehand, Santos has additionally steered that some Republicans are participating in infidelity and extreme consuming quite than correctly doing their work. “I’ve colleagues who’re extra nervous about getting drunk with the subsequent lobbyist that they’re gonna screw and faux like none of us know what’s occurring and promote out the American individuals,” he stated within the X House.

Following Friday’s vote, Santos stored up his feedback, arguing that, “they only set new harmful precedent for themselves,” including, “To hell with this place.”

Santos has lengthy maintained that he hasn’t dedicated any crimes, and pleaded “not responsible” to a 23-count federal indictment in a case that can go to trial subsequent 12 months. Now that he’s been expelled, a particular election will likely be held to discover a substitute to serve out the rest of his time period in New York’s third Congressional district.

What the ethics investigation stated and the way it modified issues

The most important recreation changer in Santos’s case was the ethics investigation, which concluded that Santos “blatantly stole from his marketing campaign” and that he used marketing campaign funds for private achieve and providers together with Botox, OnlyFans, and luxurious journeys.

Moreover, they discovered he misrepresented the usage of these funds to donors and didn’t correctly file reviews to the Federal Election Fee. The lawmakers referred Santos’s case to the Justice Division for any potential penalties, and shortly after the report’s launch, Home Ethics Chair Michael Visitor (R-MS) filed a decision for Santos’s expulsion.

Previous to its launch, plenty of Home Republicans stated they’d wait till the ethics report got here out earlier than they drew definitive conclusions about Santos. These findings, nevertheless, had been explosive sufficient that they satisfied a few of these Republicans to firmly state their help for expulsion and finally vote for it. Reps. Greg Murphy (R-NC), Stephanie Bice (R-OK), and Dusty Johnson (R-SD) had been amongst those that modified their positions.

“I purposely waited for the outcomes of the Ethics Committee’s report to come back out earlier than passing judgment,” stated Murphy in an announcement forward of the vote. “Nevertheless, given its findings of the information of this case, I discover his habits reprehensible and never worthy of a member of Congress. I’ll vote to expel him.”

“The quantity of fraud and abuse was one thing that was unprecedented. We’ve by no means seen that earlier than,” Visitor, who had additionally voted in opposition to Santos’s expulsion previous to the report, advised SuperTalk Mississippi Radio.

The investigation’s outcomes add to an entire slew of federal expenses and scandals that Santos faces, together with the 23-count federal indictment that expenses him with identification theft, wire fraud, bank card fraud, and cash laundering. That indictment accuses him of constructing expenses on donors’ bank cards with out their data and fabricating information about loans and contributions his marketing campaign acquired.

Past the federal expenses he faces, Santos has additionally been scrutinized for mendacity extensively about his previous, together with claiming that he had attended Baruch School, that he had labored at Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, and that he had Jewish ancestry, all of which have been debunked.

Up to now, Republicans have balked at voting to expel Santos not simply because the ethics investigation was ongoing however as a result of his district is a aggressive one. Santos received the Lengthy Island and Queens district by 8 factors in 2022, and since he’s been expelled it’s potential that Democrats might retake it. The Prepare dinner Political Report has his district rated as leaning Democratic in 2024.

Each Republicans and Democrats now count on a closely contested particular election to search out Santos’s substitute within the coming months.

Replace, December 1, 1:05 pm ET: This story was initially revealed on November 28 and has been up to date a number of instances, most lately with the end result of the expulsion vote and Santos’s feedback.