Rep. George Santos announces re-election bid amid investigations into lies

April 17 (UPI) -- Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., who is facing investigations and calls to step down after lying about his background to get elected to Congress, has announced he will seek re-election in 2024.

"I am proudly announcing my bid for re-election," Santos tweeted Monday with a link to donate. "This is about TAKING BACK our country and restoring greatness back to New York."

"Since the Left is pushing radical agendas, the economy is struggling and Washington is incapable of solving anything, we need a fighter who knows the district and can serve the people fearlessly, and independent of local or national party influence," Santos said in a statement.

Santos, who flipped New York's North Shore congressional district to red, is running again despite last month's unanimous vote by the House Ethics Committee to investigate whether the congressman "may have engaged in unlawful activity with respect to his 2022 congressional campaign."

Santos' office has said he "is fully cooperating" with the investigation, which is also looking into violations of federal conflict-of-interest laws and sexual misconduct against a former staffer. Santos stepped down from his House committee assignments earlier this year.

In addition to the investigations, Santos is facing calls by lawmakers in both parties to step down after lying about being Jewish, working for Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, attending NYU and graduating from Baruch College. Both institutions have no record of his attendance and both companies say they show no record of his employment.

Santos has admitted to using the fake name Anthony Devolder, lying about his grandparents escaping the Nazi Holocaust, and claiming his mother's death from cancer was related to the 9/11 attacks.

Santos will also enter the 2024 campaign with few finances. According to his first quarter campaign finance report, his campaign received $5,333 in individual contributions but spent $8,353 in refunds to donors.

"As a first-generation American, I am no stranger to the issues affecting my district. I grew up poor with a single mom, and thanks to the American dream, a poor boy of immigrant parents in Queens can grow up to serve his community in the halls of Congress," Santos said Monday.

Santos also used Monday's re-election announcement to tout his first bill, the SALT Relief ACT, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and increase the deduction limit for state and local taxes.

"I was elected to fulfill my campaign promises of securing our border, lowering the high cost of living, solving the disastrous SALT issue in our tax code and fighting the Hochul crime crisis of policies empowering criminals to terrorize the people of New York," Santos said.

"I've been in office for 100 days, and through legislation and my votes, I've already made significant efforts to honor those promises."