George Santos resists calls for him to resign, picks up support from House speaker

WASHINGTON — Embattled Rep. George Santos pushed back Thursday on calls for him to resign by five New York Republican congressmen and Nassau County party officials, saying he would step down only if asked to by the "142,000 voters who voted for me."

Santos, who admitted fabricating his resume and faces multiple local, state and federal investigations, also picked up support from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and the Queens Republican Party chairman Tony Nunziato.

“Well, what I find is the voters have elected George Santos," McCarthy told reporters Thursday. “If there is a concern, it will go through ethics," he said referring to the House Ethics committee. "If there is something that is found, he will be dealt with in that manner, but they have a voice in this process."

McCarthy said this week that Santos is innocent until proven guilty and that Santos now is a member of the Republican conference. McCarthy has said that next week he will assign him to a lower-level committee, a regular practice for first-term representatives. 

McCarthy faces a balancing act, Democrats and Republicans say, because he does not want to see his narrow majority of 222 members shrink to 221 with a departure of Santos and a special election that could result in a Democrat being elected.

And Nunziato, whose county party supported Santos for the congressional seat, defended Santos, conceding he embellished his resume as a candidate — something the party chairman added he did not condone — but saying no authority has charged Santos with breaking the law. 

“Show me something illegal, then I can say step down. But for anybody else to say that — horrendous,” he told Newsday in a phone interview. “It’s the government of the people, not the government telling you to step down. The people have spoken.”

On Thursday, Santos raced to an elevator followed by reporters and cameras asking him if he intended to resign. From the back of the elevator, he said, "If 142 people ask for me to resign, I'll resign."

Later he told ABC News he meant "142,000 voters who voted for me" would have to ask for him to resign – though records show he won with 145,824 votes – and that the elevator cut him off. Videos show it did not and that he said “142 people.” 

Santos appeared on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” podcast, hosted Thursday by Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) in the first media interview he has given since McCarthy swore him in as an official representative of the U.S. House at the end of last week.

"It's their prerogative,” Santos said about the calls to resign by other House members and the Nassau County Republican Party. “I came here to serve the people not politicians and party leaders, and I'm going to do just that."

He added, "I wish well all of their opinions, but I was elected by 142,000 people. Until those same 142,000 people tell me they don't want me — we'll find out in two years."

On Wednesday, Nassau Republican chairman Joseph Cairo and other top party leaders called for Santos’ immediate resignation because his lies have “disgraced the House of Representatives.”

Those urging Santos to resign include two other Republican congressmen from Long Island — fellow freshmen Anthony D’Esposito of Island Park and Nick LaLota of Amityville. Rep. Nick Langworthy, the chairman of the New York State Republican Party, and Rep. Brandon Williams (R-Sennett) also urged Santos to step down. 

On Thursday, Rep. Mike Lawler (R-Pearl River) issued a statement calling for Santos to resign.

"It is clear that George Santos has lost the confidence and support of his party, his constituents, and his colleagues," Lawler said.

"With the extent and severity of the allegations against him, his inability to take full responsibility for his conduct, and the numerous investigations underway, I believe he is unable to fulfill his duties and should resign."

Democrats urged Republicans to act on Santos.

Santos is “a complete and total fraud" who “lied to the voters” and “deceived and connived his way into Congress,” House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries of Brooklyn said at a news conference Thursday.

“And it's now the responsibility of House Republicans to do something about it,” said Jeffries. "Clean up your house.”

Unlike Nassau County's Republican officials, Democratic New York City Mayor Eric Adams will work with Santos, saying when asked at City Hall if he would, “Yes, yes, definitely.”  

Adams said, “We’re going to need votes on the federal level, so until it is determined that he no longer should serve, right now, his name is congressman, and we’re not leaving any stone unturned on who we should be sitting down with to make sure New Yorkers get resources that they need."

With Laura Figueroa Hernandez and Matthew Chayes