Gay Republican George Santos won’t run for re-election after OnlyFans spending revelation
Gay Republican George Santos won’t run for re-election after OnlyFans spending revelation (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Gay Republican congressman George Santos will reportedly not run for re-election in 2024 after a damning report on his conduct, including spending campaign money on OnlyFans subscriptions.
The House ethics committee found that the New York congressman, who was accused of defrauding campaign donors out of thousands in October, “blatantly stole from his campaign”, and exploited “every aspect of his House candidacy for his own personal financial profit,” The BBC reported.
The report alleged Santos had used campaign money on botox treatments, Only Fans payments, and trips to Las Vegas.
Santos has denied the allegations, calling the report a “disgusting politicised smear”, and adding that he will “NOT be seeking re-election for a second term in 2024”.
Is George Santos gay?
George Santos is out as gay, serving as the “first openly gay Republican to win a House seat as a non-incumbent”, according to the New York Times.
In 2020, Santos said he was living with a partner Matheus Gerard, with the pair reportedly getting married in November 2021.
Despite him being LGBTQ+ himself, the Republican has a poor record on LGBTQ+ rights, previously voicing his support for Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law and vocally opposing same-sex parents as “attacking the family unit”.
After the ethics report was published, which found Santos hired one of his own companies to work for his campaign, with the company then paying Santos at least $200,000, several congress members said they would introduce measures to expel him from the House.
The committee explained: “He used his connections to high value donors and other political campaigns to obtain additional funds for himself through fraudulent or otherwise questionable business dealings.
“He sustained all of this through a constant series of lies to his constituents, donors, and staff about his background and experience.”
The cross-party panel added that Santos’ conduct “has brought severe discredit upon the House”.
In May, George Santos was accused of 13 federal crime charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, and theft of public funds, with the charges alleging that he spent campaign money on luxury designer clothing.
Elected to Congress in 2022, Santos has previously admitted to lying about his educational background, religion, and work history. He has also claimed his mother was in downtown Manhattan during the 9/11 attacks, despite reports indicating she wasn’t in the United States at the time.
After several accusations, Santos said on Twitter that he will not be seeking re-election, and that “my family deserves better than to be under the gun from the press all the time”.
