Campaign Legal Center Responds to Sentencing of Former Rep. George Santos

Date
Issues
Campaign Finance

Washington, DC — Today, former U.S. Rep. George Santos was sentenced to 87 months in prison for violating federal campaign finance laws.  

Campaign Legal Center filed the first Federal Election Complaint (FEC) complaint in January 2023 alleging misconduct by Rep. Santos, who was eventually charged with multiple crimes relating to a scheme to defraud donors and was expelled from his seat in the House of Representatives.

Saurav Ghosh, director of federal campaign finance reform at Campaign Legal Center, issued the following statement:

“Today’s sentencing is a major victory for the many voters and donors who were deceived or defrauded by former Rep. George Santos. Santos’ brazen fraud and misconduct, which included serious violations of federal campaign finance laws, was an affront to his constituents, his donors, and the integrity of our democracy. The fact that he was held accountable should speak loudly to anyone contemplating similar actions aimed at exploiting the democratic process for personal gain.

“Campaign Legal Center also commends the diligent enforcement efforts of the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), which helped bring about this result. Now more than ever, a commitment to transparency and accountability is key to ensuring that candidates and elected officials serve the public, not their own interests.

“The robust enforcement of campaign finance and ethics laws is critical to ensuring that our democracy works for everyday Americans, not politicians’ personal interests.”

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The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center advances democracy through law. We safeguard the freedom to vote, defend voters’ right to know who is spending money to influence elections, and work to ensure public trust in our elected officials.

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