Spurned by George Santos, voters cite crime and immigration as top issues in special election

As the New Year approaches, signs of an upcoming special election to fill the seat once held by former Rep. George Santos are popping up across New York’s third congressional district.

Even ahead of the general election in November, this is a race with national consequences, as Republicans' majority control in the House shrunk after Santos was expelled from Congress. But it’s also an early test of whether the two major parties can earn the trust — and votes — of a community spurned by an elected official who’s become a pop culture figure for fabricating vast swaths of his background and now faces criminal charges.

In this early stage of the two-month sprint to the Feb. 13 election, voters in the district, which spans from eastern Queens through northern Nassau County, are still reeling from the shock of Santos even as national issues, including immigration and crime, are top of mind.

At the Carle Place Diner on the southern edge of the district, not far from holiday-shopping hustle at the Roosevelt Field Mall, Maureen Marino, 72, and four of her friends since high school gathered for a holiday lunch. At the mention of Santos, she could barely contain her anger with local Republican leaders for failing to vet him.

“People voted for him,” said the retired kindergarten teacher, who was angry her party took his word about who he said he was. But what made her equally upset was the prospect that the seat could flip back from Republican to Democrat. She knew Democrats had picked former Rep. Tom Suozzi as their candidate and wasn’t yet familiar with Republicans’ choice.

Suozzi, who previously represented the area, spent the weekend with members of the carpenters union installing supersized law signs. He also put out a new television ad focused on his record of working across the aisle.

Political newcomer Mazi Pilip, the Republican candidate and a Nassau County legislator in her second term, began this week sitting down with media outlets interested in her stance on federal issues she’s never had to talk about locally. For the first time, Pilip has had to discuss her stance on abortion (she told Jewish Insider she’s pro-life but opposes a national ban) and President Trump (she declined to tell Newsday if she voted for him and whether she’d support him as her party’s nominee).

Back at the diner, a mainstay in that area of Long Island where an animatronic teddy bear sits at the entrance and Christmas music plays throughout the dining room, Marino was quick to say she did not want abortion to be part of the debate.

“Abortion should be left up to the state,” she said. “The Supreme Court said it goes to the state, so keep it out of the elections.”

She went on to talk about immigration (“the border has to be closed”) and crime (“the cops' hands are tied"), while saving some of her harshest criticism for President Joe Biden, whom she accused of lying and corruption.

Marino’s condemnation of Biden prompted one of her friends, 73-year-old Maryellen Conway, to speak up because she disagreed with almost everything that had been said.

“I think Biden is doing a decent job," said Conway, who lives in the Douglaston, Queens, part of the district. "I thought Trump was a disgrace.”

She agreed that Republicans made a mistake picking Santos, which hurt the entire district.

“I’d vote for Suozzi in a heartbeat because when he was in there before, he was able to handle the job, so you know what you're getting,” Conway added.

On the issues, Conway acknowledged immigration was “out of control” but stressed it was a long-time coming.

“This has been going on now for 30 years because the Congress will not deal with it because they're too afraid to lose their seats,” she said.

The group of friends were mostly aligned on crime being a problem, with Conway agreeing that people who commit offenses need to know they will be held accountable.

“If somebody does something there are consequences," she said. "You jump a turnstile, there are consequences."

Despite their differing opinions, all five women left the diner together laughing. They said they meet together monthly.

“Discussion is important,” said Marino. “That’s how you learn different ideas.”