Ex-cop seeks GOP nod for Santos' seat

Daily Point

'Moderate' stakes his claim early for CD3

Mike Sapraicone is not waiting for the House of Representatives to kick George Santos out of Congress. On Tuesday, the former New York City detective and private security company owner will officially stake a claim for the GOP nomination in the 3rd Congressional District.

Sapraicone said he started thinking about running for Congress in October in the final weeks of the 2022 race between Santos and Democrat Robert Zimmerman. “I was intrigued, here’s a young guy with no experience making a run. Let me see how that process plays out,” Sapraicone told The Point Monday. He expected Santos to lose but once the revelations about Santos' contrived background and suspicious campaign financing start to tumble out a few months later, the former New York City detective said, “I started looking at putting my ducks in a row.”

The husband of Eileen Daly-Sapraicone, a state Supreme Court judge in Nassau County, Sapraicone, 67, acknowledged he has little political experience and that he needed to jump in early to convince Republican leaders locally and in Washington that he can win. To do so, he needs to get some name recognition and put some dollars on the board by the next financial filings, he said. Campaign consultants told him he needed to raise at least $3.5 million.

Unlike that of the incumbent, Sapraicone says his resume is ironclad authentic. It includes a stint as a trustee on the Seaford Board of Education, his position as a Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital board member, and service as a co-chair of New York City’s Columbus Day Parade. He has hired a campaign team, met with Nassau GOP leader Joe Cairo, and conducted some initial polling, all which he said was encouraging. He said he would run on the issues of public safety and the economy and providing constituent services.

Michael Deery, spokesman for the Nassau Republican Committee, told The Point that while the party has a good relationship with Sapraicone, no decision had been made yet on its standard-bearer in CD3. Noting that more than 15 people have been interviewed, he said “there is a thorough and ongoing review process.”

Complicating matters for both sides is what type of election would be held for the CD3 seat and when, and whether there is another redistricting that changes district lines. Santos is facing a 13-court federal fraud indictment as well as possible expulsion from Congress. If either results in his leaving the House, there would be a special election within months to seat a representative to finish out the rest of Santos' term. If Santos does hang on, he would have to petition to get on the 2024 GOP primary ballot since the party has declared him radioactive.

Sapraicone said Santos’ far-right, MAGA views are not representative of his CD3 constituents. Asked about whether former President Donald Trump should be prosecuted for his role in the Capitol riot, Sapraicone said the events of Jan. 6, 2021, are a “complete stain on this country” and that anyone who broke the law that day “should be charged.”

Starting out as a Republican, Sapraicone said he registered as a Democrat to get ahead in the NYPD and then switched back to the GOP when he moved to Seaford. Born and raised in Richmond Hills, Queens and now a resident of Upper Brookville, the father of five says he’s a moderate: “I can look at things from both sides.”

— Rita Ciolli rita.ciolli@newsday.com

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