New York Democrats announced Thursday they are running former U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi for the seat now vacated by the ousted congressman George Santos. 

The disgraced Santos was booted from the lower chamber last week after reams of allegations surfaced about falsehoods and financial improprieties. Now political parties are lining up their candidates for the Feb. 13 special election. 

Suozzi previously held the seat for six years and gave the party an experienced candidate who is known to the district’s voters. The race promises to be hotly contested as Republicans now hold an even smaller House majority after ousting one of their own.

New York Democrats suffered a stinging rebuke in last year’s elections, one of the few bright spots for the GOP. Suburban voting districts flipped to Republicans, and Santos was one of the newcomers sent to Congress as part of the new Republican majority.

This led to strong criticism of Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul. Democrats ever since have ramped up fundraising efforts in an attempt to retake lost ground.

I have no sympathy for George Santos. But I watched his presser and he had valid points

MANY in Congress have done far worse than he, e.g. Adam Schiff, Maxine "James Brown" Waters, Pelosi, J6 Commission SKANKS and the list goes on…

When do we expel those scumbags?

— Kevin Jackson (@KevinJacksonTBS) December 1, 2023

Hochul told the New York Times this week that the party’s most important task in New York State “is to take back the House of Representatives from the Santos-type Republican Party and to make sure Hakeem Jeffries is the Speaker.”

She met with Suozzi in Albany in recent days and received an apology for ethical concerns he voiced during the tough gubernatorial campaign of 2022. 

As for Republicans, it’s a tough pill to swallow that they hurt their slim majority by sending Santos packing. This is something that Democrats failed to do, even with members facing felony charges and directly participating in unlawful assemblies in the Capitol.

Suozzi held the now-vacant House seat before leaving for an unsuccessful run for New York governor last year. 

He was also previously a county executive and a mayor on Long Island. 

The Nassau County and Queens County Democratic Committees released a joint statement supporting the nomination. 

“We look forward to working with the Suozzi Campaign and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee to restore integrity, competence, and a focus on the real needs of our larger community.”